Our Sheep
We have a commercial hair sheep flock of Katahdin/Dorper cross ewes we breed for a lamb crop. These lambs are raised for two different purposes The first is our replacement ewe lambs that will join the breeding flock and raise the next generation of market lambs. We also sell breeding stock to other like minded sheep producers. The other purpose is to feed the growing population of people who enjoy lamb as a protein source. These lambs are fed at our farm or other farms then harvested for the American consumer.
We are working towards a year round rotational grazing system in which our sheep flock thrives in a low input system. Rotational grazing for our operation consists of sub-dividing permanently fenced pastures further with temporary electric polywire. These smaller paddocks are based on the amount of grass available for the ewes to eat within 2-3 days before they move to the next paddock. In the times when grass isn't available, we roll out hay in an effort to minimize heavy impact areas around bale feeders and avoid the mud. This happened from January - March in 2024 and we look forward to making that time period shorter each year.
In the past we have lambed inside the barn from January-March but had success in the spring of 2023 lambing on pasture and will continue to do so moving forward in an effort to keep our labor needs as low as possible and reduce interfering with the lambing process. We have found that lambing outside on pasture in May and June has allowed our ewes to move away from the rest of the flock and lamb in peace. This also lines up well with the flush of spring grass and gives our ewes high quality feed to produce milk and grow their lambs.
We want to share some things that have been invaluable to us as we've learned and changed our philosophy about raising sheep.
Books we have gained great insight from..
The Turnaround: A Rancher's Story by David Pratt
Natural Sheep Care by Pat Coleby
Dirt to Soil: One Family's Journey into Regenerative Agriculture by Gabe Brown
Knowledge Rich Ranching by Allan Nation
Management Intensive Grazing: The Grassroots of Grass Farming by Jim Gerrish