castration

badgerhowlin

Hi. I have a 4-5 month old pet ram and he is starting try and ride every thing he sees. Mainly my 4 your old son. I want to get him casterated.

Which would be better the ring or the bardiso at that age

Farmer_3650

At that age the ring is not an option for you since it is illegal to use them after either 7 or 10 days (can't remember which). You'll have to use a burdizzo

badgerhowlin

Thanks.

So the big squeeze for lamby then

Green farmer

badgerhowlin wrote: »

Hi. I have a 4-5 month old pet ram and he is starting try and ride every thing he sees. Mainly my 4 your old son. I want to get him casterated.

Which would be better the ring or the bardiso at that age

Don't trust the pet ram as he gets older. They don't have the same fear of humans ordinary sheep do, and might try and puck someone instead of moving away.

kk.man

Green farmer wrote: »

Don't trust the pet ram as he gets older. They don't have the same fear of humans ordinary sheep do, and might try and puck someone instead of moving away.

+1

arctictree

Green farmer wrote: »

Don't trust the pet ram as he gets older. They don't have the same fear of humans ordinary sheep do, and might try and puck someone instead of moving away.

Would breeders sell a pet ram as a breeding ram? I am nearly convinced that our Ram was a pet as he has very little fear.

Green farmer

arctictree wrote: »

Would breeders sell a pet ram as a breeding ram? I am nearly convinced that our Ram was a pet as he has very little fear.

If they went to the expense and time of rearing it, Im sure some would chance it. Highlights the importance of finding a breeder who has the same priorities and viewpoint as yourself.

rangler1

Green farmer wrote: »

If they went to the expense and time of rearing it, Im sure some would chance it. Highlights the importance of finding a breeder who has the same priorities and viewpoint as yourself.

We've sold plenty that were artificially reared.....don't see any problem doing that, we've had ewes that had three or even four lambs and everyone suitable for breeding.....very few lambs reared on bottles nowadays

Green farmer

rangler1 wrote: »

We've sold plenty that were artificially reared.....don't see any problem doing that, we've had ewes that had three or even four lambs and everyone suitable for breeding.....very few lambs reared on bottles nowadays

Artificially reared on ad lib feeders, in groups with little direct human would be no bother, but I personally wouldn't take a present of a bottle hand fed lamb that thinks your its mother as a breeding ram afterwards.

Farmer_3650

If you have a Ram, DO NOT let children pet him. He will turn into a pet and puck you. When I was younger we had a Quiet Ram and I used to pet him all the time. We had to sell him in the end because he would puck you if you went near him. He wouldn't puck you that hard but if he got you in the right place, he could do serious damage.

Green farmer

Farmer_3650 wrote: »

If you have a Ram, DO NOT let children pet him. He will turn into a pet and puck you. When I was younger we had a Quiet Ram and I used to pet him all the time. We had to sell him in the end because he would puck you if you went near him. He wouldn't puck you that hard but if he got you in the right place, he could do serious damage.

Unfortunately sounds near identical to what happened here before. Exact same behaviour.

The man in red and black

badgerhowlin wrote: »

Hi. I have a 4-5 month old pet ram and he is starting try and ride every thing he sees. Mainly my 4 your old son. I want to get him casterated.

Which would be better the ring or the bardiso at that age

Burdizzo or have your vet cut them out but that'd be a job for later in the year when flies gone. Burdizzo can be hard on strong rams lambs. Get anti-inflammatories from your vet for him to reduce pain and keep feed intake up afterwards.

Ard_MC

The man in red and black wrote: »

Burdizzo or have your vet cut them out but that'd be a job for later in the year when flies gone. Burdizzo can be hard on strong rams lambs. Get anti-inflammatories from your vet for him to reduce pain and keep feed intake up afterwards.

When is best to use burdizzo on them? What age not to check performance?

Green farmer

Anyone use the ritchey nipper, meant to be more successful and designed especially for sheep

The man in red and black

Ard_MC wrote: »

When is best to use burdizzo on them? What age not to check performance?

There won't be a concrete best answer to that. The longer you leave them the stronger they will be and so it will set them back more. Ring at a few days old is an easier option. Think of it like calves. Huge difference between burdizzoing them at 5 months vs 8 months. Some people will want to weigh that against the added growth from being sexually intact though so it's a judgement call for each individual farm.