The Winteb Lamb ®ije ^, p, ^m pkarg ^orti; QIaroltwa ^tate dolkge NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES S01 949420 T Date Due Cbc mmr tmh BY H. H. Miller, H. P. Miller, J. E.. Wing. THIRD KDITION MECHANICSBXTRG, OHIO J. E. ^VIIVG, PUBLISHER 190T |6'^ ^' PREFACE It has seemed to the authors that, with all the long list of works on sheep, nothing quite met the case of the Dorset Sheep under American conditions. This work is the result of their experience. They have purposely given prominence to things that in their experience have proved important and slighted others that have not seemed of much importance in their management. Failures with Dorset sheep are usually the result of ignorance. Methods that will result fairly well with some breeds, for instance with Merinos,, will not do for Dorsets if one wishes to get from them their peculiar possi- bilities in the way of profits. Finally we submit this as an efifort towards help and feel that the breeder must be a past master in the gentle art of shepherding not to find some hints here that will be useful to him. And we crave your kind in- dulgence if we have slighted some things and magnified others ; we have spent the most time telling of the turns where we ourselves missed the ris^ht turnins^s. THE. DORSET El W E ^^ COUNTY DORSET is one of the most southerly of the counties of England. It is a warm, sunny, shel- tered county, having hills and valleys, arable lands and pastures. It is one of the oldest civilized parts of England. Here the Ro- mans landed ; here they buildeJ cities and walled them ; to- day some of the walls are standi::g, and the roads are often as laid off by them. When the breed of Hern sheep was first introduced into Dorsetshire history does not recount. Doubtless the breed was there in Roman days. It has been there ever since. No other breed has been able to supplant it, though at different times other sheep have been popular in parts of Dorsetshire for a time. They have always had to give way, however, to the old breed of Dorset Horns. Whv is this ? THE DAIRY SlIEKl' Go back half a century and more. Sheep were the dairy animals of Dorset, and parts of the adjacent counties of Somerset and Devonshire. The best milking ewes were se- lected, their ewe lambs were retained. Already the Horns were famous for their milking qualities. This use intensified the qualities. From this time and this custom then comes the wonderful milkinor properties of the Dorset ewe. *'I xmr^l^r^?^ ^ ^ **A8V«Bn 3931100 "wY-v 6 THE WINTER LAMB. was raised on Dorset milk," remarked Dick Stone to the writer. This milking trait, once so well established, formed the foundation for the somewhat later development of the early fat lamb business. THE EARLY LAMB. Sheep in a state of nature drop their lambs on grass, and it is hard to induce them to conceive to drop them earlier. The Dorset is so much an artificial production, has been so long under the moulding hand of its shepherds, that it has lost this instinct and now the lambs come in the late Fall or early Winter months. The shepherds have provided abundant winter food for so long the ewes have learned to look for it ; the habit has been so firmly fixed that Dorset ewes habitually lamb in November, December and January. And they will lamb earlier than that if rightly treated. This habit is' of the utmost importance and value. It is this habit that gives the Dorset ewe her great value in her native land. There her lambs are born out of doors, preferably in the pretty, wind-protected valleys — it is a mild clime, in these sheltered valleys — there is generally some grass, there are turnips and hay, and the little lambs are fed with their mothers upon our corn and what they term "cake," that is oilmeal. The little lambs grow prodigiously, filled to burst- ing by their mother's milk, and eating grain like little pigs. Lambs in Dorset will even get too fat to walk, as little pigs will sometimes in our land. In winter and early spring these round, plump, sweet, juicy lumps of baby mutton go to the London butchers. They bring good prices, what would be considered fabulous prices in our country. Thus it is that the shepherds of Dorset stick by their Horn sheep. It is, perhaps, first a sentiment, it is next a matter of profit. No other sheep in the world has in it the capacity for profit that the Dorset Horn has. And this is true in America as well as in her native county of Dorset. THE WINTER LAMB. GETTING FALL LAMBS. In taking the Dorset away from her native hills it must be borne in mind that you have changed the conditions ma- teriallv. To get the same results that have been gotten in Dorsetshire then you must in some measure supply similar conditions. How are we to do this? Well, let us start from what we might call a basis of comparison. In Dorset- shire the ram is usually coupled with the ewes during June and July, but in this climate (referring to the Eastern and YEARLING RAM3 Middle States) that any large and uniform success in breed- ing Dorsets as late as June and July will result, we think improbable. Why? Because it is too hot then. Now most seeds require great warmth to germinate ; some, like the sweet pea, prefer cool conditions, so we plant them early. The same reasoning applies to sheep. Their natural time of mating is fall, October and November, cool months. So if we want them to breed in the spring we should select cool periods. This seems a simple thing. Yes, it is. And like many simple things is overlooked. When we started with Dorsets we were told and read they would breed any time of the year ; also, that June was the month to mate them for fall lambs. We tried them in June for several seasons, but 8 THE WINTER LAM 15. with partial success only. This experience convinced us that while Dorsets will, in isolated cases, breed any time cf the year, that for uniform and complete success t!:c "any time" must be a time when conditions are right. We were now on the. true track and realized that for spring br-cedin^^ we must select a time as near like the natural period of fall as possible, and (equally important) have the ewes as near like their naturnl fall condition r.s possible. To meet these desired conditions we suggest tlie observance of the follow- ing: 1st. — Have the ram with ewes not earlier than middle of ]\Iarch, not later than middle of ]\Iay. 2d. — Put ram with ewes nights, not days. 3rd. — Use young ram, and feed hi::i well while in service. 4th. — Do not have ram too fat. 5th. — Do not have ewes too thin. 6th. — If ewes were not shorn in fall, shear as early as you dare. 7th. — Feed ewes green food, such as ensilage, turnips, carrots, mangels, etc., with some corn. If ewes lambed previous fall and are dry, this feed is not necessary until a few weeks before you are to put the ram with them. But no matter what the condition of ewes, no matter what you have been feeding, increase the quantity at this time. For remember that during fall a ewe is nat- urally gaining flesh, while during spring the tendency is to lose flesh. Reverse this tendency as far as a little feed will do it, and make that extra food as nearly "green as grass" as you can. And remember, never, XE\'ER let lambs be>^ born later than April or before September. Separate your rams from your ewes the first of November. Any ewes not with lamb then will breed for next fall and late lambs are of little value as a rule and to be discountenanced among Dorsets. TIID". WINTER LAMB. GETTING THE PROFITS. I have mentioned the feeHng of sentiment that doubt- less contributes to the persistency with which the shepherds of Dorsetshire cling to their favorite breed. In our country there is Httle of sentiment in sheep breeding; we are newer at the business ; we have an immense expanse of land ; a varied climate, and nearly all breeds of sheep in all parts of the country. There is none of that confining, of a certain breed to a certain county, or even state or section. And it is this faith in the breeding of one kind of sheep by the inhabitants of a limited area that creates sentiment. But of profit — well, if all haven't it, all want it. And I say again, no breed has a greater capacity for profit than the Dorset. Properly understood, and consistently handled on the basis of such understanding, a small flock will surely add a pleasing sum to the annual income, while a good sized flock, such as the average farm of the Eastern and Middle States could surely carry, will represent a good liv- ing. For instance, I know of one man who for years has realized about $2,000 annually from a flock of about 100 ewes. This is equal to the sales from a good sized dairy, yet the cost of feed and labor would be much less. Surely as an early lamb raiser the Dorset is a money maker. When you have studied the breed and business, make a start, you will then realize fully the pleasures and profits. RYE AND OATS PASTURE. Here is a combination that will furnish most excellent fall pasture. And how the ewes and lambs will relish it ! Winter rye is often pastured in the spring; but with oats, sown as a catch crop on odd bit of ground, it is especially certain and cheap as a fall pasture. Unlike rape, rye will grow on poor land, while oats in the fall will' grow wherever they're dropped. Everyone can find a place for a few acres. lO THE WINTER LAMB. If no other available land, after corn is cut, run cultivator or riding harrow over corn stubble and sow broadcast. If your corn is cut clean, not too many ears lying on the ground, you can turn in few hours each day before husking; how- ever this practice requires watchfulness, for while it will take the lambs a long time to discover and eat com ears, the ewes will soon nose them^ out and if left too long at a time may eat too many. When they do get to eating them, if you leave them all day, you'll very likely find a dead ewe or so at night. Some may say, why not pasture a regular crop of rye and not bother with this extra piece? Well, you can ; we have ourselves, but the practice has many ob- jections. The crop may not be much injured if it has good top, the young timothy (usually sown with winter rye) will though, and then the ground will be compacted so as not to be in as good condition for clover seeding the following spring. It is much better to have a piece by itself, you'll get tw^o or three times the amount of feed from it and won't worry over possible injury. Just make up your mind to have it and you'll find the land. Sow any time during September, use twice as much rye as oats, put on thick, not less than three bushels to the acre. When up so as to look green and grassy turn on, don't be afraid, as there is no more risk than with grass. It is good practice though, with THE WINTER LAMB. II any special fall pasture, to turn on grass first for a few hours. Your other pasture will last longer, and your sheep will do better. SUMMER CARE OF PREGNANT EWES. Good summer care is a very simple matter. Three things are necessary, grass, water, shade. In the matter of grass, either good native pasture or a run in clover or alfalfa will do. There is this danger of clover or alfalfa pasture for the ewe not giving suck to a lamb, she is apt to become too fat. There is nothing equal to blue grass at this period. But in using it one should remember the danger of parasitic infec- tion that comes from the use of blue grass. We will speak of this later. Water should be clean, as fresh as possible to supply, kept in raised troughs that can not become fouled with excrem.ents. There is danger of parasitic infection from the drinking water. This is especially true when the cheep are required or allowed to suck up their drink from marshy seeps, tiny streams, grass-bordered or stagnant pools. The excrements roll down and pollute the water, the germs that they doubtless contam are hatched there, the sheep take lliem in agani end in ever increasing numbers. And while mature ewes w"ill not often pine away and die as lambs will, yet none the less is it weakening to them to be preyed upon by these internal parasites. Not only stomach-worms but tape-worms are spread by the too continual use of pas- tures. It is a safe rule never to stock a pasture to its capac- ity with sheep. Better always keep half on it what it would carry and graze it also with cows, or perhaps horses. SHADE. You may depend upon it that your flock will seek shade and will need it. If you are wise you will train them to come to the barn, or to sheds, where they will get the most comfort and their droppings will be under cover. There are 12 THE WINTER LAMB. two things gained by this. The manurial value of the drop- pings is saved, whereas if they are piled year after year beneath forest trees they do you very little good, and the danger of infecting the land is much reduced. I know of fields where ewes always lie along the old fences seeking shade. There is a strip of very rich, rank grass along THE WINTER LAMB. I3 these fences. This grass is deadly to lambs and dangerous to ewes because of the parasites that it harbors. The lamb is often hungry. He lies down a little while, then jumps up, goes a little way and nibbles the grass. He takes in the germs and perishes from them in due time. This, if there was no other reason, would lead me to condemn the prac- tice of allowing ewes to shade along fences. PUMPKIN FEEDING. As fall comes on the grass is perhaps short and dry and there is room for some artificial feeding. Of all the substances that may be grown and fed to ewes and lambs in the fall none compare with pumpkins. First, they may be grown so cheaply. Our practice is to grow them in the corn where they are a catch-crop of almost clear profit. We find it necessary to plant a great many seeds in order to get what pumpkins we need, owing to the ravages of the small striped bug, and this is the only secret we have ever ob- served in getting a crop of pumpkins. Certainly, they need rich soil. In feeding we never remove the seeds as they are the ricbest parts and the part that give to pumpkins their great value to the shepherd. Pumpkin seeds are among the best vermifuges known. They destroy and expel tape worms, and I think clear out many forms of worms ; certainly I do know that you may take an old ewe, her skin white, her eye dull, every appearance of her being diseased, feed her all the pumpkins she will eat for a few weeks and she will renew her youth. When we have them in abundance we haul them out by the ton, simply strewing them about the pastures and allowing the sheep to gnaw into them at their pleasure. CARE IN PUMPKIN FEEDING. Like many another good thing, however, pumpkin feed- ing may be carried too far. There I: danger that the preg- H THE WINTER LAMB. nant ewe may become too fat if allowed all the pumpkins she will eat. This is the only danger and the remedy is easy. PUMPKINS FOR MILKING EWES. After the little lambs come is the time when pumpkins come in good play. There is nothing so good for the milk- ing ewe. Soon, too, the little lamb will begin to nibble them. They will do him no harm, though he will need stronger food with them, grain of some sort. These pumpkins will keep indefinitely, and may be used until about Christmas. I give this much space to the pumpkin because it is of such easy culture and surely no farmer who is keeping sheep need try to do without tliis help. THE RAPE PLANT. Quite often rape will be a great help, [f a small field can be sown early to tide over the hot, dry part of summer and fall it will be of great use, and it may be sown in the corn at the time of last cultivation where it will to a large extent keep down weeds and after the corn is cut it will come on if the season is favor- a lot of fall and early winter pas- be necessary to haul away the corn before sheep can be turned in, as they soon learn to hunt for the ears and gorge themselves. In truth in cutting the corn, or in husking it from the stalky unusual care should be taken not to let too much corn remain scattered on the ground. Dorset ewes have the sharpest eyes and the best appetites of any sheep and will glean every ear before they do much else. There is danger, of course, of their getting too much corn. Rape is generally safe feed, though there are times when it will bloat the ewes. It is not usually safe to allow them to remain constantly on it for they will become able, and make ^ It will THE WINTER LAMB. I5 too fat. This is not true after lambing. We have seen them bloat to distress on rape but have never had any die, and there is prol)ably little danger from feeding it at any time. It should never be turned on when frozen, not that it will hurt the ewes so much but each leaf that is bent or disturbed when frozen, will be killed and wasted. It takes a cold of about 12 degrees to kill rape. In selecting a field for rape good land should be chosen and it should be remem- bered that ewes will need to run thereon when it is moist so that if it is a field of clay, apt to pack hard, it may be unwise to sow to rape. If the sheep are taken off at Christ- mas, however, there will generally be time for frost to liven up the packed land. "Rape may be sown with oats, barley, winter rye or wheat. If sown with winter rye or wheat, harrow the rye field in early spring and sow about two pounds of rape seed per acre, harrowing lightly again after the seed has been sown. Such harrowing will usually be helpful to the rve crop. Rape seed can be sown with oats or barley, but if this is done the growth of rape is liable to become so rank, especially if the season is a wet one, that the plants will grow as tall as the oats or barley. When this happens trou- ble occurs at harvest time owing to the green rape plants being cut and bound in the sheaves, causing them to rot under the bands. The following is a better plan : Eight or nine days after sowing the oats or barley, when the young grain plants are three or four inches high, run a slant-tooth harrow over the field to loosen the soil. Then seed two or three pounds of rape and harrow lightly again. By seeding in this way the grain crop has so much the start of the rape that the latter is kept small and spindling until grain is harvested. After harvest the rape plants getting the benefits of sun and moisture begin to grow, and in good season the field will soon be covered with green forage. Rape seed can be sown broadcast any time from April until August. For broadcast £6 THE WINTER LAMB, seeding prepare the land as for oats and sow three or four pounds of seed per acre and harrow in lightly. Land on which rape is sown broadcast should be comparatively free from weed seeds and in good condition generally." — Henry. CARE OF I-WLI. AND WINTER LAMBS. Fall lambs come strong and can look after themselves ; there is little or no trouble with the ewes, the most important A GOOD TYPE thing is to watch their udders, for they have full ones at that time. We make a practice of putting the ewes on thin pasture a few weeks before the laml)s are due, then as fast as they drop the lambs we take them to the barn, where they are kept for a few days, getting a bite of hay and a bit of grain. As soon as the lambs take all the milk, the ewes can be put en full pasture of grass, rye and rape, until snow flies. One thing to bear in mind is, these lambs should never get wet ; fall storms are not like summer showers, and they are very severe on young lambs, even the heavy dews of fall nights where the pasture is tall and heavy should be avoided. THE WINTER LAMB. 17 For this reason and also because it is safer for the ewes, pas- ture the rye, rape and new seeding of grass during the day, and put them on the short grass at night. The best way of all is to bring them to the barn for over night; they will have shelter in case of sudden storm, and anyway when the lambs are a few weeks old you will want to teach them to eat grain ; the barn is the place to do this. They should have a room or space all to themselves ; it should be shut off from the main building by a door that slides up and down. This door should have a space for a creep that can be opened and shut independent of the door. When all the lambs are in their room, shut the door and make them stay there until they have eaten all their feed. The creep can then be opened so they can run in and out to nibble at the hay. This method is much more effective in results obtained than using the creep alone. With the latter only many of the lambs, especially the younger ones, will spend most of their time creeping in and out, while the others eat all the feed or muss what they do not eat. Another advantage with Dorsets is that fewer horns are broken, the lambs never rushing and crowding through the creep. It is very easy to teach the lambs to go into their own room. At first you may have to catch a few, but they will soon learn to run right in, one fol- lowing the other. The time the ewes and lambs can run on pasture will oi course vary Vvath the seasons. But as long as they are on pasture one feed of grain per day will be sufficient. And the way the lambs will grow with the pasture and the one feed will be a revelation to all who have only handled spring lambs. GRAIN FEEDING BEF.ORE LAMBING. If ewes are in good heart it is never necessary to feed grain before lambing unless in small amounts. It is not often sale to feed much grain to the pregnant Dorset ewe. THE WINTER LAMB. I9 The result of too much grain feeding is apt to be a weak lamb, hard to induce to live, whereas Dorset lambs are, when their mothers are rightly managed, the strongest lambs in the world. Dorsets are hungry sheep. They will always, if not sick eat everything before them. There is no sheep with a better appetite or digestion. The inexperienced shepherd is quite apt to over-feed them. Good, sound clover or alfalfa hay is quite good enougli for the pregnant ewe after green stuffs are gone. Let her have a plenty of it. If you must feed some grain to keep her in iiesh because of the badness of your hay, feed oats and bran, equal parts by weight. There is no sheep easier kept in flesh if she is not worm- infested. If she is cared for as she should be she will not be that. HOUSING. It is not well to keep the pregnant ewe very closely housed. She ought to have a good run and every day when it is not actually storming she should be out. Sometimes the run of a dry feed-lot, with coarse fodders to pick over in the vard will l)e sufficient, and this course has the advantage of the flock being always in view and stray lambs being born are apt to be seen. With others a bit of grass of ten acres or more, not too closely grazed in the fall, will be pro- vided and on this the ewes will take a great deal of pleasure and get quite a good deal of nourishment. They must at all times be in the mind of their shepherd, for lambs may be iDorn out on the grass or in the snow, but you must not let this fear deter you from giving them their daily run out of doors. It must not be thought, however, that because a certain amount of outdoor life is good no shelter at all is better. A comfortable barn is needed, and, in truth, in the Northern states indispensable. SHEDDING. A comfortable shelter, closed tight on the north, west and east sides, with chance to open well on the south and 20 THE WINTER LAMB. preferably with considerable glass where it will let in the sun, is what you need. It need not be an expensive structure. It is better to have storage for hay above. There must be ample provision for fresh air to come in from the south, so that cold blasts will not come with it. Let there be a yard attached, preferably on the sunny side, ^^'ater may be in the barn, or in the yard unless in a very cold country. Every night the flock should be confined to their barn. It will be found that the lambs will mostly come in the night. And if the doors are open it will generally be found that the ewes will come to the barn to drop their lambs. Too close shut- ting in will work harm to the flock. Too much exposure will cost you their thrift and the loss of some lambs in severe weather. In the South, Dorsets thrive with no shelter at all save that aflforded by hill, tree and shrub. Yet, in general, it will be found that it will take less feed and the flock will keep in better condition to shelter them especially from all rains in cold weather. WINTER FEEDS ENSILAGE. There is great diversity of opinion as to the value of ensilage for sheep, or rather to be more accurate, the diiler- ence of opinion is more as to whether it can be fed with safety, for the ensilage itself is generally admitted to oe a good feed. Some sheep feeders will not use it at all ; some of our experiment stations condemn it as a sheep feed. For our part, we have fed it for many years to both lambs and ewes, and consider it both safe and of much value, especiallv so for ewes with lambs by side. But it must be used ^^ith judgment, which means not to feed too much or too often. Our practice is to feed once a day during winter or cold weather only ; we take daily from the silo the amount of a day's feed, put it by itself and let it remain for a few hours until it becomes cool to the touch. Late in the spring or THE WINTER LAxMlJ. 21 during hot weather we would not feed it to sheep. Also, let sheep feeders beware of it when taken from near the jjottom of the silo; it is then very wet and chuck full of acidity, a slow poison for sheep. You don't need a silo in the sheep business, but you can use one if you have it and want to. If you keep Dorsets they will thrive without ensilage, so will you. ROOTS. Sheep without roots ! Hamlet without the Ghost ! Car- rots, turnips, mangels, there is no question about the value and safety of this trio. I name them in the order of their excellence as sheep feed. I might add that carrots are the hardest to grow, the best to feed ; turnips the easiest to grow, the most universally fed ; mangels the surest to grow, the poorest to feed. They all need rich ground, all will do better on a rather heavy soil, but you can get a good crop from light soil well enriched. Carrots should be sown about corn plainting time in rows two and a half feet apart, the rows slightly ridged, this ridging facilitates weeding, makes easier pulling ; sow quite thick to insure good stand, as they are shy starters ; when up a few inches thin with a broad hoe, leaving little bunches between strokes of hoe ; thin these bunches by hand to. one plant. After this there is little work. Use the large stock varieties, not the table carrot. Turnips can be sown from middle of June to middle of July in rows two and one-half or three feet apart, either flat or ridged high ; sow them thin but even ; they are quick, easy starters ; when well up, thin at once (don't let 'em get big) with hoe to one plant twelve or fifteen inches apart. An occasional cul- tivation afterwards is all that is needed. Use the Swede varieties. Mangels should be sown early in the spring; sow same as turnips, only thicker, as they are slow to start and many seeds will not sprout if a bit dry ; care for them same as turnips, but thin farther apart. The ew^s and especially 22 THE WINTER LAMB. the lambs, will be crazy for the carrots, and you are not apt to have enough to feed too many. They will eat the turnips eagerly, too, and many shepherds think you can't feed them too many ; we have had large experience in feeding turnips, having used them in unlimited quantities for ewes, rams and lambs. We think pregnant ewes can be fed too many, and that it is better to limit them to one moderate feed per day until after lambing, when they can safely have as many as .»..#/: ^R ■ ^T :il ra"l_, i i^' ^> they'll eat. Mangels contain the most water of the three, and are rather chilly eating on a cold winter's day ; they are perhaps the best keepers, though, and are very acceptable to sheep in late spring, although we have the idea they do not like them as well as turnips, and know that carrots are ''pie" to them compared with mangels. Care must be used in feed- ing mangels to rams, as in quantity they have deleterious effect upon the bladder. If you keep Dorsets, grow ^ome kind of roots. Dorsets are the alchemists among sheep, and will turn them into gold for you. THE WINTER LAMB. 23 CLOVERS AND LEGUMES. You are engaged, now, in making milk and baby flesh. Each is largely composed of protein, to produce which you must feed protein. That means to buy large amounts of wheat bran, gluten feed or oil meal, or it means to produce your own protein supply. You can do this most easily by growing red clover, alfalfa, soy beans or cow peas. ALFALFA. This is the richest and most easily grown hay in the world. Sheep love it. It is the best maintenance ration for ewes before lambing in winter and the best basis for any combination of feeds for them after lambing. And almost anyone can grow it who has sheep. The reason is that it requires, MUST have, rich soil, and sheep make manure that will enrich that soil. Take an acre or two as a begin- ning, on dry, pervious soil, where it is dry and firm in winter, apply manure liberally, plow deep in early spring, work down to a good tilth and sow one or two bushels of spring beardless barley to the acre and 15 pounds of alfalfa seed. Cover the seed lightly. Roll it if not too moist. Cut the barley for hay or grain and mow the alfalfa close once or twice that summer after the barley is taken ofif. Keep all stock ofif during cold or wet weather ; in fact, keep them ofif at all times for the first two years. You will now have a set of alfalfa that will give you from three to eight tons per acre the second year and for many years thereafter. Mow the alfalfa as soon as bloom appears in the spring and at intervals of about thirty-five days thereafter. And sow another acre or two as you get the manure and the experi- ence. Woodland Farm began ten years ago with an acre and now cuts nearly 250 tons yearly besides pasturing a good deal. There is absolutely no danger in feeding alfalfa hay, but THE WINTER LAMB. 25 there is need of care in pasturing green alfalfa. The danger comes from bloat and that is the result of indigestion, caused by the animals eating too greedily of the delicious green feed. We let the alfalfa grow up about twelve inches tall, then, w^hen the sheep are full of green grass, and at about ten o'clock, when the sun is warm, turn them into the alfalfa. Thev remain there constantly except that they come to the barn to shade during the heat of the day. They go back as soon as they care to graze. Treated in this way, we have had no loss from bloat, but have had magnificent results in development of our young sheep. Caution. — After frost alfalfa should never be grazed, as it is apt to cause indiges- tion and death. There is no crop that will return so much feeding value per acre as alfalfa, if you are on alfalfa land, or will take the trouble to make your land alfalfa land. If your land is deficient in lime it should be well limed after it has been well manured ; lime alone will not make alfalfa land of it. If it is based on shale, close to the surface, it may not pay to sow alfalfa, which roots cjuite deep. RED CLOVER. What will secure a stand of alfalfa will also secure a stand of red clover, though, as it is a biennial, it need not be expected to remain in the soil more than two seasons. It has a rich nutritive value and should always be cut for sheep before the heads are brown. SOY BEANS. In the Northern states the soy bean is a rich gift. Planted in drills about 22 inches apart, cultivated once or twice, cut with a binder and threshed, they yield from 15 to 30 bushels per acre of extremely rich beans, which will go far towards balancing a ration. Sheep are very fond of these beans, and 26 THE WINTER LAMB. also of the leaves and stems, if saved without rain. John B. Peelle, who is a leading hot-house Dorset lamb producer re- lies greatly on his soys and saves immensely in his feed bill READY FOR NEW YORK AND GOOD FOR $10.00 (From Peelle's Place) thereby, besides producing $10.00 lambs in abundance, early varieties north. cow PEAS. Sow In the Southern states and along the border there are regions where neither red clover nor alfalfa are to be de- pended upon and where soils need building up to fit them for other crops. Here the cow peas come in exceedingly well. They are great soil builders, rich in protein, make good sum- mer or winter forage and are the great reliance of the South- THE WINTER LAMB. 27 ern shepherd. Cow-peas sown among ensilage corn help to balance that ration; sown among soiling crops of rape or sorghum serve to balance them and enrich the soil at the same time. They must not be sown until after the land is warm in the spring. CANADA FIELD PEAS. There is sometimes a confusion of terms. The Canadian field peas are much like ordinary garden peas, and must be sown very early, on good soil, with oats or barley as a soiling or pasture crop. Cow-peas are really beans, must be sown late, will grow on soil that will not produce Canada peas. The Canada peas and barley make an ideal soiling feed, or the lambs may run through creeps and eat the mixture, and will thrive thereon first rate. The advent of hot, dry weather finishes the Canada peas, however. PUTTING THE LAMBS FORWARD. A good old English practice is to hurdle the field with creeps so that the lambs may "run forward" of their mothers, thus getting the first bite of the fresh feed. From time to time the hurdles, or panels of movable fence, are moved up and the lambs' ewes clean up what the lambs have been over. This is a good way to make fine lambs at small expense and to keep them free from parasites. The best of all for the babies always. SHEARING. There is no sheep easier to shear and shear well than the Dorset. The wool cuts easily; the operator can as well as not leave a smooth, close-cut surface. The machines work well on Dorset sheep, and some of the best American flocks are shorn by machines altogether. The use of the machines is most discouraging to ticks, which are almost certainly cut in two and destroyed. Care should be taken not to 28 THE WINTER LAMB. shear too close after flies are troublesome, as there is not enough wool to protect the sheep after the machine shear has been over her back. The last week in Alarch or early in April is a good time to shear the flock ; in warm climates it is often well to shear again in late August. This double shearing does not make much more wool, perhaps no more at all, but it is a relief to the overburdened sheep. MARKING. The English method of marking by branding figures in the horn is a good one but slow, and necessarily the horn must first grow so that some means of marking the lambs must be adopted. Ear labels of various sorts are on the market, and all are open to the objection that they lose out. Some breeders use the tattoo mark with success, though others fail in using it. The secret of success with the tattoo mark is, first, see that the jaws are exactly pandlel. They may be made so by careful use of the file. The points of the letters should indent evenly a thick piece of paper. Next, plenty of India ink should be used. The points should be firmly pressed in and immediately the ink must be rubbed into the wounds. The advantage of the tattoo mark is that it does not deface the ear, is absolutely permanent and can not be transferred by any trickster from one sheep to an- other. Tattoo markers are made by F. S. Burch, 178 Mich- THE WINTER LAMB. 29 igan Street, Chicago, 111. The first cost is rather heavy, but in the long run there is a saving, as the ink is cheap. WEANING. Don't be in a hurry to wean lambs that are to be kept. There is nothing like mother's milk, unless it is more mother's milk ! Let the lambs have access to all the bran and oats they can eat ; all the green feed and the mother's milk, too. You can shorten the time of development at least one year by liberal feeding. It takes less feed to make a sheep if it is fed in one year than if it had been fed in two years. When the lambs are separated from their mothers take away the ewes ; the lambs fret very little. If there is yet milk in the ewes remove it a few times, not quite clean. DIPPING. "A man ought to bathe once a year, whether he needs it or not." So of the sheep. Dip them once a year, whether they netd it or not. There are almost surely a few ticks, maybe a few lice on them. Dipping costs but a trifle. Provide a steel tank, galvanized. Sink it in the floor of your sheep house. When not in use cover it with good planking. A tank six or eight feet long will answer for a small flock, and as they are all narrow it takes but little stuft* to fill them. Have the draining pen long and narrow, so that as the sheep walk up one at a time they may be let out ahead. Pen with movable hurdles or panels. Half a day with three active men will dip a flock of a hundred. The carbolic dips are safe and good. There is no profit in ticks, though there is much money in them, at present ! MATING. "The sire is half the herd ; if he is a poor one he is all of it." Get a vigorous sire. Do not think too much of size. 30 THE WINTER LAMB. Look that he is active, muscular, aHve all over. See that he is big through the heart. See that he has a straight back, a well sprung rib, a good, short, straight leg. See that his horn is strong, well turned. See that his neck is thick and muscular. Have him well wooled all over. Study your scale of points. Don't quibble about the price, but be a stickler for quality. If he is not right you will regret it all your life, maybe, for it takes ten years' weeding to undo one year's bad breeding. And every year send to the butcher the ewes that vou know are inferior. THE WINTER LAMB. SCALE, OF POINTS, Adopted by Continental Dorset Club. HEAD — neat, face white, nostrils large, well covered on crown and under jaws with wool 5 HORNS — small and gracefully curving forward rather close to jaw c; EYES — prominent and bright 2 EARS — medium size, covered with short white hair .... 2 NECK — short, symmetrical, strongly set on shoulders, gradually tapering to junction of head 5 SHOULDERS — broad and full, joining neck forward and chin backward, with no depression at cither point (important) 15 BRISKET — wide and full, forward, chest full a::d deep 8 FORE FLANK — quite full, showing little depression behind shoulder 8 BACK AND LOIN— wide and straight, from which ribs should spring with a fine, circular arch 10 QUARTERS — wide and full, with mutton extending down to hocks = 10 BELLY — straight on under line 3 FLEECE — medium grade, of even quality, presenting a smooth surface and extending over bellv and well down on legs 12 GENERAL CONFORAIATION— of the mutton type. body moderately long; short, stout legs, placed squarely under body, skin pink, appearance at- tractive . . , . , I ^ Total 100 3? THE WINTER LAMB. DISEASES OF SHEE,P, THIS is not meant for a scientific discussion of diseases and remedies ; it is merely an effort to group the com- mon ailments under their common names in alphabetical order. The remedies given are tried ones and the directions brief and simple, just as if we were talking to each other. Where there is no prac- tical, tried remedy known, no attempt is made to appear erudite by naming possible ones. In such cases prevention is indicated, which after all is the Great Sheep Remedy. ABC Ailments and Remedies. Abortion — Strictly speaking this is not a disease, but the re- sult of disease or accident. Among sheep it is seldom epidemic. If the contagious form appears the cause must be ascertained in order to apply any remedy for checking the spread. In cases of epidemic abortion you should get the advice of a veterinary. Individual cases are mostly the result of crowding the animals through narrow spaces; rough handling; fright or injury from any cause. Braxy — This is a disease of sheep ; but the term is so variously applied in different sections that it is not wise to specify causes or remedies. Bloating — Give tablespoonful baking soda, and half table- spoonful ground ginger in pint of water. Fasten mouth open with band of straw or piece of corn cob ; straddle the animal and gently but regularly knead or work the extended sides. Use the trocar as a last resort. THE WINTER LAMB. 33 Barren Ewes — Too much flesh is usually the cause. Force constant exercise: reduce feed for month or more be- fore breeding; then feed liberally. Choking — Give small doses of linseed oil, and work throat gently with hand. As a last resort, bunch securely a rag on end of piece of whalebone or other flexible sub- stance, oil, and push carefully down throat. Casting the Withers— See Prolapsus Uterus. HOW THEY RUSTLE, SNOW OR NO SNOW. Diarrhea-Scours— Give teaspoonful to tablespoonful castor oil to suckling lambs. For older sheep change pasture or feed. Protracted cases can be helped by giving handful wheat flour in feed. Diarrhea of weaned lambs and mature sheep is often caused by worms ; also by certain weeds in pasture or hay. In such cases the cause must be removed. Docking— Use the docking irons or pinchers. About a week old is good age to operate. But if the lambs are strong any age from few days to fortnight will do. 34 THE WINTER LA:MB. Foot Rot — Cut carcfull}' away every particle of the diseased part, and ajiply salve made of blue stone and lard. Tie coarse bagging around foot to keep salve on and dirt out. AV'hen the rot extends into the flesh above the hoof, wash with a 50 to i solution of carbolic acid, and apply powdered burnt alum. Running sheep through fresh slaked lime watered to the consistency of paste is great preventive of foot rot. Dry lime put around feeding and watering places is helpful also. Garget — This often follows neglected caked-bag, particularlv apt to if ewe is exposed to wet and cold. If udders are properly looked after at lambing and weaning time it will seldom occur. For general treatment see Caked- Bag. Goitre — There is no known remedy that will prevent this serious trouble. Fortunately it seems to be prevalent only in certain parts of this country. As it is hereditary, afifected animals should never be used for breeding pur- poses. Iodine will reduce the swellings. Constipation — For sucking lambs give castor oil, teaspoonful to tablespoonful, according to age and severity of trou- ble. For mature sheep use epsom salts, 4 to 6 ounces in pint of warm water. Xever give salts when there is evidence of pain. Substitute raw linseed oil, or^ better yet, castor oil. The use of stimulants in small quantities, such as brandy, gin or whisky, will increase the action of the cathartics. Castration — From two to four weeks old is convenient and safe age to operate. Apply an antiseptic after opera- tion, such as the carbolized non-poisonous sheep dips. Colds — Give teaspoonful carbonate iron, as much quinine as nickel will nicely take up, and wine-glassful of whisky. Repeat every other day for a week or so. Caked-Bag— Keep udder milked out, and do not allow ewe to THE WINTER LAMB. 35 be exposed to cold and wet. Apply to udder a lini- ment made by mixing i quart tincture of arnica, 6 ounces tincture of belladonna, and 4 ounces spirits of camphor. Rub on vigorously with palms of hands. If a ewe has a very large, extended, hard-feeling udder before lambing, do not hesitate to milk it out some. Never change suddenly from low feeding to high feed- CROSS-BRED DORSET-SHROPSHIRE LAMBS. Ready for Market on Woodland Farm. ing in a Dorset ewe; the result is apt to be caked-bag. Too much corn feeding is inducive to this trouble. Grub in the Head — This term is usually applied to a grub that is laid alive in the sheep's nostrils by the Sheep Gad Fly, during the hot months of summer. The grub works its way upwards, causing much distress and "snotty noses." There is no complete cure. The preventives are any con- trivances that help the animal to escape the fly. Tar on the nose repels the fly ; but it is a difficult thing to keep the noses always tarred. Shady places and strips of 36 THE WINTER LAMB. plowed ground to lie on, and long grass are helps to the sheep. Death seldom results, but great distress and worry does. These grubs cannot possibly reach the head proper or brain cell. There is a grub, though, that gets there by way of the spinal canal. There is no practical cure for this kind of grub in the head. It is sure death to the animal. A skillful surgeon might resort to trepanning, but, aside from the expense, this would be a doubtful operation, as often the grubs are three, four or more in number, and lodged in different parts of the brain cell, so all could not be removed. Gid or Staggers — Some authorities call grub in the head by this name, as in its advanced stages the sheep's brain is affected and it staggers about. These symptoms follow the grub in the head proper, not the grub in the nostrils, which commonly goes by the name of grub in the head. There are several ailments which cause sheep to stagger and stumble, and each of them is often called by this name. Highly fed sheep will sometimes accumulate blood too fast, and it will go to the head, causing this staggering symptom. Generally when the sheep acts this way it is surely going to die, no matter what the cause. Hoose or Husk — Another name for lung disease. See Paper Skin for treatment. Impaction — Young suckling lambs are subject to this, espe- cially the richly nourished ones. The milk becomes hard or impacted in the intestines. When a fat lamb hangs its ears and mopes around it is verv likely impaction. Give tablespoonful castor oil; if this does not move the bowels, give injection of warm soap suds. For mature sheep give wheat bran, with little salt, made into a mash. For severe cases, two or three ounces each of raw linseed oil and molasses will make a strong purga- THE WINTER LAMB. 37 tive. jMatiire sheep are not subject to this ailment if fed at all properly. Inflammation of the Stomach- -This may follow neglected cases of impaction. The sheep's evidence of distress and pain in the stomach will indicate this trouble. Two ounces castor oil, with half ounce of laudanum, will re- lieve somewhat the pain. If there is fever, as is prob- able, five to ten drops of aconite will be of help. Keep all feed away for day or so, and then feed lightly of succulent, laxative food. Knotty Guts — See Xodular Disease. 38 THE WINTER LAMB. Liver Flnke — This is a disease of the Hver caused by internal parasites. In its advanced stage it is hopeless to give medicines. The source of infection must be ascertained and destroyed or sheep removed from same. The drink- ing of stagnant water is common cause. Lice — L'se any of the standard sheep dips as directed. Dal- matian powder applied with powder gun is effective for red-headed louse. Lung Disease — This is a disease of the lungs caused by in- ternal parasites. Some writers refer to it as paper skin. The animals lack bloody the skin looks white, also the lips and eyeballs under the lids. As with most other internal parasites, there is no known cure for this. For general treatment of anaemic condition see Paper Skin. Nodular Disease — Knotty guts : This is a disease caused by internal parasites. x\n examination of the intestines will reveal numerous little tumors or knots growing to same. Alany sheep are more or less aft'ected with this, and no apparent harm results. At times and in certain sections it is very destructive. Xo positive remedy is known. All that can be done is to give extra care, change of pas- ture, and avoidance of any possible source of infection. This disease is more common and fatal in the South than in the Xorth. Paper Skin — Properly, this is the name for lung disease. Generally, though, it is applied to sheep in an anaemic condition, and this condition is the result of various diseases. There is a lack of blood in the system, causing the skin to appear white and lifeless like. Carbonate of iron is a blood builder, and a tonic of this with equal parts each ground ginger and gentian is very excellent for the anaemic condition. A tablespoonful of the mix- ture once a dav in feed for a week or so. A sheep in good health has a pink, inviting skin. When the skin TIIK ^^■IXTER LAMB. 39 gets pale or white it is a sure sign of some ailment. As soon as this symptom appears start at once and give extra care and attention, and feed with above tonic. Prolapsus Uterus — Falling or protruding of the womb. Many cases called this are merely the inversion of the vagina — literally the turning inside cut of the lining membrane. The rectum also sometimes protrudes. Give laxative foods. Thoroughly cleanse the protruding parts, anoint with raw linseed oil \\ith little laudanum in it, knead gently and return. Give internal! v four ounces of raw linseed oil with tablespoonful of laudanum. If above is not successful after a few trials, it will be necessary to fix straps or harness so as to hold the protruding parts in for a few days. Rheumatism — Young lambs are occasionally affected with a stiffness and lameness of joints. It may be lamb founder ; but m early spring is apt to be caused by lambs lying on cold, damp ground. Keep yards well bedded with corn stalks or other roughage, so lambs cannot lie on bare ground. Scours — See Diarrhea. Scab — Use any of the standard dips as directed. Sore Mouth— Rub scab off and apply a non-poisonous car- 40 THE WJXTER LAMB. bolic sheep dip. Powdered burnt alum is also effective where it can be made to remain on. The seat of this trouble makes it difficult to apply remedies. It will, however, usually disappear of itself. Sore Eyes — Cleanse with warm water and drop little witch- hazel in and around e}es. Gcum on Eyes — Usually will disappear without treatment. Introduction of any substance to cut the scum is cruel practice of very doubtful necessity. Relief can be given by washing as for sore eyes. Snotty Xose — A symptom of Grub in the Head or a Bad Cold. For treatment see both these headings. Swelling Under the Jaw — This is not a disease, but the symptom of several ailments. Often it accompanies an anaemic condition. For general treatment see Paper Skin. Scanty Urine — Rams and wethers may have trouble in mak- ing water. Give from one-half to one ounce sweet spirits of nitre; put pinch of powdered saltpetre in feed for several days. Do not feed mangels. Stone in the Bladder — This is another ailment of lambs and wethers. Like goitre, it seems to be largely confined to certain sections of country. There is no positive cure for this ailment. ^Mangels cause it, and aggravate mild cases, so they should not be fed in any great quantity. Stomach Worms — There are many kinds of stomach worms. Usually, though, the term is applied to the strongylus contortus, among lambs, one of, if not the most fatal of all internal parasites. An eft"ective remedy is ben- zine or gasoline given in sweet milk for three consecu- tive days. A dose is from teaspoonful to tablespoonful. according to age of lamb. Add to each dose about half glass of sweet milk. Shake well together. Shut lambs THE WINTER LAMB. 41 Up over night so as to give on empty stomach. Have as- sistant set lamb on rump when you give the medicine, and be sure he holds head in natural position for the posture, otherwise strangulation may result. See chap- ter on Parasites. Xicks— Use any of the standard dips as directed. Tape Worm — At times and in some localities this worm proves very destructive. Ordinarily, though, a few tape worms seem to be a necessary accompaniment of a lamb s o-rowth and do no harm. If numerous thev can be expelled with any recognized vermifuge, such as pow- dered araca nut in one to two dram doses on empty stomach. Follow in from twelve to twenty-four hours with a cathartic. Pumpkins arc good, as the seeds act as vcrmifrge. 42 THE WINTER LAMB. LAMB FOUNDER. There is a peculiar dis- ease of lambs that causes them to become very stiff in their joints. It may at- tack one joir.t or all the limbs may be affected. They he around a great deal an 1 move painfully. They sel- dom die, but are checked sadly in their development. The cause of this distress- ing ailment is to be sought in the ewe. She has been unwisely fed. ]\Iost prob- ably she has been allowed to gorge herself on grain, ^1 or her feed has been changed abruptly from a light ration to a heavy one. This creates indigestion and a peculiar poison in her system that shows itself most in the lamb. There is no cure but time, and an avoidance of the contributing causes. So far as we have observed a high feeding of corn is most apt to cause this disorder. While the suckling ev,e should be well and even highly fed, she should never be changed suddenly from a light ra- tion to a heavy ance of corn. The Lambs so Gentle the Girls Pet Ther one, nor should she ever have a large allow- BROKEN HORNS may cause the death of the lamb. Sometimes a sort of blood- poison sets in that causes the head to swell so that the eyes are even swelled shut. There is no help for it but time after the infection has occurred, but if at once when the THE WINTER LAMB. 43 horn is noticed to be broken the stub be smeared with some carboHc sheep dip there will be no infection and no bad re- sults. One should plan his pen so far as possible to be tight and smooth so as not to catch and break the horns, which are very tender at a certain stage of development. DOCKING TAILS. There is but one right way to dock tails, that is with the docking pinchers made by F. S. Burch, 178 Michigan Street, Chicago, 111. These iron pinchers are heated to redness and the tails severed ; no bleed- ing occurs, and the tails may be made very short. This is best done at about ten days of age. If there are flies a smear of tar or sheep dip will deter them un- til the wound is healed. It heals very quickly when the pinchers are used. Take a board six inches square, bore an inch hole through the middle of it, tlirust the tail through thib hole and cut as close as you can. The board holds the tail and prevents scorching the lamb. CASTRATION. For the winter market to go from their mothers' sides it does not matter whether the lambs are castrated or not. Some growers always castrate, others never do. It is prob- able that if the castration is done carefully and soon enough the lamb may fatten faster than if his testicles were left in. The castration of lambs a week old or less is a simple mat- ter ; the end of the scrotum is cut off, the testicles drawn out, cord and all. a little lard and turpentine placed in the wound and in a short time the wound is healed. 44 THE WINTER LAMB. Later in the season, when ram lambs have been let go and some have turned out badly and are not fit for breeding rams they are hard to castrate without loss, but the docking pinchers may be used again, taking off the entire scrotum, as you would dock the tail. I have never seen ill results follow this operation, and have castrated rams six years old in this manner. Care should be observed to have the pinch- ers quite hot. SORE MOUTH. There is a contagious sore mouth that affects lambs and sometimes sheep. Warty scabs form on the lips and nose, making it difficult for the lambs to eat. Similar sores appear .'^il' A Gra::e " Rent P^yer." on the ewe's teats. The cure is simple. Rub off the scales and apply some carbolic sheep dip. ^lilk-oil, made by F. S. Burch, 1/8 Michigan Street, Chicago, has proved eft'ective in the experience of the writer, and one application has always been sufficient. There is another form of this sore mouth that is confined to the lambs. It is more difficult to cure, but after running its course will quickly disappear. SORE EYES. The -.^/ntagious sore eyes that sometimes appear among the flock in Winter ^.^2 also easily and quickly cured by a THE WINTER LAMB. 45 tiny drop of sheep dip dropped in the eye. It should be di- kited about ten times with water and not only a little allowed to penetrate the eye, but the face should be scrubbed with it, especially wherever the tears have run down the cheeks. There is no excuse for allowing these and similar petty dis- eases to spread and become formidable ; a little watchful care, a little disinfecting with carbolic dip, and the disease is cured and its spread stopped. ]\Iilk-oil, or some similar carbolic preparation, should always be at hand in a bottle ; or, better, an oil-can on a shelf in the sheep barn. INTERNAL PARASITES. Would it were as easy to keep the inside of a sheep clean as the outside. Unfortunately this is not so. Sheep suffer greatly from a number of internal parasites, but in America the chief and almost only important one is the tiny stomach-worm. The lambs that are dropped in fall and kept on clean pastures until cold weather are seldom trou- bled with these pests ; the lambs dropped early in winter and fattened and sold before June are safe, but the late lambs that must run with their mothers on grass are apt to become affected. The symptoms are a general lack of thrift, a sunken condition of the fleece, a paleness of the skin, the eating of earth and rotten wood, a slight cough, sometimes scours, at other times constipation, emaciation and often death. One should never see a lamb die on his place without dissecting it to learn the cause. If it is stomach-worms, they may be easily found in the small fourth stomach, the place where the intestines begin. Stomach-worms are small, hair- like worms, about three-fourths of an inch long, twisted in the middle, from which they take their name, Strongylus Con tortus. They may be present in sheep having apparent good health ; they may even in small numbers distress the 46 THE WINTER LAMB. lambs ; they may be found in immense multitudes, blocking the intestinal canal. They seem to greatly disturb the digestion and assmiilation, and no lamb will thrive with these pests within him. The infection is nearly always from the grass or from stagnant water fouled by sheep's excrements. The ewes are apt to be slightly afifected, the worms discharge immense numbers of eggs, perhaps at all seasons, certainly in spring and summer. The immature worms in some way cling to the grass and are taken in by the lambs when grazing. In some mysterious way nature aids the older and stronger sheep to throw ofif most of these pests, while the smaller and weaker lambs become affected very easily. The lesson is that all small, grassy yards, where sheep love to lie and where the grass is thick and tender, are unsafe, almost surely fatal to the lambs. Unfortunately the short, sweet grasses, such as Kentucky blue-grass and white clover, are the very worst and most dangerous from the point of infection, as the sheep bite them so close. Red clover, alfalfa, orchard grass, bromus-inermis, tim^othy, oats and barley and rape, are all bitten higher Lip, and there is much less risk of infection. Also in soiling sheep there is hardly any danger if the racks are not soiled by the sheep excrements. On Woodland Farm there has been a notable decrease, almost a disappearance of this pest, since alfalfa pasture has been the main reliance. It is also a good plan to let the sheep shade in the barn, as then their droppings are not soiling the grass about some shady tree, where the grass will grow up rank and sweet and be nibbled at by the unsuspecting lambs with fatal re suits. Care should at all times be taken that the sheep should not drink from stagnant pools or small, slow streams fouled by the droppings. Troughs are much the safest watering places, and they should be kept clean. As to medication, it should be prompt upon the first sign of infection. The old remedy of turpentine and milk is THE WINTER EAMB. 47 Dorset and Shrop Blood Mingled. rarely effectual. It is not worth administerine. The only thin<^s that have seemed tu do good are Toxaline, a prepara- tion made by F. S. Bnrch, of Chicago, and gasoline or Ijenzine, which was discovered by M. Julienne, in France, and first introduced by us into America. In case infection is discovered it Be careful not to strangle is wise to treat the entire flock the sheep by rough or too hasty drenching Either benzine or gasoline may be used. The dose is two teaspoonfuls to a 50-lb. lamb, mixed with four ounces of either sweet milk or thin flaxseed tea (cold), well shaken together. Give after fasting for 16 hours. Be careful not to strangle by pouring down too fast or getting in windpipe. Repeat the dose daily for three days. It has no ill effects on the health of well lambs, and is sure to remedy the droop- ing ones if stomach worms are the cause of their illness Dose the old sheep as well. They will take a tablespoonful* Better to use a 5c measuring glass (sold at druggists) rather than try to measure in a spoon, which holds an uncertain amount. GRADE DORSET EWES. While pure-bred Dorsets are extremely profitable to those who will give them care, and while there must of course be breeders of registered stock to supply the need of Dorset rams, yet it must be remembered that the grade ewe is the rent-payer, the money-maker, and in common hands more 48 THE WINTER LAMB. prolitable than the pure-bred ewe. Indeed, there are some curious things about the grade ewe. If she is a Merino grade, from large, roomy Merino ewes and blocky, vigorous Dorset ram, she will prove a surer breeder, if possible, than the pure-bred Dorset ewe. In truth, not many growers of winter hothouse lambs but prefer Dorset grades from the Alerino foundation to any other ewe, the pure-bred ewe not excepted. These ewes are again bred to pure-bred Dorset rams, and the result is a very blocky, easily fattened lamb, born at the right season and ripe for the right market. These grade ev/es are great milkers and hardier than pure-bred ewes, and altogether more desirable for mutton-makers. There will come a time when ranchmen will make a specialty of producing ewes of this type, as there is already a demand for them in all the early lamb-producing regions, and they are hard to buy. These grade Dorset ewes will continue profitable for at least ten years and often longer. Another very profitable grade Dorset ewe is the Dorset- Shropshire grade. This is a magnificent ewe, lambs early, but not quite so regularly as the Dorset-Merino, is a better mother than the Shropshire, with more milk. Ewes of this cross are becoming quite common now. They are usually white or light brown in face and hornless. Sometimes the three-quarter blood Dorset-Shropshires have horns. These are better ewes than the first cross, having, indeed, many of the best characteristics of the pure-bred Dorsets. USING GRADE RAMS. However profitable grade ewes may be, it is never safe to use grade rams. They will revert in unaccountable ways to remote ancestors, and there is simply no telling what the product will be. Of grade Dorsets John B. Peelle, a famous hothouse lamb grower, says : "The grade Dorset with me is not a question of senti- PROPERTY OF K* M. COLLEGE LIBRARY. THE WINTER LAMB. 49 ment, but one of business. The questions I ask of a ewe are: Can you produce lambs in November or December? Can you produce one or more at a time? Can you provide the lambs with an abundance of milk, so that they will be ready for market in sixty or seventy days? It is only the ewe that can answer to all these questions 'yes' that is at all desirable as a mother of hothouse lambs." John B. Peelle's Man Utilizing the Ewe's Spare Milk After Her Lamb Has Gone to Market. The first question is most important of all. The best and only remunerative market for hothouse lambs is during the first ten weeks of the year, so the lambs must be here before the snow flies if we want large profits. The October lamb is too early and will only sell as a lamb and not as a fancy product, and the late January and February lambs are too late in the season for the high prices. 50 THE WINTER LAMB. So far as I have been able to learn the Dorsets and their grades are the only breed of sheep that will breed with any reliability at the right time. The hot weather that causes most sheep to miss the oestrual period does not seem to affect the Dorsets. In fact, the mating often occurs during the hottest of hot weather. Twenty-four lambs is the record of one of our Dorset rams on one of the hottest of June days, and this occurred in a flock of fifty ewes. It is not claimed that no other variety of sheep will breed in hot weather, but that the Dorsets will breed more readily and uniformly than any other. If the lambs come scatter- ing along all winter they are a constant care and worry, but when they come in a shower, as ours usually do^ it is a pleasure to care for them.. In regard to the number of lambs produced, single lambs from mature ewes are the exception. Triplets are common. Thomas Shaw says : "The Dorsets will probably drop and raise more lambs than any other breed." As Milkers — The Dorset or grade always has an abund- ance of milk. Some are such persistent milkers that it takes several weeks to dry them up, but this is a good thing for pets and thieves (see cut preceding page). It is easy to teach the lambs whose supply is short to come at the call. I mean the twins, triplets, and those whose mothers are out of con- dition, and then, while you hold the ewe, the lambs do the rest. Often the best milking ewe can be made to raise an- other lamb after her own goes to market. Recapitulation — The virtues of the grade Dorset may be summed up as follows : She has size and that counts when she is put on the market as mutton. She has constitution and vigor, and that means long life and lots of service. A nine-year-old gummer raised the best part of lambs we had this year. It is no burden to shell corn for her. She is a good rustler. One season's experience showed us that the Dorsets and Merinos have no business in the same barn. THE WINTER LAMB. 51 The Merinos simply had no show in the rush for feed. She will produce her lambs at the proper time for them to reach the market when prices are highest. She is a fluent milker, the more milk the quicker the lamb goes to market. Our best ewes, if perchance they have single lambs, will have them ready for market in less than fifty days. BUILDINGS. One can do with a very common and cheap building or he can use a good, warm, convenient building to good advantage. The more expensive buildings are needed in the cold, frozen North; in the South very slight protection agamst cold is needed, but wet is to be guarded against. A safe rule is never to allow the flock to suflfer a wetting, unless the wool is very short at the time. It is a very depressing thing to a sheep to carry about a wet fleece, and unfortunately not all or many sheep know enough to come in out of the rain. The illustration of the barn at Wood- land Farm (page 12) shows one type well adapted to a Southern situation. The barn is 36 feet square, 18 feet to the eaves, with a half-pitch roof and an open center. 3 Plan of Barn at Fillmore Farms. 52 THE WINTER LAMB. The lower story is 8 feet in the clear and divided by means of racks into compartments as desired. It will be seen that it is light and airy and cool in summer, and when the doors are let down it is fairly warm in winter. This barn cost to build less than $200, with a good shingle roof, no floor but natural earth below and rough flooring for the mow. It accommodates fairly well about 75 ewes and their lambs. The hay is taken in from the end and the open doorway is turned to the southeast, so that little or no storm ever blows in. It could easily be closed, however. 1 1 1 i* ■ ^ . — * THE BARN AT FILMORE FARMS. Fillmore Farms (W. G. Appleby, Manager, Benning- ton, Vt.), Mr. Colegate's place, has an ideal large barn for cool climate. The ground plan shows quite clearly the arrangement of the lower story, 45x100 feet. This barn shuts up tight in cold weather, four ventilation shafts run up the purlin posts and then to cupolas, taking off the foul THE WINTER LAMB. 53 air and not making drafts. The outer doors slide, and there are slatted doors that also slide up out of the way; when it is warm the solid doors are back and the slatted ones in place. The root house is not a cellar, though dug down the depth of the foundation, but is doubie boarded, with paper between and two air spaces, and is frost proof. It is convenient to store wool in, and in the feed room is a good shearing floor. The passage is a handy place to pen and catch sheep when shearing. The feed racks used on Fillmore Farms, the Tranquillity f/t.6ih !^t,/oifi. BfOc/( tc^^QrK) Of? Diagram of Combination Feeder. some other places are illustrated Farms and some other places are illustrated herewith. There is probably nothing better for Dorsets, as the lambs cannot soil the hay nor are horns broken in this rack. Here are the specifications : Trough is 6 inches wide at bottom — 14 inches at top, on slant. 54 THE WINTER LAMB. Trough is 7 inches high at front — 1 1 inches at back. Slats 2 inches wide, i inch thick, rounded shghtly at corners. Spaces between slats 3 inches. Slanting board at bottom of rack i inch thick. Slats are of hard wood ; rest of trough may be soft wood or not, according to price, etc. Front board of trough is beveled at top. Frame 2x3 or 3x3. Trough may be made any length to fit spaces, or in 8, ID or 12 foot lengths, to be easily moved around, and back to back they make partition with feed trough and rack on each side ; or can be put out doors and make yard with rack, etc. Cheapest in end. Last forever. No waste hay. Feed roots, grain or anything without loss. Combination Feeder. THE WINTER LAMB. 55 [ ' .r- ' ^^1 ^ c^ <^ OQ C^ i_._i CO >< 2 o to ^ C^^( 7- ^ -<