[Jacob-list] Tree-killing sheep

[Black Sheep]

Hi Jaci

I'm surprised you have got away with it for 8 years !  Our primitives, including Jacobs, have always eaten tree bark.  In fact every winter we give them pollarded willow tops to browse.  They chew on the tips and they strip off the bark. (this prepares the stakes for us to use in the garden - without bark they won't sprout) There are plenty of minerals under the bark which are essential for their health.  Willows also of course contain salicylic acid, aspirin, which probably makes our sheep feel good.  Oaks have tannins which are perhaps just tasty or may help with combatting parasites.  I can't imagine what they find in firs which appeals but even rabbits will chew on them so there must be something - maybe resin is sweet, but I haven't tried it myself.  We don't have American cedar or madrone here so I don't know about them.  The very favourite choice for our sheep is apple and pear trees, which I suppose are quite sweet - this means disaster if they get into our orchards.  Ensuring they have enough minerals available as a licky bucket may help, but here they take both - trees and buckets !  The only reason I can think that your sheep have suddenly started this behaviour would be if you have recently brought in new stock - a sheep which can teach them new tricks !

Although you do have a lot of trees to protect, my advice would be to do that.  You could wrap chicken wire loosely around each trunk, starting with the saplings, and remembering to check it each year for tightness and to make sure it's not damaging the trunks.  You also need to watch out for bacterial infections in your trees from the open wounds caused by the sheep.  Painting tar on the wounds would help to seal them and might just deter the sheep too

Keep us updated

Juliet in Scotland UK

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Within the past couple of weeks my sheep decided to eat trees.  They are tearing off the bark on pine, madrone, cedar, oak, and fir trees.  The trees range from saplings to 2 ft across.  It doesn't matter, they are after them all!  We have not changed their diets or location so everything is the way it has been for 8 years, but they just started this.

We've spray the trees with vinegar, bleach, and deer-away.  None of this seems to deter them - and we have 200+ trees on the property so wrapping the trees is not practical.  And there is no place to put the sheepwithout trees. 

Any suggestions as to why they started this or how to stop them?  I heard spanish halters (whatever they are) is an idea.  I only have 7 sheep but that is too many halters to buy, but I might try making one, if I knew what they were.

Jaci Siehl
Sugarpine Jacobs
530-538-9474
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