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Breeding sheep at home for beginners. How to breed rams and sheep, tips, recommendations and conditions

  • meat;
  • milk and dairy products;
  • wool;
  • skins.
  1. Sheep and meat: Romanovskaya.

Buying rams

  • artificial – 80-90%.

Lambs are born:

  • in early spring;
  • late spring;
  • in winter.

Sheep breeding is a popular type of business in rural areas, and if the process is properly organized, it is also very profitable.

Where to begin?

If you decide to start raising sheep at home, first of all you need to decide what breed of rams to buy. To do this, it is worth studying the market, determining which product will be in greatest demand. You can make a profit by selling:

  • meat;
  • milk and dairy products;
  • wool;
  • skins.

In addition, selling manure can be an additional source of income. It is considered the best in terms of heat transfer during the decomposition process.

Raising sheep is beneficial because absolutely everything that can be obtained from the animals is sold.

Depending on the chosen direction of production, the most suitable breed is determined. In Russia, the most popular are the following:

  1. Wool: Grozny, Soviet merino, Stavropol.
  2. Meat-fat: Saradzhinskaya, Altaiskaya, Gissarskaya.
  3. Meat-wool and wool-meat: Altai, Georgian, Kuibyshev, Krasnoyarsk.
  4. Sheep and meat: Romanovskaya.

With proper feeding and maintenance, livestock will give high productivity indicators, and proper breeding work on the farm will gradually increase the output. Sheep that are bred, maintained and cared for in accordance with the recommendations of experts grow quickly and produce high yields of meat and high-quality wool.

Buying rams

Having decided on the desired breed, you need to approach the purchase of animals with all responsibility. If you are a beginner, it is advisable to find a seller who has sufficient experience in breeding and can advise on breeding issues. At the market, do not rush to buy lambs, focusing on the stories of the seller. It is better to take a closer look at the animals and only then make a choice.

Effective breeding and raising of sheep at home

Animals must be:

Ask the breeder about the lamb feeding regime and diet. Perhaps the animals are accustomed to certain foods.

After purchasing, be sure to quarantine the livestock and exclude any contact with other animals. An examination by a pediatrician will be required, as well as vaccinations.

Place for keeping animals

A prerequisite for the success of a sheep raising business is the presence of pasture near the sheepfold. Otherwise, keeping a large number of rams will not bring sufficient profit. The required field area for grazing depends on the type of pasture, it can be:

  • natural – the level of grass stand use is 50-60%;
  • improved natural – 70-80%;
  • artificial – 80-90%.

The average daily consumption of green feed per head is 10 kilograms. An area of ​​0.1-0.2 hectares is sufficient for one sheep. It is not necessary to rent special pastures. These animals are unpretentious and successfully graze on natural habitats. And the ideal place for grazing is considered to be mountain fields where many cereals and legumes grow.

In addition to the exclusively pasture type of keeping, which is typical for areas with a warm climate, there is also a basic sheepdog method: in the warm season, animals are on pasture, and in the winter they spend in a stable or sheepfold.

Regardless of the time of year and climatic conditions of the region, the sheep are driven under a shed at night.

This will not only protect the herd from predators, but also protect it from rain, which is no less important. Wet wool becomes heavy, dirty, and tangled. This is not so important if sheep breeding is aimed at meat. But such wool is no longer suitable for shearing and obtaining fleece.

Year-round housing and breeding of sheep is practiced in Siberia and central Russia. Here it is important to provide sufficient space for the sheep and ensure that there are no drafts in the sheepfold or barn.

Insemination and rearing of lambs

In order for the mating to be as successful as possible, it is necessary to wait until the ewes come into heat. Usually it occurs one and a half months after the lambs are weaned and milking stops. Before this, both sheep and rams are fed with concentrates. Insemination is carried out twice: at the beginning of the hunt and again at the end, after 11-14 hours. But the sperm in the second case must be from the second ram. Yarok are allowed to mate after reaching one year of age.

The gestation period lasts on average 145 days. A month before the expected lambing, the queens' entire coat or individual areas are cut off: around the nipples and tail. This is done so that the cubs have access to the nipples, and in the first case, also to obtain high-quality wool.

Lambs are born:

  • in early spring;
  • late spring;
  • in winter.

Usually they try to schedule lambing for early spring. Then, by the time they are fed on the pasture, the babies have time to grow up and graze on their own, quickly gaining weight. Winter lambing presents certain difficulties. It is necessary to make the room warm enough to provide enhanced nutrition to the ewe.

The weight gain of lambs depends on the characteristics of the breed. But on average, feeding on mother's milk, babies gain 200 grams per day. After a week, the lambs begin to be transferred to concentrated feed to replenish the need for vitamins.

If lambing occurs in winter with basic sheep-keeping, at the age of one week the cubs are taken away from the mothers and taken to pasture with everyone else.

At night, lambs are returned to their mothers, where feeding is monitored every 2-3 hours.

To increase the productivity of the herd, babies are transferred to artificial feeding three days after birth. This allows the uterus to happen again earlier.

As you can see, raising sheep at home is not very difficult. Provide adequate nutrition and good living conditions for your animals to ensure high productivity and successful business.

According to experts, livestock farming is not very attractive to entrepreneurs. However, animal breeding, including sheep farming as a business, has high profitability and is considered one of the most profitable activities in agriculture. This is due to several factors.

  1. Sheep are unpretentious animals. They do not require special conditions of detention or serious care and are in good health. The mortality rate in sheep is significantly lower compared to other animals.
  2. Sheep are grazing animals, so most likely you will not have any problems with feed.
  3. You can start sheep farming even with a small herd. In this case, of course, you should carefully calculate the costs and draw up a detailed action plan.
  4. Another stimulating factor for agricultural enterprises is the continuous growth in demand for lamb, sheep wool, cheese, and lamb.

Among the disadvantages, it should be noted the relatively low profitability of the business, which is approximately 25-30%. Under unfavorable conditions, profitability can drop by up to 10%. However, much depends on the size of the enterprise and the experience of livestock breeders.

It really doesn't matter what field you want to start a business in. In any case, the first step is to create a carefully thought-out business plan. Let's take a step-by-step look at how to turn sheep farming in rural areas into a profitable business.

Ideally, you should start by finding a suitable plot of land. You can buy or rent land. Then you need to purchase sheep and hire workers. At least once a week you will have to bring the necessary things to the farm, once a year the sale of lambs, the purchase of feed and the necessary work on arranging the farm are carried out. It should be noted right away that organizing your own business requires solving many problems and issues.

Firstly, to raise sheep you will need pasture. When calculating the area, it is necessary to take into account that feeding one sheep and its offspring will require 1 hectare of pasture per year. Thus, the area of ​​land will depend on the number of herds. In addition, the further north you purchase land, the more expensive it will cost you to maintain animals. You should calculate the profitability in advance and assess how profitable the enterprise will be for you in specific conditions, taking into account the costs of procuring feed, carrying out sanitary measures, and veterinary care.

Remember that grazing in the north can only take place from May to September. To learn all the features of a particular region, you can watch a training video on sheep breeding.

You can borrow funds to purchase or rent land. For example, many banks offer special lending conditions and low interest rates for agricultural enterprises, which is very beneficial for beginning businessmen.

If you are interested in sheep breeding, it is advisable to register your enterprise as a peasant (farm) enterprise. According to the law, you do not have to create a legal entity. Registration of a peasant farm is almost the same as the creation of an individual entrepreneur. In this case, you will need to sign an Agreement on the establishment of a farm to be sent to the registration authority.

Besides, the following documents must be prepared:

  1. power of attorney for the MFC;
  2. application for farm registration;
  3. original and copy of the farm organizer’s passport;
  4. original and copy of birth certificate;
  5. receipt of payment of state duty;
  6. registration document from the place of residence of the head of the household.

In addition, you must obtain permission from SES employees.

Conventional cattle pens made of wood are well suited for raising sheep. For example, you can buy or rent an old abandoned farm or land that was left after a bankrupt state farm. Watch videos on the Internet, evaluate various advertisements for the sale of plots to find a suitable option. This will significantly save on the construction of pens. In case of severe frosts, you can install a small stove in the pen, but in general, sheep tolerate frosts quite well. In addition, a good house for the shepherd should be provided.

It is best to purchase sheep from a certified farm, which will avoid serious problems with the animals and significant losses.

If you want to increase your livestock over time, it is best to buy animals from different farms. This will avoid interbreeding. To achieve self-sufficiency faster, you should start with two hundred heads. If you do not have good experience in selecting and breeding sheep, it is best to consult with experienced specialists.

As for the breed, the Romanov breed of sheep is the most popular among domestic farmers. In total, about 70 animal breeds are preferred in the CIS countries. In general, all animals can be divided into the following groups:

  • fine-fleece: Altai, Caucasian, Askanian, Grozny, prekos, Stavropol sheep, Soviet perino and so on;
  • semi-fine-fleece: Tsigai, North Caucasian, and so on;
  • semi-coarse wool: Saradzhin sheep;
  • coarse-haired: Karakul, Romanov, Edilbaevskaya.

A significant expense item is the purchase of feed for the winter season. The type of feed will depend on the region. In the event that you purchased land in a region unfamiliar to you.

Breeding sheep for meat as a business - drawing up a business plan

It is best to check with your neighbors about what you should feed your sheep, as well as watch various video recommendations and read articles by experts.

The cost of feed changes every year. You will need to calculate a clear business plan, taking into account possible changes, in order to estimate costs. According to the norm, one animal requires 2 kg of straw, 1.5 kg of hay, 100 grams of barley per day. You can also feed the sheep silage, root crops, and offer them twig food. In addition, it is necessary to give animals salt lick.

In order to avoid additional costs and possible problems, we recommend that you prepare at least 30-40% more feed than calculated, because the weather may get colder much earlier, and the warmth may arrive later than planned in advance. The weather is unpredictable. When drawing up a business plan, you should take into account the costs of animal processing and veterinary care.

The lifespan of a sheep is up to 25 years, but reproductive abilities are maintained only for 8 years. If an animal has special reproductive abilities, then it is better to keep it at court longer so that there is an opportunity to pass on this valuable quality to its offspring.

As already noted, four breeds are the most popular: Romanov, “meat”, Eddibaevskaya and fat tail.

  1. Romanov sheep will be an excellent solution for budding entrepreneurs. You can find the specifics of their breeding on the Internet by watching videos or articles from more experienced breeders. Raising such sheep is very profitable, because thanks to their thick wool, they feel good in unheated barns at temperatures down to -30 degrees. For a good wintering, it is enough for them to prepare a straw bedding. In addition, this breed is unpretentious and has good meat growth even with a moderate diet.
  2. “Meat” breeds of sheep have high quality meat and large body weight. This category includes Texel, Zwartbles, Suffolk, Barbados Blackbelly and so on. Most of these breeds are well adapted to temperate climates.
  3. The Edilbaevskaya sheep is large in size, has a developed fat tail and a strong body constitution. These meat-fat sheep were bred by crossing Astrakhan and Kazakh breeds. The animals are distinguished by good wool, high milk production, and they grow quickly. In one hundred days, a ram can grow up to 190 kg in weight. You can also watch videos about them on the Internet, which will help you make a first impression about these animals.
  4. Fat-tailed sheep were brought from Central Asia. They tolerate both winter cold and summer heat well. The main feature of this breed is the presence of a fat tail, which is a large fatty deposit at the root of the tail. As a rule, rams are used for meat, and females are left to increase offspring. The percentage of meat in sheep of these breeds is up to 65% of body weight.

It is advisable to start looking for key personnel at the stage of searching for a place for a farm and purchasing animals. Note that for every 300 animals a shepherd will be required. Also, for the successful development of a farm, it is necessary to find a good veterinarian, milkmaids, and sheep shearing specialists. A shearer may be a seasonal worker and come to the farm as needed. Of course, the main worker on a sheep farm remains the shepherd.

Finding a good person for this position who can immediately perform the functions of a shearer, veterinarian, livestock specialist and manager is quite difficult. Therefore, the salary of such a specialist will be quite high. Standard terms of employment involve the transfer of about 50 heads of sheep into his possession, a percentage of the farm's profits and bonuses that are given for weight gain, high level of offspring and other merits.

If the entrepreneur does not plan to personally manage his farm, then the functions of the manager will be performed by the shepherd, so he must inspire complete trust in you.

However, with a small herd of up to 200 heads, hiring such a specialist will not be so profitable for you and it is better to take on the corresponding functions yourself. Of course, this will require a lot of effort and time from you, because the sheep must graze all day, but you can quickly become self-sufficient.

The rest of the workers are engaged in auxiliary types of work: feeding the animals and caring for them. It should be noted that there is a fairly high turnover rate among these workers. It is better to offer them a high salary and find the most reliable people in nearby villages.

Sheep farming as a business generates income through the sale of wool, milk and sheep meat. Compared to previous decades, the cost of wool has decreased significantly, so shearing and selling wool can only be assessed as an additional, but not the main line of work. Milk, which is used mainly for cheese production, is also not in high demand, so the main income will come from meat production.

Lamb is in fairly high demand with a very limited supply.

In total, experts identify three main implementation methods:

  • individual slaughter of animals with subsequent sale on the market;
  • wholesale of live animals;
  • sale of semi-finished products and meat in large chains, wholesale.

Ideally, it is best to sell lamb through your own points in the markets. This method will allow you to sell meat for cash and at a higher price.

Small sheep farms use exactly this method, since meat processing plants prefer to buy large quantities of 400-500 animals, and also often use deferred payments.

Large farms can also sell directly to the market, but this involves a lot of hassle for them. In addition, cafes, restaurants, and specialized meat shops purchase lamb. Having regular customers will increase profitability and achieve stable demand.

Large sheep farms with large areas and a sufficient supply of feed tend to keep the sheep until winter or early spring, when the purchase price of lamb increases significantly.

Let's consider a business plan for organizing a sheep farm for 300 heads.

Expenses:

  • land rental – from 150 thousand rubles per year;
  • construction and renovation of premises - 100 thousand rubles;
  • wages for working personnel - from 500 thousand rubles per year;
  • overhead costs - 90 thousand rubles per year;
  • purchase of sheep - 1 million rubles when purchasing 300 heads at a price of 3500 per head;
  • purchase of special equipment – ​​100 thousand rubles.

The profit from the sale of meat will be, according to estimates, about 500 thousand rubles when selling 50 individuals at a minimum cost of 100 rubles per 1 kg. The sale of live animals will bring the same amount, and up to 150 thousand rubles can be earned from the sale of wool. As a result, the payback period is about 12-24 months.

Thus, we can conclude that sheep farming is a very profitable and profitable business. These animals are undemanding to keep and grow quickly. Of course, you should always draw up a detailed business plan in order to calculate how profitable it is to raise sheep in certain conditions. An educational video will help you with this, containing useful practical recommendations for keeping specific breeds of animals.

Demand for lamb remains consistently high, with no sharp price increases expected in the coming years. Of course, this action plan only gives you a rough idea of ​​how much money you will need to start your business. Specific numbers will depend on the region, sheep breed and herd size. But in general, we can say that such a business can bring very good income to an entrepreneur.

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According to historians, the sheep was domesticated approximately 8,000 years ago. It is assumed that mouflons and argali initially acted in this capacity.

Mouflon is a wild sheep that today lives on the islands of the Mediterranean Sea in rocky, inaccessible places. Mountain mouflons are very agile and agile, and can reach a weight of 70 kilograms. Mouflon wool is coarse, consisting of thin and short down and long and hard overcoat. Mouflon is the ancestor of the northern short-tailed sheep.

The steppe mouflon, the so-called arkar, lives in the steppes and semi-deserts of Kazakhstan and Central Asia, a larger animal with reddish hair. Fine-fleeced, fat-tailed and long-lean-tailed sheep breeds originate from the arcara.

In ancient times, Kamchatka, Alaska and Southern Altai were inhabited by argali - a high-legged wild variety of mouflon with short, coarse, dark gray hair.

In the process of long-term selective crossbreeding, livestock breeders received many new domestic breeds of sheep. For breeding animals at home, meat and dairy breeds are selected, such as:

  1. Askaniyskaya;
  2. Altai;
  3. Prekos;
  4. Kazakh;
  5. Georgian Fattail;
  6. Vyatskaya;
  7. Tajik;
  8. Gissar fat tail.

In principle, meat products can be obtained from sheep of any breed, but the highest rates are obtained from specialized breeds of sheep. If a novice sheep breeder plans to get a certain amount of wool, then he will need to buy several lambs of the Romanov breed.

Romanov breed of sheep

Buying sheep

Having decided to purchase several sheep, you should remember that how profitable their subsequent rearing and sale will be depends, first of all, on the choice of young lambs.

Sheep farming process at home

It is better to make a purchase from sellers with experience in sheep breeding, who can provide useful advice to a beginner in this business.

Conditions for sheep breeding

Sheep are very unpretentious animals that are able to eat any pasture, regardless of weather and natural conditions.

A sheep can find food suitable for itself, sufficient to satiate itself, even in scorched steppe spaces, since it can be content with dry grass, which other animals do not do. In order to raise sheep, no conditions are required; in the summer, animals can be kept in large pens, while in winter a barn is needed. In winters that are not cold enough, sheep can spend almost all daylight hours outdoors; thick wool prevents the animals from freezing.

At night, regardless of the time of year, sheep should be driven under a special canopy; this will save a small herd from foxes and wolves, and also, most importantly, from rain. The only thing these animals cannot stand is rain; the fur gets wet, becomes heavy and dirty, and becomes tangled. After the sheep have been caught in the rain, there can be no talk of any shearing for the purpose of selling wool. You should immediately cut off all matted wool and try to dry it, but due to the lack of special equipment at home, nothing will work.

So, sheep need a spacious paddock, grazing and a barn with a canopy - that’s all.

It should be remembered that a sheep cannot find its way home on its own, so to look after a small herd it is necessary to enlist the help of the ancestral friend of all shepherds - a dog. A smart dog will definitely find the lost animal and bring it home, and also save the sheep from predators. A ram can also act as a guide, the presence of which in the herd is mandatory.

There are several ways of content:

  1. On pastures and pastures, all year round, in any weather. This method is suitable for areas with warm climates;
  2. In the sheepfolds;
  3. Sheep-basic method. In winter in a sheepfold, or stable, the rest of the year in the pasture

Reproduction techniques include insemination of sheep, mating period, lambing, and rearing of young animals. In order for mating to take place, at least one ram must be present in a flock of sheep. It is possible to use free and manual mating, as well as artificial insemination.

Free mating is possible only when females and mature males are kept together in a household. Experts in sheep breeding do not recommend using this type of mating, since the owner of the sheep loses the opportunity to calculate the number of mating females and, accordingly, will not be able to provide them with timely care and assistance during childbirth.

Manual mating involves keeping sheep separately, followed by monitoring the onset of the period of desire in females and the admission of rams to them. In order for a farm containing about 150 sheep to carry out high-quality manual mating, at least 10-15 rams are needed, the maximum load per animal should not exceed 50 sheep per year.

Many livestock breeders solve problems associated with the need to carry out regular matings through artificial insemination, which, among other things, has a beneficial effect on the quality improvement of the herd. This is due to the fact that wide opportunities open up for the sheep farmer to use the best rams, while the load per ram increases to 1000 sheep. Artificial insemination practically eliminates the possibility of sheep becoming infected with infectious diseases, as well as barrenness, which is common among these animals.

When choosing a method of insemination, it should be taken into account that sexual maturity of sheep occurs in different breeds at different times; some breeds of sheep become sexually mature at 4 months, others at 8 months. To avoid premature insemination, which almost always ends in the death of the offspring and the sheep itself, the animals must be separated for some time; this should be done as early as 4 months of the sheep’s life.

Breeding and raising lambs at home

In order for the mating to be as successful as possible, it is necessary to wait until the queens go into heat, which occurs approximately 1.5 months after the lambs have been weaned from the queens and milking has stopped. Mating requires lengthy preparation; the queens must be fed with concentrates, just like the rams. Females are inseminated twice, once at the beginning of the heat, the other after 10-14 hours. The main difference that is observed in the insemination of sheep is that the second time the uterus is inseminated with the sperm of the same ram.

The gestation period lasts approximately 145 days. 20-30 days before the start of lambing, the wool on the udder and near the tail is cut off from the queens. This is done for two reasons:

1.Firstly, newborn lambs will not be able to reach the udder because of their wool:

2.Secondly, after lambing, females usually undergo shearing, the purpose of which is to obtain clean wool of good quality.

Lambing of queens occurs in winter, early spring and late spring. A special problem is winter lambing, which requires the preparation of warm premises and provision of queens with a sufficient amount of high-quality feed. The lambing process must be monitored very carefully in order to be able to provide all possible assistance in time during a protracted and difficult birth.

The live weight of lambs at birth depends on the breed of sheep; on average, one lamb feeding on the milk of the uterus per day gains up to 200 grams in weight. Starting from the second week of life, lambs experience a great lack of vitamins, so from the age of 7 days the animals must be gradually transferred to concentrated feed.

During winter lambing, lambs are usually kept partly in a shed, and partly at a base - grazing, which involves separating the lambs from the females already at a week of age and visiting them during the daytime for grazing. Lambs are allowed to see the uterus only at night and are fed regularly every 2-3 hours.

In order to improve the production quality of lamb, lambs must be weaned from their uterus at 3 days of age, by transferring them to artificial feeding.

With a small number of sheep - 3-6 pieces, such actions are very cost-effective, since they allow you to quickly breed again.

lamb

Feeding sheep

Sheep are fed using specially formulated fattening rations, which must include green feed and hay. Sheep quickly gain weight if you feed them legumes - clover and alfalfa, as well as cereals. To increase productivity levels, sheep should be fed concentrated feed daily at a rate of 200-300 grams per sheep.

Typically, sheep farmers feed sheep in groups of 7-12 sheep, but at home, group feeding is not cost-effective.

Sheep eat silage, root vegetables, corn, bran and cake well; the presence of mixed feed in the diet is welcome. Do not forget about constant mineral and vitamin supplements, without which sheep will not be able to lamb well and produce healthy offspring. To speed up wool growth, it is advisable to give sheep methionine, a drug that contains a large amount of sulfur-containing amino acid.

Pregnant and brood ewes, as well as breeder rams, must be fed intensively, making sure that all the food they consume is not only of high quality, but of the first degree of freshness, which is very important especially for ewes that can shed their lamb due to poisoning.

Sheep slaughter

Sheep are slaughtered at approximately 3-9 months of age; after the sheep reaches 1 year, its meat is considered unfit for consumption by gourmets. The slaughter is carried out in the same ways as the slaughter of other animals; generally, modern householders prefer to do it themselves - by simply cutting the artery, or they take the sheep to a specialized slaughterhouse, where the slaughter process is put on stream.

So, raising sheep at home is not at all difficult; you just need to have a pasture and barn of the required size, choose the right lambs, mate and fatten the sheep. Feed today is inexpensive, and if we take into account the fact that sheep spend most of their time on pastures, eating pasture, then their cultivation can be considered the most profitable from the point of view of any livestock breeder who is tired of removing manure and monitoring the replenishment of feeders.

Video: home keeping and breeding of sheep

Raising sheep on a personal plot

The main task in reproducing a herd of goats is to obtain and raise at least one kid for each queen. To successfully complete this large and important task, it is necessary to resolve a wide range of issues in a timely and correct manner. It is good to prepare the queens and breeders for mating, carry out insemination at the optimal time, provide the mating and suckling queens with adequate feeding, preserve the young and raise them healthy and strong.

To carry out mating at the optimal time, it is necessary to carry out a whole range of measures during the preparatory period. This is the culling of queens unsuitable for reproduction, the formation of flocks, good pre-mating feeding of animals, proper preparation and rational use of breeders in mating.

When forming flocks, each of them includes animals of the same breed, sex, age, class. This division makes it easier to select manufacturers.

If it is not possible to form flocks of animals of the same age and class, then they can be formed of animals of adjacent classes with similar productivity.

The culling of young animals, the culling of queens and the formation of flocks, health and preventive measures are completed no later than a month and a half before the start of mating, so that in the remaining time the queens can rest and have a good workout.

In order to properly prepare the queens for mating, it is necessary, in the period preceding it, to provide them with adequate feeding, maintenance, and care. For pre-breeding feeding, pastures with good grass stand are allocated, the queens are watered 2-3 times a day, they are given mineral supplements, and, if necessary, fed with concentrates.

It has been established that feeding them succulent green food during the pre-breeding period, as well as the botanical composition of the herbs they eat, positively influences the increase in the fertility and multiple births of queens.

The most important condition for improving the quality of the herd and increasing its productivity is the use of only highly productive sires for mating. When selecting producers, they pay attention, first of all, to the fact that in terms of breed and productivity it must correspond to the accepted direction. Be a purebred, have a known origin, be highly productive, have a productivity higher than that of the queens it covers. Have strong bones and good health, exhibit sufficient sexual activity and have high-quality semen suitable for fertilization.

When selecting producers, the condition of the testes is monitored. They should be well developed and descend into the scrotum.

Goats are usually allowed to mate for the first time at the age of one and a half years.

In all cases, producers planned for use in mating must meet the requirements for animals of class 1 and elite.

The appeal will be about a sheep that produces warm and healthy wool. Sheepskin sheepskin coats have always been indispensable in rural areas! The special processing of sheepskin can satisfy even the most fashionistas. What about astrakhan fur coats and colonel’s and general’s hats? You can have all this if you own sheep - a fur miracle on four beautiful legs.

Once upon a time, as almost everywhere in Ukraine, villagers were engaged in sheep breeding.

The domestic sheep originated from a mountain sheep, apparently from a subspecies of mouflon. Since mouflon was domesticated many thousands of years ago in Asia, and after that in Europe. How did the various breeds of domestic sheep, of which there are currently more than 150, appear? As in most cases - by the method of crossing, long painstaking (and from time to time purely random) human work.

This is how long-tailed and short-tailed sheep appeared - Merino and Romanov, fat-tailed - Karakul, and meat-fat breeds or fat-tailed ones. And breeding work is still being carried out to attract wild mouflons or argali. The results are exciting!

It is well known that at the moment few people keep cows and pigs on private farms: it is too expensive to feed, they are purchased at a loss. In this regard, sheep are an ideal option. In addition, in the scorched steppe itself they will find food for themselves, they will limit themselves to dry blades of grass, but under no circumstances will they remain hungry.

And they don’t require any special housing: they spend a significant part of the year in the open air, and this makes the owner of the flock a doubly winner, due to the fact that such maintenance improves the wool and increases its quantity.

At night, sheep must be kept in pens under shelters. Firstly, this usually saves them from the attack of their worst enemy - the wolf; secondly, with an indifferent attitude to the cold, sheep are afraid of rain (with such wool!) - therefore a canopy is absolutely necessary. For stabling in winter, a simple sheepfold without drafts and with an adobe floor is required.

The bedding is irremovable, and it also warms the animals due to decomposition, releasing heat. If you do not clean the pigsty or barn, the smells will be such that it is forbidden to enter without a gas mask. In a sheepfold, so that this does not happen: sheep feces do not have a fetid odor.

If in spring-summer-autumn everything is clear with feeding (grazing), then for the winter, of course, it is necessary to prepare feed according to the number of livestock. But this is only for the winter, until the first grass grows! They harvest hay from forbs and straw of cereal crops, root crops, feed and silage, which sheep, by the way, are very fond of. Of course, mineral supplements will also come in handy: salt slime, bone meal, chalk, defluorinated phosphate are a must.

Without these additives, the sheep, of course, will survive, but it will have “torn” wool, a poor appetite (it will lose weight or simply not gain weight), and all sorts of sores will easily “stick” to it. Milk production will also quickly decrease and your dreams of your own cheese may remain just dreams.

REPLENISHMENT TO THE FELL

In order to replenish the flock, lambs are clearly needed. A month and a half before mating, the sheep must be fed, mainly with silage, root crops, and selected hay, but without allowing obesity. It goes without saying that it is necessary to take care of the ram’s strength and fatness.

When preparing a ram for mating, pamper him with cottage cheese, skim milk, a couple of raw eggs a day, and an extra carrot. Pregnant sheep need additional portions of chalk and bone meal so that the lambs appear strong at birth and the sheep do not become weak while bearing their offspring. Like a person, a pregnant sheep can have a miscarriage if it is physically overloaded (long walks) or very frightened.

Take this into account and show special attention to expectant mothers, pamper them more often, and reassure them.

But what an amount of happiness you will experience when the first baby is born! In most cases, the sheep copes excellently with childbirth itself (if there is no pathology, it goes without saying).

Breeding sheep at home

Immediately after lambing, the mother must be given clean water to drink, but do not let her drink a lot: it is better more often, but not more than one and a half liters. After this, milk the first streams from the udder and you have the opportunity to let the little one, who is still on very timid slender legs, stagger, but the udder will begin to look for minutes. in 15-20.

At the moment, during the first feeding, the lamb also receives the most basic thing - colostrum. This includes nutrition and vaccination against many diseases (like immunoglobulin).

The lamb will feed on mother's milk for 20 days, and after that it can be slowly transferred to formula feed, oatmeal, and soft hay. After three months, the lambs can be released to pasture: they are already “adults.” But keep in mind: they are still far from sexually mature, at least until they are a year and a half old.

Sheep hatch, in most cases, in the autumn, at a time when they are the most well-fed.

HEALTH IS ABOVE EVERYTHING

With such wool and free grazing, it is virtually impossible to protect sheep from infection with ticks. To prevent the spread of the disease (scabies); In practice, sheep breeders have an old and reliable method: bathing in a 1% solution of creolin. Sheep have to get a “manicure” during the stall period: the hooves outgrow, quite often they can rot and need to be trimmed.

Often, inexperienced sheep breeders, delighted at the first green grass, try to immediately release their flock to pasture. And this is prohibited for no reason: a sharp transition from winter to summer green feeding can cause such diarrhea in sheep that it will have to be treated for a long time and tediously; maybe the sheep can be fooled.

And finally, about cutting wool. At first, it is better not to take on this important task yourself, so as not to injure the animal or cause psychological trauma or injury to it. At this very moment, we are unlikely to be able to help you by outlining the haircut process. It’s not without reason that they say: it’s better to notice once than... Based on this, take the advice: invite an expert and closely notice his hands, movements, and behavior.

In addition, if there is no such thing in your locality, it will certainly be found in the neighboring one, where everyone knows it, and they will definitely recommend it to you.

Keeping sheep of the Romanov breed. Setting up a sheepfold. LLC Romanovskoye

Non-standard personal subsidiary plot. Sheep management

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Tags: sheep, content

At home, sheep raising is a profitable business. Unlike other domestic animals, a sheep is versatile - you can get meat, wool, milk, and even fat (from some breeds) from it. We will tell you about all the nuances of sheep breeding for beginners in this article.

Sheep and goat farming are similar in many ways. Before breeding sheep, you should familiarize yourself with the characteristics of these animals.

Sheep are herd animals, they do not scatter far and always graze together. Their crowding makes it possible to raise many heads of cattle even in small sheepfolds. The advantage of raising sheep is the animals' unpretentiousness to feed. Any grass is suitable for walking. The main thing is not to bring the herd to swampy and damp places where animals can easily get sick. Based on the quality of wool, lambs are divided into fine-fleece, semi-fine-fleece and coarse-wool.

After drawing up a business plan for sheep breeding, choosing a breed and purchasing animals (breeds will be discussed below), the process of sheep breeding itself begins. Farmers divide the keeping of animals into three types:

  1. year-round pasture (for regions with warm climates);
  2. in sheepfolds;
  3. combined (in the winter in the sheepfold, in the other seasons on the pasture).

For a beginning sheep breeder, a small herd of 15-20 heads is quite suitable. The main indicator for animals is their ability to quickly gain weight and fertility of ewes. As for wool, today it is easy to find enterprises that will accept sheepskin for processing. But you need to find out their contacts and prices before raising sheep.

It is important to choose suitable pasture for your sheep. It should not be adjacent to damp lowlands and swamps. In case of poor nutrition, you can feed the animals.

When keeping animals in a sheepfold, it is recommended to feed them grass and corn silage and cereal hay. There is about 3 kg of silage per day per individual. When preparing feed, try to adhere to the following standards: 4-6 quintals of silage, 3-5 quintals of roughage, 2 quintals of hay. Concentrated feed is required for weak suckler ewes or breeding rams. It is acceptable to feed your pets bean silage or hay. It is recommended to put lick salt in the feeders. If the main product of your business is wool, the best results are obtained by feeding legumes and grains in a ratio of 40% to 60%.

Concentrated feeds promote rapid growth of animals, but they are not cheap. Chalk, bone meal or defluorinated phosphate are suitable as mineral supplements. Remember that a lack of minerals reduces the productivity of sheep in all respects.

Little water is required. In summer, animals should be watered twice a day (you can do it again at night when it’s hot), in winter - once. Standing water should not be used; well water is best.

The room where sheep are bred must be dry and well ventilated, but without drafts. A layer of sand and straw is placed on the floor. Another advantage of raising sheep is the fact that in winter the sheepfold does not need insulation. The main thing is that the room protects the herd from precipitation and wind. In summer, the cooler it is in the shed, the faster the sheep's wool grows.

In the summer, for raising sheep, like goats, a simple shed in a place protected from the wind is sufficient. In winter they need to be kept indoors. This is especially true for lambing queens. The premises where sheep are bred are built at the rate of 2 square meters. m. for one queen.

When transferring animals from stalls to pasture, succulent feed is given to them gradually so that intestinal upset does not occur. It is recommended to start grazing when the height of cereals is 5 cm and the formation of lateral stems in forbs and legumes. Sheep can be grazed on hayfields 25 days after mowing.

If you want to keep animals exclusively on green food, they should be on pasture 14 hours a day.

Different breeds of sheep reach sexual maturity at different times - from 4 to 8 months. It is better to let the young breed into mating no earlier than one year of age. The mating period lasts on average 145 days. 25 days before lambing you need to trim the hair near the tail and udder. Assistance during childbirth is usually not required. Lambs can be switched to concentrated feed from just one week of age.

If you want to improve the quality of lamb and speed up its production, when breeding sheep, wean the lambs on the 3rd day and feed them artificially. With a small (up to a dozen) number of sheep, this method is very cost-effective, since in a short time it will be possible to breed the queen again. Mating can be either free or with artificial insemination.

It is preferable to slaughter lambs at 3-9 months of age. Gourmets believe that meat from animals older than one year is no longer suitable for food. Sheep are slaughtered by cutting the cervical artery.

Pets are usually groomed 1-2 times a year. Animals with uniform hair are shorn in the spring, while animals with mixed hair are shorn in spring and autumn. In the northern regions, coarse wool sheep occasionally have to be sheared three times a year. A delay in shearing, when breeding sheep with coarse wool, leads to a loss of 50% of the coat, since with the arrival of stable heat the animals begin to shed.

Breeds for home breeding

Before breeding sheep, it is worth deciding on the choice of breed and direction of production. Sheep breeding as a business has several directions.

The Romanovskaya is generally considered to be a universal and one of the best breeds. She has excellent meat productivity, high offspring and milk production. In addition, such sheep make the best sheepskin.

To obtain high-quality wool, fine-wool sheep are used: Altai, Caucasian, Stavropol breeds and merino sheep. For example, the Altai breed weighs 12 kg.

Meat-wool breeds have semi-fine wool. This type is divided into short-haired and long-haired sheep. On average, animals weigh about 80 kg. Semi-fine-fleece breeds include: Russian Longhair, Kuibyshev, Tien Shan, North Caucasian breed and Romney March. Shorthairs have the advantage of early ripening and high taste of meat. Short-haired breeds: Latvian, Lithuanian and Estonian. Tsigei and Georgian semi-fine wool breeds are used for the production of artificial fur, high-quality carpets and technical cloth.

Of the fur coat breeds, besides the Romanov, the Karakul is notable.

Finally, there are fat-tailed breeds. Such animals are used to obtain lard and meat, and the wool is used for felt. The best of this type is the Hissar sheep, the largest in the world. Its weight can reach 200 kg.

Universal breeds have good meat, milk and wool characteristics: Balabas, Tushino and Karachay.

Breeding Basics

Raising sheep at home, as we see, is not anything complicated. It is only important, before breeding sheep, to make a sheepfold of suitable size, choose pasture and the breed required according to its characteristics. After some time, it will be necessary to mate and fatten the offspring, and then continue to breed.

Feed today is cheap, especially since animals spend most of their time on pastures. The animals are completely unpretentious to food and find pasture on their own. When keeping them in stalls, all that remains is to maintain cleanliness and replenish the feeders on time.

Sheep live approximately 20-25 years. But it is recommended to keep the uterus and the breeder for no more than 7 years. Over time, the animal's teeth wear out, and overall productivity decreases.

The slaughter yield for lambs is about 50%. It depends on fatness.

A beginner should know the basics of behavior with sheep. They cannot be caught by their fur - it is easily torn out along with the skin. To catch, use a stick with a wooden hook and catch the animal by the leg.

Profitability of sheep farming

In a household, animal breeding must begin with a business plan. List all future expenses step by step. Sheep farming as a business requires a thoughtful approach.

Is it profitable to raise sheep? Without a doubt. The profitability of sheep farming in good care and conditions can reach 30%, although in unfavorable conditions it drops to 10%. In any case, production can easily be made break-even and part of the income can be sent to development. Breeding the Romanov breed shows good profitability.

In a business plan for sheep breeding, keep in mind that one individual with offspring needs about 1 hectare of pasture. There is no personal or free pasture, pasture can be rented. Sow grass in spring. One animal needs approximately 10 kg of feed per day. A clean fresh body of water is desirable nearby. When walking, take into account the area of ​​the site per individual of 3 sq.m.

There is a formula for calculating the required amount of land - G = U/NxP

Here G is the number of livestock per hectare, Y is the yield of grass eaten per hectare, multiplied by the percentage of grass stand. This percentage varies depending on the type of pasture. If it is natural, then 50%, improved natural – 80%. The average grass harvest is 100 centners. N – norm for one head per day (10 kg). P – duration of pasture use.

Let's consider a business plan using the example of a herd of 300 animals. Rent of land for such a flock will be about 100 thousand rubles per year, and the premises for breeding will be the same amount. The average salary for staff is 600 thousand rubles per year. RUR 50,000 will be spent on everyday expenses. Total expenses amount to 850 thousand rubles per year.

The profitability of keeping sheep is very high. These are quite unpretentious animals that bring a lot of benefits to their owner. Some breeds are intended for the production of meat, milk, or sheepskin. However, more and more often there are mixed species: meat and dairy, or milk and wool, etc. Keeping these animals is very profitable, given their rapid growth, weight gain and fertility.

Sheep have highly developed herd instincts. This means that they always stay together and do not go far from the flock. Therefore, a small sheepfold or stall will be sufficient for breeding and maintenance. Even-toed ungulates are unpretentious to food and prefer to eat succulent green food.

The juiciest food is found in the pasture

In the warm season, it will be enough to introduce a small bait to make the diet more varied and nutritious. Sheep must be raised carefully because they are prone to diseases of the lungs and other organs of the respiratory system. Therefore, excessive air humidity and drafts are not allowed in the room. When grazing, it is worth keeping the flock away from wet places such as meadows and swamps, otherwise the artiodactyls can easily get sick.

Breeds

The first stage of preparation for sheep farming is. Of course, you can buy mestizos, or even outbred ones, but this is very risky, since the owner will not be able to predict the characteristics of such animals, or determine the level of health or fertility. In addition, selling young animals in this case will be very difficult and difficult. First you need to decide on the required type of product that the animals provide.

Breed direction:

  • (Gorkovskaya, Texel, North Caucasus, Romney March);
  • Meat – greasy ();
  • Meat – wool (Gissar, Prekos, Latvian);
  • Dairy (Karakul, Reshetilovskaya, Sokolskaya);
  • Meat – milk-wool (, Tushinskaya, Balabas, Karachevskaya).

According to the types of sheepskin, sheep are:

  • Fine-fleece;
  • Semi-fine-fleece;
  • Semi-coarse-haired;
  • Coarse-haired.

Content Types

Before buying animals, you need to decide on the place and method of keeping them based on the climate of the area and the financial capabilities of the owner. Sheep housing systems are:

  1. Pasture. Animals stay in grazing areas all year round and eat succulent green food. This method is well suited for areas with warm, dry climates.
  2. IN . Confinement of sheep is suitable for cold and wet regions with frequent rainfall. However, it is worth considering that they are active animals that need walks. Therefore, a good owner should take care of the walking area.
  3. Combined. Keeping sheep indoors in the winter, where they eat prepared food, and go to pasture in the summer. Well suited for temperate climates with pronounced seasons.

It is not recommended to immediately start a huge flock of several dozen animals. They are quite prolific, therefore, under conditions of proper maintenance, care and balanced nutrition, the livestock will increase by 2 or 3 times without additional costs per year.

To begin with, you can get 10-15 animals - this will be quite enough. You will be able to get acquainted with all the nuances and subtleties of sheep breeding, develop your own skills and techniques for breeding and care. The main criteria for selecting individuals are their level of health, heredity, rate of weight gain and fertility.

Diet

Depending on the type of animal keeping you choose, your approach will vary. If they are kept on pasture all year round, it should have good grass cover and not be adjacent to wet places and swamps. In the event that there is not enough grass and plants for animals, additional feeding must be introduced - root crops or compound feed.


Compound feed is an excellent addition to the main diet

If you decide to keep lambs in a stall or sheepfold, then you need to stock up on feed in advance. The optimal diet may consist of silage (grass and corn), cereal hay, or legumes. It should be taken into account that at least 2.5–3 kg of silage must be allocated per day for 1 adult. The approximate ratio of hay, roughage and silage should be 2:5:4. In this case, the diet will be complete and balanced.

For weak, sick individuals, pregnant women and females during lactation, additional feeding with compound feed is needed. This also applies to breeding sheep at home. To ensure the necessary concentration of minerals in the body, you can put a few pieces of salt in the feeders.


Salt - lick is good for sheep

Additionally, you can feed with chalk and bone meal. For breeding wool breeds, it is recommended to focus on hay from cereals and legumes in the diet - the quality of the sheepskin will increase, and the fluff will be shiny.

Animals should not be allowed to drink standing water; they should only drink well and clean water 2 times in summer and 1 time in winter. Cold water is not allowed.

Place of detention

The room where pets are kept must be clean, dry and easily ventilated. According to the rules of sheep breeding, there should be 2 square meters per individual. m. of free space. During the cold season, the stall does not need additional insulation (especially if wool sheep are bred). In the warm season, it should be cool, as in this case the wool grows better and faster. For this period, you can simply build a canopy protected from wind and draft.


When the time comes to turn the flock out to pasture, the transition to fresh feed should occur gradually. If you neglect this rule of sheep breeding, the entire herd can contract an intestinal infection and become seriously ill.

Grazing can begin when the height of grass, legumes and cereal crops reaches a minimum of 5 cm. During this time, the plants will have time to accumulate a sufficient amount of nutrients, vitamins and minerals.

After mowing, grazing becomes available after 25 days. Raising sheep at home requires that animals spend a minimum of 12 hours on sheep pasture. The daily consumption of grass and other plants is 10 kg per day per 1 adult.

Livestock breeding

For each breed of animal, puberty occurs at different times. On average it is from 4 to 9 months. However, you should not allow mating before the first year of life - at this time, the female’s body is not yet fully strengthened, and it will be difficult for her to give birth to offspring without compromising her own health.

Mating can be free and artificial. The artificial method requires less time and costs, so it is recommended for use with a large number of livestock on the farm. The annual turnover of the sheep herd is approximately 200-250%.

Lasts approximately 4–5 months. At this time, the uterus needs increased nutrition. A month before the expected lambing date, you need to carefully trim the hair around the udder and tail. A week after lambing, young animals can be given feed concentrates for rapid weight gain.


A week after birth, lambs already begin to eat succulent feed

The average lifespan of sheep is 25 years. The age of a sheep or ram for breeding purposes should not exceed 7–8 years. Upon reaching 3 months, the first grading of sheep should take place - the distribution of individuals into value classes. The future structure of the herd is formed from individuals of one class of individuals.

Care

Meat breeds can be prepared for slaughter starting from 4–9 months. It is worth considering that the older the animal, the tougher its meat. Slaughter occurs by cutting the cervical artery.


Happens 1–2 times a year. Coarse wool sheep are shorn up to 3 times. It is recommended to cut animals in spring or autumn. If you are late or start this procedure too early, the fleece will significantly deteriorate its quality and will be unsuitable for use. A haircut that is cut too late may fail due to natural off-season shedding. Sheep with light skin are tagged by tattooing on the ear, and sheep with dark skin are tagged by plucking wool or rings.

Video: Sheep farming is a profitable business

If all minor nuances for caring for sheep are observed, the farmer will receive a source of tasty milk, meat and high-quality wool, which will be enough not only for personal needs, but also for sale.

More and more farmers are mastering raising sheep at home for beginners, since this area of ​​the livestock business is considered one of the most profitable. Statistics show that profit from a flock of 300 heads is only 25%, so if you want to use sheep breeding as a business, and not only start it, but also succeed, we recommend keeping larger flocks. In this article you will learn all the features of caring for rams in winter and summer.

Raising sheep for meat at home

Rams are considered fast-growing animals, because after just a few months the weight of a young lamb is half the weight of an adult. If you decide to succeed in the business of breeding sheep for meat or plan to raise rams for yourself, then choose meat breeds. To obtain meat, farmers most often choose the Romanov breed of sheep. Such sheep are also distinguished by their high milk production, so you will get at least one liter of milk per day.

The photo shows stall maintenance in winter

It is important for novice farmers to know that sheep, when bred at home, do not tolerate high humidity. Therefore, it is important to build a high-quality sheepfold and insulate it well to keep the flock in winter. Straw bedding will help ensure cleanliness when keeping the pen. When keeping, do not forget to provide free access for sheep and rams to feed and water.

Advantages of sheep breeding as a business for beginners and successful farmers:

  1. Sheep meat is considered dietary, so it can be sold at a high price.
  2. While the lamb is growing, shear its wool, the sale of which will become a source of additional income.
  3. Milk is also a good way to make a profit, because delicious cheeses are made from sheep’s milk.

The photo shows the arrangement of the feeder

Before you start raising sheep as a business, make a spending plan, because you need not just to buy young lambs, but to provide a comfortable place for them to live, stock up on feed for the winter and hire auxiliary workers who will walk the flock in the pasture and clean the sheepfolds. Only by following a clear business plan can you succeed in this livestock farming business.

Feeding sheep in winter at home

When breeding in sheepfolds, according to farmers' reviews, it is necessary to include grass, cereal hay, and corn silage in the diet. Bean silage can be used, and concentrated feed can be included in the diet of suckling queens. Don't forget to put lick salt in the feeder when feeding.

Table of daily diet for 1 head

  • 4 kg of hay;
  • 1.5 kg of grain.

This norm will decrease slightly in the spring and summer, when walking is carried out in the fields and animals can eat fresh grass.

Diet table for feeding Romanov breed ewes

If you decide to start raising sheep at home for beginners in order to get a lot of wool, then feeding in winter and summer should include a 2:3 ratio of legumes to grains.

The decrease in sheep productivity directly depends on nutrition, therefore, beginners, do not forget about mineral supplements:

  • phosphate without fluorine;
  • bone flour;

In the summer, according to reviews from experienced sheep breeders, it is worth watering the animals 2 times a day, preferably with well water rather than standing water. When keeping sheep in winter, you can water them only once a day.

Photos of feeding in winter

Another important feature of raising lambs at home for beginners is that during the transition from the winter stall period to the pasture period, succulent feed should be introduced into the diet gradually. This will help avoid intestinal disorders in the entire flock. If you plan to switch your sheep to pasture feeding in the spring, then walking should last about 12-14 hours a day, then all individuals will be well-fed and healthy.

Sheep: breeding, care, video

Watch a selection of videos about the features of caring for meat breeds:

Shepherd hangar for winter maintenance:

How to care for sheep at home

To breed and keep sheep for beginners, it is not necessary to have large areas; you can try raising a couple in your dacha. A small sheepfold can accommodate up to a dozen sheep - this is already a good start for succeeding in this line of business in the future. Sheep are not afraid of frost, but are very sensitive to humidity. If you do not want to lose your flock due to various diseases, monitor the humidity level in the sheepfold and in the pasture.

In the photo, lambs are eating concentrated feed.

In the summer, sheep can be kept in the same way as goats - under a canopy that protects from the wind and scorching sun. In winter, the rams will have to be moved to a closed, insulated room.

Each breed of sheep has its own characteristics and different sexual maturation. This is important to take into account for both beginners and experienced farmers, because although maturation can occur after 4-8 months, it is advisable to allow mating at one year of age.

The photo shows pasture breeding

If your goal is not just breeding rams and sheep at home for beginners, but also to obtain meat in a short time, after lambing, take the lambs from the sheep after 3 days. Further maintenance will take place on artificial nutrition. If you want to start a sheep breeding business and succeed in it, then use this approach when keeping 10-15 sheep. After just a few months, free or artificial mating can be carried out again.

Breeding sheep at home is considered a profitable branch of farming. These animals are unpretentious and hardy, and the list of products obtained is quite large: meat, milk, fat, wool and skin.

To successfully engage in sheep farming, you need to know the characteristics and needs of these animals, as well as properly care for them. So where to start? First of all, decide on the breed of sheep.

A novice farmer must determine the purpose of breeding sheep and, based on this, choose a breed: meat, meat-wool, fat-tailed and others.

Before you start breeding, you need to decide on the breed of sheep.

To get good quality wool, it is recommended to purchase animals of the following breeds:

  • Caucasian;
  • Stavropol;
  • Altai;
  • merino.

Meat-wool breeds of sheep produce semi-fine wool and are divided into long-haired and short-haired.

The following types of animals are classified as long-haired:

  • Tien Shan;
  • Romney March;
  • Russian longhair;
  • North Caucasian;
  • Kuibyshevskaya

The short-haired variety is represented by Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian sheep. In addition, these animals grow quickly, and the meat is of high quality. To produce carpets, cloth and fur of good quality, you should pay attention to Tsigean and Georgian sheep. The fur breeds also include Karakul and Romanov.

It is worth noting that Romanov sheep are considered universal: they have good meat and milk productivity, as well as high offspring. These animals grow well, practically do not get sick and can rightfully be considered one of the best options for beginners.


For beginners in sheep farming, the Romanov breed of sheep is most suitable.

Balabas, Tushino and Karachai breeds have good indicators for meat, wool and milk. If a farmer prefers to breed fat-tailed sheep to obtain meat, lard and wool for making felt, he should opt for Gissar sheep. These animals are considered the largest among their brothers, their weight sometimes reaches 200 kg.

Containment room

These include:

  • air temperature for adult animals is +7, for offspring +10 degrees;
  • good natural light, ideally windows should make up at least 1/15 of the total space;
  • sufficient space for animals (for adults 2.5–3 m, for lamb at least 0.7 m);
  • hardness and warmth of the floor, it is better if it is adobe or wood;
  • large double gates.

The room should be regularly ventilated and cleaned, and also provided with a good ventilation system. In addition, a place should be allocated in the sheepfold for lambing sheep and their subsequent keeping together with their offspring.

Raising sheep at home in summer

On hot days, animals can also be kept outdoors, under a canopy.


Sheep are on pasture 14 hours a day.

In addition to pasture, sheep need additional feeding in the form of mineral supplements, root vegetables, cake, hay and other things. It is also important to provide the livestock with a sufficient amount of drinking, at least 10 liters per day, and to water the sheep 2 times during the day. It is better if the water comes from a well.

When choosing a site for pasture, you need to pay attention to the presence of a nearby watering place. It is important to know that marshy areas are not suitable for sheep grazing; these animals react poorly to dampness. The herd needs to be on pasture up to 14 hours a day.

Keeping sheep in the cold season

During the cold months, animals should be kept in a sheepfold. In rainy weather, sheep should not be grazed in the open air; they may get sick.

For the winter, you should stock up on a sufficient amount of hay; an adult animal eats up to 4 kg of it per day. If the herd is large, it is advisable to acquire special equipment, this will provide the livestock with food for the whole winter. You also need grain, the consumption of which corresponds to 1.5–2 kg per day per sheep. In addition, animals need to be fed with root vegetables and legume silage.

Animal nutrition in summer and winter

During the summer months, the herd spends most of its time on pasture and feeds primarily on grass. Corn silage and cereal hay can be given to sheep as additional feed.


Sheep are fed hay, vegetables and grain mixtures.

The diet of animals at any time of the year should contain salt, 10–15 g per day for an adult and 5–8 g for lambs. Chalk is also used as additives, which is necessary in the daily “menu” as a source of calcium, bone meal and fluoride-free phosphate.

In the cold season, when food on pastures is scarce, in addition to hay, animals must be given:

  • carrot;
  • sugar beets;
  • beans and grains;
  • sunflower cake;
  • wheat bran and so on.

In order for the livestock to be healthy and the animals to quickly gain weight, it is necessary to stock up on a sufficient amount of feed. If nutrition is poor, this will lead to a decrease in weight gain.

Diet of queens and young animals

Queens require high-quality and balanced feed.

Daily sheep nutrition includes the following components:

  • cereal hay – 0.5 kg;
  • legumes – 0.3 kg;
  • straw – 0.5 kg;
  • vegetables 3–3.5 kg;
  • salt 12–15 g.

Sometimes lambs are bottle-fed with cow's milk.

A month before lambing, hay should be reduced in the animal’s diet and replaced with mixed feed. After childbirth, hay can be given in an amount of 1 kg, vegetables - 4 kg, and concentrates - 0.5 kg.

For the first 5 days, lambs feed only on mother's milk. If this is impossible for some reason, the offspring are given cow's milk and special formulas. At the age of 1 month, lambs can additionally consume 50 g of concentrated feed, and at 2 months - 150 g per day.

Diseases and prevention

The main enemy of sheep is considered to be dampness, which causes pneumonia. The animal coughs and eats poorly, breathing is difficult, and the temperature rises above normal. When treating animals, antibiotics are used, for example, bicillin, biovit-80, streptomycin and others. To prevent illness, it is important to keep animals dry and warm. And also protect from drafts and do not drive them out to graze in the rain.

Another common disease is rumen flatulence, a malaise that occurs due to an incorrectly composed diet of the animal. In this case, the individual loses appetite and becomes nervous, and there are also signs of bloating. In such cases, a gas outlet tube is inserted into the animal's oral cavity or the scar is punctured.

If an animal eats a poisonous plant in the pasture, signs of poisoning appear: diarrhea, vomiting and loss of appetite. In such situations, it is necessary to rinse the sheep's stomach with vegetable oil and Glauber's salt.


Sheep can suffer from pneumonia, rumen swelling and poisoning.

If an animal's hooves are affected by purulent bacteria, the resulting growths are cut off, otherwise the animal will limp. To prevent possible diseases of animals, it is necessary to monitor their condition and keep the livestock clean and warm, as well as provide balanced feed rich in microelements.

Breeding Basics for Beginners: What You Should Know About Lambing

Many sheep breeds have a high level of fertility, and some varieties produce 5 lambs per lamb. Females give birth without complications, and the process takes 30–40 minutes. Lambs are often born in a bladder that they cannot break on their own. In this case, human help is necessary, otherwise the cub may suffocate.

The lamb should receive food within the first 2 hours of life. If the sheep is too tired and cannot feed the offspring on its own, it needs to be milked and the milk given to the lamb.

The offspring easily adapt to the conditions of detention and grow quickly. As a rule, lambs are breastfed for up to 2 months, but after 4–5 weeks they can be gradually introduced to complementary foods.


Lambs grow quite quickly - already in a month they begin to taste the food of adult sheep.

Shearing

The time for shearing the livestock depends on the climate of the area. In the spring, with the onset of warmth, you can begin removing hair from animals of coarse-haired and semi-coarse-haired breeds. If you do not do this in time, you can lose part of the coat, as the animal begins to shed in the summer. Haircuts are carried out twice a year, in spring and autumn.

Fine-fleece and semi-fine-fleece animals practically do not shed in the summer, but cutting them too early is not recommended. The fact is that in winter, grease accumulates in insufficient quantities and the wool becomes dry and rough. Therefore, it is necessary to wait until it is present in the required volume. Such animals need to be cut once a year.

Lambs from spring lambing are sheared every other year, and those born in winter are sheared in the last month of summer or early autumn.

It is important to know that the animal’s fur should not be wet when shearing, so you should not start working immediately after feeding or watering. And to prevent animals from getting sick, 15–20 days after shearing, they are washed with a special solution of disinfectants.


Typically, sheep are sheared twice a year: in autumn and spring.

For successful and profitable sheep breeding, the following recommendations must be taken into account:

  • purchase lambs no younger than 4 months;
  • upon reaching the age of five months, keep males and females separately;
  • keep animals in a warm and dry room, on deep bedding;
  • protect the herd from drafts and dampness;
  • clean the sheepfold in a timely manner and maintain the cleanliness of feeders and drinkers;
  • give animals food in sufficient quantities, enriching the diet with additives;
  • Mating should be carried out when the animals reach 1–1.5 years of age.

Sheep farming is a profitable business, but it also requires significant labor costs and compliance with rules for keeping animals. But the result is worth it; with successful sheep breeding, the farmer receives a high annual profit.

We offer you to watch a video in which a farmer talks about keeping and breeding sheep at home.