the ram effect ???

roosky

hi I have a small flock of 55 ewes and want to get them tipped fairly tightly as I'm in college and will have 2 weeks holidays in march.....

is it worth leaving the ram beside them for the week and letting him to them on Saturday or will they be cycling anyway this time of year????

the problem is that all the ewes have to be moved to accomodate the ram as the fencing is cat where they are at the min

advice greatly appreciated

snowman707

I'm after a few jars and your spelling is doing my head in, let off the ram & close the gate

a week's ram effect won't make any odds this time of year

roosky

Jesus sorry for using a key-board...eh thanks anyway for advice that's what I want to know will it make any difference because id sooner not do it !!!

LostCovey

snowman707 wrote: »

I'm after a few jars and your spelling is doing my head in, let off the ram & close the gate

a week's ram effect won't make any odds this time of year

+1

Won't they be coming into heat naturally regardless now?

cattle man

hi roosky

for the ram effect to work ya need to let the ram in for 1-3 day then take im out and re introduce him in two weeks time. so if u want ta let your ram out for next weekend then the ram effect is no good to you at this stage.

but at this time of year ewes should cycle naturally and in a 14 day period you will get most of them tipped.

just like u i also plan to let the rams out next saturday into my ewes as i have two weeks off from college then as well.

one last thing if ya really want a compact lambing u could sponge now and then 70 percent or more would lamb in a a few days. i do this with 35 ewes for christmas time and it works well.

best of luck anyway.:)

roosky

thanks for advice ,,,,,let the ram in beside them today just to get the ewe lambs and 10 hogs cycling sure wont make a huge differ either way now anyway

Highland

Ram effect could still work depending on the breed. if they have some hill sheep blood in you ewes you might still get away with it. It will however only work if the ewes have been out of sight, sound and smell of all male sheep (including wethers and male goats) for the last five weeks. But if you need a realy tight lambing becuase of college i'd opt for sponging - it's more reliable - leave the sponges in for 14 days not 12 days which is whats recommended for out of season mating. If the ewes are in good condition and if you flush them for the next 2 weeks you shouldnt need to give any PMSG

snowman707

Highland wrote: »

Ram effect could still work depending on the breed. if they have some hill sheep blood in you ewes you might still get away with it. It will however only work if the ewes have been out of sight, sound and smell of all male sheep (including wethers and male goats) for the last five weeks. But if you need a realy tight lambing becuase of college i'd opt for sponging - it's more reliable - leave the sponges in for 14 days not 12 days which is whats recommended for out of season mating. If the ewes are in good condition and if you flush them for the next 2 weeks you shouldnt need to give any PMSG

from op's post I gathered he had just one ram ( as usual I am open to correction) but if this the case he would be better off not sponging, other wise he will have miserable results .

Highland

Ya agree snowman, will need to borrow a few rams. only need them for 24 hours - 1 mature ram for every 10 - 12 ewes should do the trick in October. Can resuse the same ram by pulling sponges 3 days apart - then only need half the no but wont get as tight a lambing pattern

roosky

thanks lads ya gone late for sponging now but what ive done is just teasing the whole lot for the week just to get the ewe lambs in heat .....twill all work out ok in the end!!