Back to basics with sheep healthcare
Being a shepherd is so much more then we realized almost 20 years ago. We're eager to apply what we've learned and get back to what nature intends and what we intended!
Let us just admit it, we got complacent.
In the early days of this farm I made a lot of declarations about how I wasn’t going to adopt a system of livestock care that relied too much on pharmaceuticals and not enough on what mother nature intended for them.
In the early days we questioned everything that came our way. If the books and periodicals said vaccinate, we said why? We talked to vets and read. We were able to take the recommended annual shots from 6 to 1, sometimes 2. Mind you, that was almost 20 years ago but you get the message. We were asking the questions and trying to start off on the right foot, giving the sheep’s needs for living a full and healthy life our full attention. Fast forward almost 20 years and you have 2 farmers working hard to stay ahead of the pastures, the draughts, the losses, the equipment, and wait, I’m making excuses. Yep. We just plain lost sight of our “lighthouse”. When 5 sheep grow to 100 it is harder to manage each individual sheep’s needs (not impossible though). So, in a long, round about way I’m getting to the gist of my post….
Parasites! The number one enemy of sheep and number one reason folks should think hard about raising sheep. The easiest and honestly most full proof method to rid a sheep of parasites is to de-worm with chemical based de-wormers. It has always been our goal not to do that if we can avoid it. We certainly followed our rotation of the sheep through the pasture divisions and we did it according to the experts, some years better than others. Rotation keeps the sheep moving, not eating the grass down too low where the parasites hang out. Problems arise when you don’t plan for drought or you accidently over populate the flock because you have a friend that is selling out and it’s killing her to have to sell her sheep one by one so your big heart has to step in and help, not even thinking about the consequences it might cause on your own farm!
We over taxed our pastures!
We didn’t have the time, or didn’t take the time to realize what was happening. We had a manageable but growing parasite population on the farm. We were rotating and deworming regularly as the hot humid conditions persisted and became more frequent. We went through 1of the 3 available classes of de-wormers in about 6 years. The worms were then resistant to that class (the most effective I might add, Ivormectin). How does that happen? Alot of possibilities and theories but the most understandable is that the dose rate is by weight. We're left with guessing because it’s difficult for most small farms to afford or accommodate scales for 130-250 pound animals. There's no way a small farmer can be sure. We’re close but not exact. So we might underdose? Depending on what we read or conference we attended we’ve been different information, sometimes to double the dose, sometimes definitely not? Some of that information came from vets. Long story short, the efficacy of the drugs are diminished or destroyed by inaccuracies in the dosing. The parasites are slowly resistant. We now have a parasite population that is resistant to the de-wormers! Argh! My research tells me this is a problem world-wide. I actually couldn’t believe the numbers world-wide when I looked closely! Sadly, the sheep industry doesn’t warrant millions of dollars spent in research to address the problem. What’s a farmer to do? Canada has a new de-wormer available that isn’t available to us yet but I think we’ve learned a huge lesson in not being dependent on the pharmaceuticals anyway. Let’s get back to our original philosophies!
We have a plan.
We believe parasites won’t pose such a problem if the sheep's gut health is balanced. Heard that before? Yep, just like us, sheep are being deprived of what their systems need. They're put on pastures with monotype forage and asked to keep their PH in check? They need more. Plus an acidic gut will be more resistant to parasites, this we know. I took a class taught by an organic vet, Dr. Paul Detloff. Someone in the class asked about their flock presenting with black mouths. Dr. Paul responded with a question… “do you have black walnuts?” with the response yes, Dr Paul shared that black walnut is a perfect offering to sheep with parasites. The black walnut is acidic and will help their gut heel. The most exciting part to me is if given the opportunity, sheep would find it themselves. Of course they would. Nature knows!
We also believe there are natural de-wormers. We just have to spend some time testing and experimenting. The “old timers” used many a method. We’re reading and planning. We are excited and hope to turn our difficult year into a positive one.
So, here we go replanting Rosemary around the barns, encouraging our black walnut trees to grow and bare and to make sure these and many other natural foods and supplements are available to the sheep. I'm digging through new and old medical journals. As a farm we are determined to overcome this and actually do something that we intended from the beginning.
Stay tuned. Will keep you posted.
-
September 2024
- Sep 10, 2024 Back to basics with sheep healthcare Sep 10, 2024
- Sep 10, 2024 Mac and Cheese Bites Sep 10, 2024
-
August 2024
- Aug 12, 2024 Tales of a female farmer Aug 12, 2024
-
July 2024
- Jul 12, 2024 Caring for sheep hides Jul 12, 2024
- Jul 11, 2024 Cucumber Lemonade Jul 11, 2024
- Jul 1, 2024 Cucumber Gazpacho Jul 1, 2024
-
May 2024
- May 23, 2024 Almonds, Sweet and Spicy May 23, 2024
-
January 2024
- Jan 17, 2024 Sheep fencing gone wrong… Jan 17, 2024
- Jan 17, 2024 In the beginning :Tales from the shepherd Jan 17, 2024
-
April 2023
- Apr 3, 2023 The journey to vegetarian, or not? Apr 3, 2023
-
March 2023
- Mar 20, 2023 Making sense of scents, or not... Mar 20, 2023
-
February 2023
- Feb 26, 2023 Lamb Sliders Feb 26, 2023
-
March 2022
- Mar 15, 2022 HOW TO BE THE BEST SHEPHERD: Lessons from a sheep Mar 15, 2022
-
January 2022
- Jan 17, 2022 Lamb Bone Broth /Stock Jan 17, 2022
-
April 2021
- Apr 26, 2021 Farming through Covid Apr 26, 2021
-
June 2020
- Jun 19, 2020 Turning 60 Jun 19, 2020
-
January 2020
- Jan 12, 2020 wool dryer ball transparency Jan 12, 2020
-
September 2019
- Sep 10, 2019 It's hard not to project Sep 10, 2019
-
June 2019
- Jun 21, 2019 Weaning, a whole new meaning Jun 21, 2019
- Jun 17, 2019 Strawberry Balsamic Basil Pops Jun 17, 2019
- Jun 10, 2019 Collard Salad Jun 10, 2019
-
February 2019
- Feb 28, 2019 Shearing Day was not a washout! Feb 28, 2019
- Feb 5, 2019 The life of a sheep! Feb 5, 2019
-
January 2019
- Jan 25, 2019 Lamb Liver Paté Jan 25, 2019
-
August 2018
- Aug 23, 2018 Pokeweed, Friend or Foe? Aug 23, 2018
-
July 2018
- Jul 20, 2018 Cucumbers Galore Jul 20, 2018
-
September 2016
- Sep 5, 2016 Mother Nature's Lessons Sep 5, 2016
-
August 2016
- Aug 23, 2016 Walking the Walk Aug 23, 2016
-
July 2015
- Jul 2, 2015 To Wean or not to Wean Jul 2, 2015
-
February 2015
- Feb 1, 2015 Sustainability & Our Precious Soil Feb 1, 2015
-
July 2014
- Jul 24, 2014 Squash Lasagna Jul 24, 2014
- Jul 24, 2014 Squash Squares Jul 24, 2014
-
June 2014
- Jun 2, 2014 Sustainability...What's it all about! Jun 2, 2014
-
May 2014
- May 29, 2014 What I know now.... May 29, 2014
-
April 2014
- Apr 4, 2014 Is the boss the farmer or the sheep? Apr 4, 2014
- Apr 3, 2014 Felted Chicks Apr 3, 2014
-
January 2014
- Jan 28, 2014 Lamb Ribs Jan 28, 2014
- Jan 26, 2014 DIY Wool Dryer Balls Jan 26, 2014
- Jan 15, 2014 Let the New Year Begin Jan 15, 2014
- Jan 13, 2014 DIY Heat Jan 13, 2014
-
October 2013
- Oct 30, 2013 WHOLEsome Food: EGGS Oct 30, 2013
- Oct 7, 2013 Cinnamon Pickles Oct 7, 2013
- Oct 7, 2013 Dog Biscuits Oct 7, 2013
-
September 2013
- Sep 18, 2013 Peaches, Peaches everywhere Sep 18, 2013
-
August 2013
- Aug 14, 2013 The Spider and the Butterfly Aug 14, 2013
-
July 2013
- Jul 30, 2013 They don't wear galoshes Jul 30, 2013
- Jul 21, 2013 Blackberry Lime Jam Jul 21, 2013
- Jul 11, 2013 Lamb Sliders Jul 11, 2013
- Jul 9, 2013 Our Little Orchard Jul 9, 2013
- Jul 2, 2013 The Hay Bale Fiasco Jul 2, 2013
-
May 2013
- May 17, 2013 My Secret Place May 17, 2013
- May 2, 2013 April. Did I miss it? May 2, 2013
-
March 2013
- Mar 28, 2013 Prada to Carhart Mar 28, 2013
-
February 2013
- Feb 21, 2013 Puttin Up the Fence Feb 21, 2013
- Feb 7, 2013 Lovely Cup of Chai Feb 7, 2013
- Feb 5, 2013 Looking for Llama's Feb 5, 2013
-
January 2013
- Jan 29, 2013 Winter Garden Jan 29, 2013
- Jan 24, 2013 The rams are back in their pasture Jan 24, 2013
-
September 2012
- Sep 7, 2012 Pickles! Sep 7, 2012
-
June 2012
- Jun 13, 2012 Morning Gifts Jun 13, 2012
- Jun 5, 2012 Finding the Words Jun 5, 2012
-
April 2012
- Apr 13, 2012 The girls and a few token boys! Apr 13, 2012
-
March 2012
- Mar 30, 2012 Flavor! Mar 30, 2012
-
October 2011
- Oct 9, 2011 Hay. A little three letter word that packs a PUNCH! Oct 9, 2011
-
July 2011
- Jul 22, 2011 The Glorious Tomato Jul 22, 2011
-
February 2011
- Feb 10, 2011 Shearing Day 2011 Feb 10, 2011
-
November 2010
- Nov 30, 2010 This farm gives me Goose Bumps Nov 30, 2010
-
July 2010
- Jul 23, 2010 Another aHaa Moment in Farming Jul 23, 2010
-
February 2010
- Feb 24, 2010 Farmers Wearing Lace? Feb 24, 2010
- Feb 16, 2010 Girls with no Coats Feb 16, 2010
-
January 2010
- Jan 4, 2010 Midnite on the farm Jan 4, 2010
-
April 2009
- Apr 22, 2009 Hard Day on the Farm Apr 22, 2009
- Apr 15, 2009 Lamb Meatballs Apr 15, 2009
- Apr 14, 2009 Spring Apr 14, 2009
- Apr 14, 2009 Roasted Coffee Marinated Leg of Lamb Apr 14, 2009
- Apr 13, 2009 In the Beginning Apr 13, 2009