I’ve read that keeping milk jugs filled with salted water floating in the tank can keep it from freezing but have never tried that. If the temperatures in your area go down to well below freezing, you may need to use a stock tank heater or some other way of keeping your water from turning to solid ice. To me, one thing is clear: Always have a source of clean, unfrozen drinking water for your sheep. whether she is pregnant or even nursing.Water The most necessary and hardest thing to provide in really cold weatherĪccording to the Michigan State University Extension, the amount of water a sheep needs in the winter depends a lot on many things, such as: Read more: These 5 tips will help you prepare your gardem tractor for winter. Lambs do come running out in the morning with a few shavings on their wool, but they fall off before too long. My sheep are wool sheep, but we don’t shear for spinning, so I use a mixture of low-quality hay (cheaper than straw around here) and pine shavings. The fine particles can get stuck in the wool and make a mess of a fleece if you shear for spinning. One thing I don’t recommend for wool sheep is sawdust. You can use straw, hay, pine shavings, wood chips, peanut hulls or corn stalks. You need to make sure it offers some insulation if the sheep want it. Moisture and ammonia can cause respiratory problems in sheep-think pneumonia and bronchitis.Īnd don’t even think about heating the building! Sheep-and even newborn lambs-are very cold tolerant s0 long as they have a dry, draft-free place to go.īedding is another issue. If you do use a fully enclosed building, it’s important to make sure there is adequate ventilation so that humidity doesn’t build up when the sheep are inside.
#Flock of sheep windows
My husband built an adequate, dry, ventilated shed for our flock purely out of found materials, including some old windows that a neighbor was giving away. You can use an old chicken coop (we did when we only had five lambs) or any type of structure that gives the sheep some protection from the elements. The shelter can be a simple, three-sided shed or it can be a fully enclosed building. Face your structure to the south if you can and block out the northerly winds. What they do need is a place to get out of the wind or rain or snow. Sheep don’t need fancy or elaborate shelter in the winter.
In my mind, the big three are shelter, water and food. Granted, there are things you can and should do to ensure that your sheep stay healthy and happy over the winter. Yet, many people worry about their livestock more as the weather cools down. In many ways, winter weather is not as hard on sheep as hot, humid summer days.
#Flock of sheep trial
I’ve learned through trial and error that it’s smart to clean out the barns and test stock tank heaters BEFORE you need them! There’s nothing worse than going out the first morning after you plug your tank heater in to find out that it’s frozen in 3 inches of ice. In spite of the crazy up and down temperatures in October and early November this year, I’ve started preparing my livestock (and myself) for a plunge in temperatures as winter sets in.
0 kommentar(er)
