Giving young ram lambs preferential treatment post breeding, where required, is critical in keeping young rams performing and avoiding any setback in growth.
All too often large sums of money are paid for ram lambs, they are left running with ewes for the winter or left aside without any attention. This leads to farmers being left disappointed next spring, when lambs have performed poorly or – in the worst cases – have had their growth stunted after a hard breeding season.
Once breeding is finished, rams should be segregated for preferential treatment. If lambs have performed OK and not lost excessive condition, access to good-quality grass may suffice. If grass quality is poor or limited in supply, there will be merit in offering concentrate supplementation. Around 300g to 500g will generally suffice, along with good grass, and meal feeding can be eased back or cut out once satisfied rams have recovered. Remember not to forget rams in health treatments and, in particular, for fluke treatment.
This content is available to digital subscribers and loyalty code users only. Sign in to your account, use the code or subscribe to get unlimited access.
However, if you would like to share the information in this article, you may use the headline, summary and link below:
Title: Sheep management: breeding ram lambs
Giving young ram lambs preferential treatment post breeding, where required, is critical in keeping young rams performing and avoiding any setback in growth.
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
CODE ACCEPTED
You have full access to the site until next Wednesday at 9pm.
CODE NOT VALID
Please try again or contact support.
All too often large sums of money are paid for ram lambs, they are left running with ewes for the winter or left aside without any attention. This leads to farmers being left disappointed next spring, when lambs have performed poorly or – in the worst cases – have had their growth stunted after a hard breeding season.
Once breeding is finished, rams should be segregated for preferential treatment. If lambs have performed OK and not lost excessive condition, access to good-quality grass may suffice. If grass quality is poor or limited in supply, there will be merit in offering concentrate supplementation. Around 300g to 500g will generally suffice, along with good grass, and meal feeding can be eased back or cut out once satisfied rams have recovered. Remember not to forget rams in health treatments and, in particular, for fluke treatment.
If you would like to speak to a member of our team, please call us on 01-4199525.
Link sent to your email address
We have sent an email to your address. Please click on the link in this email to reset your password. If you can't find it in your inbox, please check your spam folder. If you can't find the email, please call us on 01-4199525.
ENTER YOUR LOYALTY CODE:
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
SHARING OPTIONS