Keeping lambs for meat

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Keeping lambs for meat
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tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45434
Location: Essex

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:02 pm Post subject:
Another thing I've just realised, we're looking to go organic next year, that's going to cut my sourcing options down drastically isn't it?

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:04 pm Post subject: Re: Keeping lambs for meat

tahir wrote:

Happens to us all young Rob

I know!

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:07 pm Post subject:

tahir wrote:

Another thing I've just realised, we're looking to go organic next year, that's going to cut my sourcing options down drastically isn't it?

It is rather, one of the main problems with organics, can mean you end up carting inputs around more. A lot of pigs travel from Helen Brownings (at Swindon I think) organic farm to East Anglia for fattening & then back to be sold as meat

gil
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 08 Jun 2005
Posts: 18409

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:08 pm Post subject:

Tahir, if you're looking to buy about 20, that's a penful at an auction mart. Check out the organic livestock / store lamb sales nationally, and either go and bid yourself, or instruct a dealer you trust, or a local organic farmer who is going there to buy. Or get to know an organic farmer who does stores and go for private sale.

I'm sure there is also an on-line livestock auction at some marts. Can't remember what the name of the software is off-hand.

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45434
Location: Essex

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:12 pm Post subject:

gil wrote:

Check out the organic livestock / store lamb sales nationally, and either go and bid yourself, or instruct a dealer you trust, or a local organic farmer who is going there to buy. Or get to know an organic farmer who does stores and go for private sale.

I hope to be going to a livestock market in October, just for research, apart from that I have no contacts at all in the field, it was never (really) part of my plan to have sheep.

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:16 pm Post subject:

gil wrote:

Or get to know an organic farmer who does stores and go for private sale.

You'll certainly get better stock & buy in fewer problems that way. All our stock are fully integrated for traceability & peace of mind.

Finding a pedigree breeder who produces predominately breeding stock is a good source, as chances are you will be getting well cared for stock & such breeders will be more interested in the breeding & show value of their stock, so may have a regular supply of quality clean lambs. The commercial flocks crossing for meat generally have their markets sorted or use the auctions.

What gil highlights in the previous post is the highly stratified sheep industry we have in the UK. Hill breeds are often sold in the lowlands as stores, though tup lambs tend to finish quicker if you leave their tackle intact, but breed & weather does mean a lot of hill lambs are grazed as stores in the lowlands.

Gervase

Joined: 17 Nov 2004
Posts: 8655

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:18 pm Post subject:

tahir wrote:

...it was never (really) part of my plan to have sheep.

Is there an emoticon for the sound of hollow laughter?

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45434
Location: Essex

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:22 pm Post subject:

Gervase wrote:

tahir wrote:

...it was never (really) part of my plan to have sheep.

Is there an emoticon for the sound of hollow laughter?

Have you got anything useful to say?

Gervase

Joined: 17 Nov 2004
Posts: 8655

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:47 pm Post subject:

Nothing at all. Rob and gil have very eloquently answered all you need - now the only thing that's stopping you from getting some store lambs is, erm, common sense. Listen, sheep have only two ambitions - to folow the sheep in front and to find a new and more interesting way to die. They will take over your life. You will lose friends/hair/sleep.
Are you sure you want to be an accidental shepherd?

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45434
Location: Essex

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:50 pm Post subject:

Gervase wrote:

Are you sure you want to be an accidental shepherd?

No, not at all.

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:50 pm Post subject:

Gervase wrote:

Listen, sheep have only two ambitions - to folow the sheep in front

If only...

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45434
Location: Essex

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 4:51 pm Post subject:

tahir wrote:

No, not at all.

But having said that I have no ethical source of meat at the moment, something I feel pretty crap about.

gil
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 08 Jun 2005
Posts: 18409

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 5:30 pm Post subject:

tahir wrote:
Breed, cross? Yer aving a larf. I want summat simple, docile and hardy.

Some would say that sheep are simple. Some can be quite bright.

Simple, docile and hardy are often mutually exclusive. Hill sheep are low maintenance, their feet are resistant to all sorts, and they can exist on very little forage so will often fatten on ordinary-good grazing. But they tend not to be docile ('wild as f***' is the term round here). Downland or lowland sheep are more docile, but can require more looking after. Suffolks would be OK, but the carcass can be a bit fat. Continentals (Texels and the like) are leaner, though also need tending. How good is your electric fencing ?

I think Deano started a thread about what breed of sheep to get in Lincolnshire. Might be useful. Though with organic, the choice might be more restricted. Organic stores are likely to be cross-breeds (for meat). If you only want to overwinter and then eat the lambs, that might be the solution. Cheviots or Cheviot crosses are hardy, but are the easiest of the hill breeds to fatten (hence popular with organic farmers), and quite docile as they go. South Country Cheviots are smaller than Northies. Quite cute too. There's a breed association website somewhere.

RobR would probably recommend Kerry Hill, but can you get them organic ?

A sheep's ambition in life is to die.

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45434
Location: Essex

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 5:42 pm Post subject:
Now that's the flipping scary bit. As for everything else, at this stage we'll try any breed that's easy and available. They're going to have plenty of grass to feed on and at our density I can't imagine they'll need supplemements. We'll probably end up stock fencing the field, will I still need some electric for foxes?

Gervase

Joined: 17 Nov 2004
Posts: 8655

Posted: Mon Aug 21, 06 5:53 pm Post subject:
For simple and hardy, a mule or cross of some sort may be the answer. They don't have the built-in problems of pedigree strains when it comes to lambing and the like, the meat tastes just as good and they tend to be generally hardier and less susceptible to the thousand natural shocks that pure-bred sheep are heir to.

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