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Hands-On
Lambing School
Held
every spring during lambing season (late February or
March)
As
background for Lambing School, see SkyLines Farm's
Management
Practices
for in-depth discussion of my organic approach to sheep
production. Write
to get on the mailing list for workshops.
Overview
Whether you're thinking about raising sheep or have already
started your flock, this daylong event will give you the
knowledge and the hands-on experience you need to feel more
confident about managing your lambing. We'll spend the day
in the company of the 60 SkyLines breeding ewes and their
lambs, learning the basics of how to manage a lambing season
for healthy happy ewes and babies (and shepherds too!)
What to
Expect
Lambing School is scheduled in the middle of the SkyLines
lambing season, so it's very possible that one or more ewes
will deliver their lambs during that day. During the 2007
Lambing School an obliging ewe named Greta delivered her
second lamb (of twins) to an enthralled audience moments
after we walked into the barn! Click
for 3 short videos
of that day, including a lamb birth.
Lambing School will
feature lecture and discussion on all the major topics
related to a successful lambing, plus a chance to get
hands-on experience with some or all of these important
lambing time activities:
- Checking a ewe to
determine if lambing is imminent
- Helping a ewe deliver
her lambs
- Caring for newborn
lambs
- Warming a chilled
lamb
- Giving a lamb an
identifying ear tag, banding its tail and
castrating
- Grafting a lamb or
teaching a nervous new mom to nurse
- Hand feeding a bottle
lamb >>>
Three-day-old
ram lamb
lounges in the morning sun
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Discussion topics in
the lambing barn (with hands-on when possible) . .
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Pre-Lambing
- Styles of lambing management (pasture lambing, shed
lambing, hybrid systems like mine)
- Setting up the physical lambing area
- Lambing supplies and equipment
- Management of ewes before lambing - feeding, exercise, low
stress handling
Lambing
- Barn checks -
frequency, what to look for
- Labor - stages, signs, when to intervene
- Normal delivery & possible problems
- Care of the newborn lamb
- Chilled lambs - tube feeding, warming
- Colostrum - collecting it (milking the ewe), saving it
& using it
- Banding Tails, Castrating & Tagging
- Possible lamb health issues
- Bottle Lambs
- Udder management
Post-lambing
- Ewe and lamb management - mothering up, flocking up,
feeding ewes
- Lambing time record keeping - why it's so important and
what to record
Motherhood can
be so exhausting!
SkyLines ewe Pearl naps alongside her twin
lambs.
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THE DETAILS . .
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What to Wear
March 1 may well be a
gloriously sunny, fine winter day, but plan on cold and
snowy just in case. We'll spend most of the day outside or
in the open-sided sheep barn so dress warmly in layers with
waterproof boots, long johns, heavy pants and coat that you
don't mind getting dirty, warm hat, gloves.
Note: Biosecurity
is an important aspect of managing any farm, and it's
particularly important to me. Please wear clean clothing and
boots that have not been worn on another sheep farm. Before
visiting the sheep barn you'll walk through a bleach
footbath as a precautionary measure.
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Scene from a
SkyLines' March lambing
after a surprise overnight snowfall.
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Food
We'll eat lunch as a group in the house which is equipped
with a cozy wood stove. I will provide hot homemade meat
stew and bread. Feel free to bring your own lunch if you
prefer.
Cost
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Cost for 2008 Lambing School is $75/person including
lunch & reference materials, $130/two people registering
together. Space is very limited to ensure an up-close and
hands-on experience, so please register early. $35/person
nonrefundable deposit to guarantee your reservation, balance
due by workshop day. Pay via PayPal or personal
check.
To register or
for more info
Call me at
208/875-8747 or write me at
melissa@skylinesfarm.com
SkyLines'
Angus
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SkyLines
Farm employs working
Great Pyrenees livestock guardian dogs.
Please leave your dogs at home.
SkyLines
Farm's Hands-On Lambing School is endorsed by the
University of Idaho/Washington State University/Rural
Roots "Cultivating Success: Small Farm Education Program"
www.cultivatingsuccess.org.
SkyLines
Farm 4551 Highway 6 Harvard, ID 83834
208.875.8747
Purebred Romney & Romney-Cross
Sheep
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