Goat / Sheep Weed Abatement

[Nifty-Chicken]

Oh... we've got this stuff too: http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/alert/alrtoxal.html


We just caught our 2 year old eating a bit of it... I guess they call it "sour grass" for a reason.

 

[Moonwalker]

Try contacting local universities. They always have Agricultural programs that are concerned with the local areas. They would know if sheep or goats would be better for your area. And they would know where to get them, maybe even have some available. You might also consider a couple of alpacas, especially if the noise is a factor with your neighbors. Theya re also a LOT neater, since they are latrine animals and will poop and pee in one spot all the time, making clean up a snap.

 

[Nifty-Chicken]

Update: My niece has 7 sheep and she has to get rid of a couple. She has a mother with two baby twins (7 weeks old). Here's the plan:

I fence in the back yard
We pick up the mom and the two babies
We let them do their thing until the weeds are all gone
Once the babies are weened my niece wants one of the boys back and we either keep the mom and son or craigslist them.

Issues:

How loud are sheep? We're in a relatively urban area. I hope the neighbors don't complaining (at least 10 housed connected to our back fence)?

How secure does the fencing need to be? I hear sheep aren't nearly as bad as goats for escaping. Will 3' chicken wire keep them enclosed?

I was told to supplement them with one "flake" of alfalfa hay per day in addition to the weeds / grass. Any thoughts on this?

Any other advice for a first time sheep owner / borrower?

 

[Nifty-Chicken]

Wow, this was helpful for fencing: http://www.sheep101.info/201/fencing.html

We don't have dogs or any other predators in the area so I believe all I need is "temporary" type fencing. I can't believe that a few rows of twine / rope / wire is enough to keep sheep in. I guess they tend to be pretty content?

What about this? I can pick this up at home depot pretty cheap:

http://cgi.ebay.com/4-x-100-Orange-...ZWD1VQQ_trksidZp1638.m118.l1247QQcmdZViewItem

 

[raindrop]

Moms and babies can be a little loud if one of the lambs wanders too far off, loses sight of the mom and then panics. Mom will call to it to get it to come back close. This gets less as the lambs get older and start to graze themselves. Expect them to baa at you when they see you come with hay/grain, or just to say hi.
As far as the fence goes, I have only ever seen sheep behind field fencing with one strand of electric or behind 2 strands of electric. If there is something tastier on the other side of the fence they like to lean on the fence and can push it over.
I would supplement some hay, depending on the forage mixture you have protein/energy/calcium levels may not be enough, especially for mom trying to make milk for twins. Also, some breeds of sheep are "easy keepers" compared to others- what breed are these sheep?

 

[Nifty-Chicken]

Great info, thanks!

Not sure of the breed, but they are a type that has hair that falls out so they don't need trimming... if that means anything at all.

 

[raindrop]

I think they may be one of the more hardy kinds, may not need as much extra food.

 

[Nifty-Chicken]

Okay, since I'm obviously not busy enough with everything going on at BYC I decided to get some sheep.

Here they are:

St. Croix Sheep: Maggie (dark brown) and her son Joey and Leo in the back

Big problem is the mom is bleating like CRAZY for her son from whom we've separated her.

I think our neighbors are going to kill us. How long until she realizes he's gone for good and moves on (i.e., stops bleating at 1,000 decibels)???

Here's the whole story: http://www.nifty-stuff.com/sheep-weed-abatement.php