[Jacob-list] (no subject)

[Heather Hettick]

I have a ewe who I think may be a shedder.  Each year I shear pretty early,
either before lambing or this year I sheared after March lambing in April.
This one ewe seems to get a break well after lambing.  I thought I'd hit the
break by shearing in April, but maybe next year I'll wait a little longer on
her if the weather isn't too warm.  It's frustrating because she has a
really nice fleece and I always have to comb out the tips to use it and she
looks like a mess in the spring and summer with the bits of wool coming off
of her.

It could be nutrition somewhat, as she had twins the last two years and this
year got really thin for a brief time when they were nursing a lot and last
year had mild ketosis due to being overweight and pregnant with twins.  Last
year, I think she actually may have had a break associated with her ketosis.
She was shorn just days before lambing so maybe was sheared right on that
break and then did the shedding  later in the season on top of that because
she started dropping about 1/4 inch of wool.

Her twin daughters from last year do not appear to be shedding at all, but
they both had singles.  I wonder if it could be somewhat nutrition related
as she lost her first lamb and produced a perfect fleece that year but I
guess she wasn't carrying broken tips from the previous year.  I'm curious
to see if her daughters will shed next year though.

Almost all of my ewes shed belly wool to varying extents, but only this ewe
gets the really scraggly look.  I've considered catching her and trying to
brush out the broken ends, but it's just not a priority and I don't like
bothering the sheep if it's not necessary.

Does anyone else see shedding after early shearing or could the stress of
feeding hungry twins be enough to cause a break even though lots of food is
available?  I was feeding grain into April until the grass took off and she
is a dominant ewe and was able to get plenty of it.  I even grained her
separately for a while when I noticed her dropping weight.

Heather Hettick
Moonstruck Jacob Sheep
Creston, OH
hettick.1 at osu.edu
  -----Original Message-----

  From: jacob-list-admin at jacobsheep.com
[mailto:jacob-list-admin at jacobsheep.com]On Behalf Of WenlochFrm at aol.com
  Sent: Wednesday, July 11, 2001 7:30 PM
  To: blotham at yahoo.com; jacob-list at jacobsheep.com
  Subject: Re: [Jacob-list] (no subject)


  In a message dated 7/11/01 7:15:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
  blotham at yahoo.com writes:



    We didn't get around to sheering until the 14th and
    15th of June. Both of our older ewes had shed all of
    their belly wool and some under their chin and down
    the neck. They have done this in years past when we
    have been late in sheering. I just thought that it was
    stress from lambing. lol!



  Joking aside, if a ewe has a break in the wool from lambing, there is a
  problem with nutrition. A ewe on a good nutrition program will not have a
  break just from lambing unless there is an illness or some other stress
also
  involved.

  Joan Franklin

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