Lambing preparations: A significant number of flock owners will commence lambing in the coming weeks. Putting preparations in place in advance of lambing will help lead to less stress and reduced labour at lambing.

Consider last year’s lambing time on your farm and if any aspects of it can be done differently to make life easier this time around. Have you got enough lambing hurdles to deal with the number of sheep on hand or possibly a more compact lambing? Details of a sheep penning demonstration at Sheep 2015 can be found here.

A number of companies are now also trading hay baskets or specialised feeding equipment to cut down on feeding time. Many flock owners report a simple job such as having a hose to fill water buckets in individual lambing pens as significantly cutting down on time. More significant jobs that can be undertaken include investing in a water heater or equipment/access to power to set up a work area in the lambing shed. While it may seem like a significant outlay initially, it will more than pay for itself in time saved.

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Spreading/storing FYM: Some farmers may find that bedding may need to be cleaned prior to lambing due to ewes being housed earlier. Where a farmyard manure store is not available, farmyard manure can be field-stored during the spreading period. It must be stored in a compact heap and adhere to buffer zones (from 20m for watercourses to 50m/250m for water sources used for human consumption) relating to watercourses.

At this stage of the year, only Donegal, Leitrim, Cavan and Monaghan remain within the prohibited application period for organic and inorganic fertilisers. This period ends on 31 January.

Ideally, sheds should be power-washed and disinfected but this may not be possible where ewes have to be released temporarily or time constraints do not allow. Spreading hydrated lime followed by a deep bed of straw will help limit the risk of disease establishing and spreading. This is also useful in damp areas of bedding and is especially of help in limiting the spread of foot issues during the housing period.

Crutching ewes: A number of shearers have started offering their services to crutch ewes in the run-up to lambing. The practice involves clipping the wool around the tail and udder region.

It has significant advantages in identifying ewes bagging up for lambing, allowing lambs to suckle easier and preventing dirty tail ends and daggings when ewes and lambs go to grass. The practice can be done close to lambing but shearers recommend five to eight weeks pre-lambing to avoid stressing heavily pregnant ewes.

Sheep census: The deadline for returning the annual sheep and goat census is Friday 29 January. It is a legal requirement to return the census even where there are no sheep on the holding. For those with sheep or goats, the date for the census count was Sunday 13 December 2015.

Applicants can return the hard copy of the application to the Sheep/Goat Census Unit, Direct Payments Division, Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Agriculture House 6E, Kildare Street, Dublin 2, or complete the census through the Department’s online facility at www.agfood.ie.