katahdinherder Posted January 12, 2007 Report Share Posted January 12, 2007 I have Katahdin sheep that are close to one year old. But the ram is not even trying to breed the ewes. How old and when do they start to breed? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Fosher Posted January 13, 2007 Report Share Posted January 13, 2007 Usually ewes will become sexually mature and active somewhere between five months and eight months of age, particularly if they reach this age when the day length is shortening. Katahdins have a pretty long breeding season, so daylength wouldn't be as much of a concern with them. Body size and nutrition also play a role. Ewe lambs that are small for their age will be later to start to cycle. I'd think it pretty unusual if they hadn't been cycling for a few months now. Here are some possibilities: 1.) They are already bred and you just didn't see the activities. Some gentlemen are discreet. 2.) They were bred by him or another ram (ram lamb?) before you realized they were cycling. This is a common problem in flocks that don't castrate ram lambs. 3.) The ram is a slow worker or has low libido. Dorpers are notorious for this. I know one shepherd who tried a Dorper ram and it took him eight weeks to settle 30 ewes. 4.) The ram is a dud, sick, injured, or otherwise unsound for breeding. The only ways to know for sure is to expose them to another ram and see if he is interested or to ultrasound the ewe lambs and see if they're in lamb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthfieldNick Posted January 13, 2007 Report Share Posted January 13, 2007 I keep a Katahdin ram around to breed my first-timers to- love those small lambs that come out bouncing. I have seen him breed exactly ONE ewe, but every ewe I've exposed to him has lambed. He's very seeet & spends a lot of time courting, but he likes his privacy, I guess. Bill is right- expose them to another ram... or wait 145 days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pipedream Farm Posted January 15, 2007 Report Share Posted January 15, 2007 Last year we didn't see our new katahdin ram breed; but our ewes lambed within 3 days of one another. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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