SHEEP MANAGEMENT AND PRODUCTION

1
SHEEP MANAGEMENT AND PRODUCTION
2
History of Merino sheep in Australia
3
Present day industry

• The Merino sheep predominate accounting for over
  75 of Australia's sheep population.
• The majority of the remainder of the flock is
  comprised of crossbreeds which are the result of
  crossing breeds of British origin with Merinos.
• In meat production the crossbreds produce heavier
  live weights but much coarser wool.

4
Present day industry

• Australasian breeds such as Corriedale and
  Polwarth evolved from crossing Merinos with
  British Breeds.
• The most common cross breed is the 1st Cross ewe
  which is a cross between a Merino ewe and a
  Border Leister ram
• These breeds combine the desired attributes of
  both wool and meat.

5
Present day industry

• Approximately 40 of the sheep population is in
  NSW with Western Australia being second with just
  under 20.
• The sheep population is highest in areas that
  receive over 375mm of rain per year.

6

• ( MICRON) AVERAGE COST OF PRODUCTION
• ( 4 YEAR AVERAGE) AVERAGE PRICE RECEIVED
• ( 4 YEAR 1996-2000 INDICATOR) DIFFERENCE
• 21.6 - 22.5 5.32 5.91 0.59
• 20.6 - 21.5 5.91 6.49 0.58
• 19.6 - 21.5 6.23 7.56 1.23
• 18.6 19.5 6.78 9.46 2.68
• 17.5 18.5 8.72 12.06 3.34

7
Merino Sheep

• There are 4 strains of Merino Sheep
• Superfine ( Saxony)
• Fine
• Medium (Peppin)
• Strong (South Australian)

8
Super Fine Wool Merino

• Climate and Geographical location
• High rainfall cooler areas eg NSW Tablelands and
  Tasmanian midlands.
• Micron
• 14-16
• Wool Length
• 65-70mm
• Farming Objective
• Production of ultra-fine micron wool.

9
Fine Wool Merino

• Climate and Geographical location
• High rainfall cooler areas eg NSW Tablelands and
  Tasmanian midlands.
• Micron
• 16-18
• Wool Length
• 70-75mm
• Farming Objective
• Production of fine fibre diameter wool.

10
Medium Wool Merino

• Climate and Geographical location
• Drier hot inland pastoral areas of NSW, QLD and
  WA.
• Micron
• 18-22
• Wool Length
• 80-90mm
• Farming Objective
• Production of general purpose apparel fibre.

11
MEDIUM WOOL MERINO
12
Strong Wool Merino

• Climate and Geographical location
• Low rainfall and hot semi-arid regions of
  Australia
• Micron
• 23-25
• Wool Length
• 100-105mm
• Farming Objective
• Production of a general purpose fibre with a high
  fleece weight.

13

• DUAL PURPOSE SHEEP

14
Corriedale

• Climate and Geographical location
• Most grazing areas of Australia with high
  rainfall and improved pastures
• Micron
• 27-30
• Wool Length
• 140-150mm
• Farming Objective
• Production of prime lambs and wool

15
CORRIEDALE RAMS
16
Polwarth

• Climate and Geographical location
• Cool , high rainfall areas with improved pastures
• Micron
• 23-25
• Wool Length
• 100-105mm
• Farming Objective
• Production of prime lambs and wool

17
BRITISH BREEDS OF SHEEP

• The united Kingdom is renowned for its many
  different breeds of sheep. Most of them are bred
  in cooler climates with high quality pastures.
• British breed sheep are used mainly for crossing
  with Merinos to produce prime lamb mothers or
  prime lambs.
• British breed sheep are dived into two types
• Longwooled
• Shortwooled

18
LONG WOOLED SHEEP

• These sheep get their name from the length of
  their wool. It can grow between 175mm and 300mm
  per year.
• The wool is coarse with a broad crimp.
• They usually have black hooves and nostrils and
  white faces and legs.
• They are hornless with a large frame.
• They are very good mothers and are crossed with
  Merinos to produce prime lamb mothers.

19
BORDER LEICESTER RAM
20
SHORT WOOLED SHEEP

• The short wooled sheep have a short, harsh,
  chalky white coloured wool.
• They have a compact body with high degree of
  muscling and as such produce high quality meat.
• The shortwooled sheep are used to cross with
  most commonly 1st Cross ewes ( Merino
  x Border Leicester) to produce prime lambs.

21
POLL DORSET RAM
22
WHITE SUFFOLK RAMS
23
TEXEL RAM
24
SOUTH SUFFOLK RAMS
25
PRIME LAMB PRODUCTION

• Prime lambs are produced for the meat market.
  There are two types of prime lamb
• 1st Cross
• 2nd cross
• 1st Cross Lambs
• This type of lamb is found in the more marginal
  rainfall areas. They are a cross between a long
  wooled British breed usually Border Leicester and
  a Merino.

26
1st Cross Lambs

• This lamb is better than both parents
  (hybrid vigour), grows quickly and matures fast.
• The best 1st cross ewe lambs are kept and used to
  produce 2nd cross lambs, these ewes are excellent
  mothers with high fertility often having twins
  and even triplets.

27
2nd Cross Lambs

• This type of lamb is found in the high rainfall
  areas where pasture production is high.
• They are the progeny of a 1st cross ewe and a
  short wooled British breed such as Poll Dorset.
• They have a very high growth rates with lambs
  often reaching 25kg within 18-20 weeks of birth.

28
2nd Cross Lambs

• These lambs show a high degree of hybrid vigour,
  where the progeny are better than both parents
  put together.
• All 2nd cross lambs are slaughtered for meat.

29
2ND CROSS PRIME LAMB
30
Breeding a 2nd Cross Lamb
31
LAMB MARKING

• Lamb marking is the name given to 3 operations
  done at the same time. The operations are ear
  marking, tail docking and castration of male
  lambs.
• At marking lambs are usually vaccinated with 6
  in 1 vaccine.
• Lambs are usually marked between 2 and 8 weeks of
  age. The younger lambs are marked the less stress
  and risk of infection occurring.

32
LAMB MARKING

• Castration
• This is the removal or destroying of the testes
  of male lambs.
• It is performed either with a knife or an
  elastrator.
• When a knife is used the end of the scrotum is
  cut off and the testes are pulled out with a hook
  on the end of the knife or your teeth.
• The elastrator uses a rubber ring which is placed
  above the testes which stops the flow of blood to
  the testes and they wither and fall off.

33
LAMB MARKING
34
LAMB MARKING

• Earmarking
• Earmarks are registered by the owner of the
  sheep. They are a combination of slashes, blocks
  and vs that are cut out of the ear. The pliers
  cut away the ear and leave a permanent mark.
• In NSW the registered ear mark is applied in the
  right ear of ewes and left ear of males
  ( females are always right).
• Age marks and ear tags are put in the opposite
  ear.

35
DOCKING

• Docking is the cutting off of the tail. The place
  where the tail is docked is very important.
• to long and the sheep will get flystrike as the
  tail will get covered in manure.
• to short and the anus and vulva become sunburnt
  and skin cancer can result.
• The recommended place is at the second joint, or
  at the tip of the vulva

36
DOCKING

• Tail docking can be done with a knife elastrators
  or a hot knife.
• When using a knife the cut needs to be made
  quickly by pushing down on the knife and pulling
  forward the tail
• When using elastrators the ring is placed at the
  correct point and left to allow the tail to drop
  off.
• The hot knife cuts the tail but also seals the
  blood vessels to stop the bleeding.

37
ELASTRATORS
38
MULESING

• Mulesing is the practice of the removal of the
  folds of skin from the breech area of sheep to
  reduce flystrike.
• The skin folds would normally become stained with
  urine and manure allowing flystrike to occur.
• The skin is removed using a pair of mulesing
  shears which have a curved blade.

39
MULESING
40
VACCINATION

• Vaccination is the injecting of a part or whole
  of a pathogenic organism to build up resistance
  or immunity to the disease.
• The most common vaccination given to sheep is a 6
  in 1 which controls
• Pulpy Kidney
• Black leg
• Black disease
• Enterotoxaemia
• Tetanus
• Cheesy Gland

41
VACCINATION

• Other pathogens that are commonly vaccinated
  against are-
• scabby mouth
• vibriosis
• sheath rot ( testosterone injection)

42
Sheep Vaccinating
43
Sheep Vaccinating
44
REPRODUCTION

• In sexual reproduction one sperm from a male
  unites with an ovum from a female. This is called
  fertilisation.
• The main reproductive organs of a male are the
  testes in which sperm and testosterone are
  produced.
• The testes lie outside the body in the scrotum
  which regulates the temperature of the testes
  keeping them below body temperature.

45
REPRODUCTION

• If the testes become to hot or to cold sperm
  begins to die causing the rams to be infertile.
• Once the sperm has been produced it matures in
  the epididymis at the base of the testes.
• When the ram goes to mate the sperm travels up
  the vas deferens to the seminal vesicles,
  cowper's gland and prostate gland where a number
  of fluids are added.

46
(No Transcript)
47
Rams Testicle
48
REPRODUCTION

• The mixture of sperm and other fluids is called
  semen.
• The role of the fluids is to
• provide a medium for the sperm to swim in
• provide a nutrient source for the sperm
• neutralise the reproductive tract of the female
  which is slightly acidic.
• The semen than travels down the urethra through
  the penis where it is placed inside the female
  reproductive tract. This process is called
  ejaculation.

49
SPERM
50
REPRODUCTION

• The main reproductive organs of the female are
  the ovaries.
• The ovaries produce ova which in sheep are
  released about every 18 days in a process called
  ovulation.
• The released ova then travels down the fallopian
  tubes where if mating has occurred fertilisation
  normally takes place.
• If fertilisation has occurred the ova moves down
  to the uterus where it implants to the wall and
  begins to develop into a foetus.

51
REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM FEMALE
52
REPRODUCTION

• If fertilisation has not occurred the ova will be
  absorbed into the blood stream of the ewe and
  ovulation will occur again about 7 days latter.
• If fertilisation has occurred the foetus will
  develop in the uterus for approximately 5 months.
• Just before birth the female will release a
  number of hormones which will relax the walls of
  the cervix and vagina and cause the uterus to
  begin to contract enabling the lamb to be born.

53
Reproduction

• Puberty.
• The first step in the reproductive cycle is
  reaching puberty.Puberty is the age at which the
  young animals reproductive organs become
  functional.
• In females the release of ova from the ovaries
  and in males the production of sperm by the
  testes

54
Reproduction

• The age of puberty is generally determined by the
  weight of the animal.
• Although an animal may become pregnant after
  reaching puberty, sexual maturity is not reached
  until some time later.

55
Reproduction Physiology

• The Oestrus Cycle
• The oestrus cycle is the breeding cycle of
  females, each oestrus cycle consists of a period
  of sexual activity followed by a period of sexual
  inactivity.
• The female will only allow the male to mate with
  her for a short time period each cycle. At this
  time the female is said to be in oestrus or on
  heat.

56
Reproductive characteristicsof common farm
animals
57
RUMINANT DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
58
Position of Digestive system
59
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
60
RUMINANT DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

• Ruminants have four stomachs
• RUMEN
• RETICULUM
• OMASUM
• ABOMASUM

61
The Rumen
62
Rumen

• The rumen is the first stomach of the ruminant
  animal.
• It is a very large sac containing millions of
  microorganisms that break down the cellulose of
  plant material.

63
The Reticulum
64
Reticulum

• The microorganisms secret enzymes which attack
  the food and break it down so the animal can use
  it.
• The microorganisms also
• - produce B vitamins
• - improve the ability for the animal to digest
  protein in the food.

65
The Omasum
66
Omasum

• The omasum or bible is the third stomach of the
  ruminant animal.
• The omasum removes 60 to 70 of the liquid from
  the reticulum.
• The omasum is made up of page like leaves with a
  rough surface which grind the food into a very
  fine paste.

67
The Abomasum
68
ABOMASUM

• The ABOMASUM or true stomach is the 4th stomach
  of the ruminant.
• Cells in walls secrete gastric juices which
  starts the digestion of protein.
• Gastric juices also contain HCl which kill the
  majority of rumen microbes.

69
Ruminant Digestive SystemAdvantages

• Digest cellulose
• Upgrade low quality feedstuffs
• Make protein from urea and other non-protein
  nitrogen (NPN) sources
• Produce its own vitamin B from microbial sources.

70
SMALL INTESTINE.

• Simple sugars , amino acids and minerals are
  absorbed through the villi which line the mucus
  membrane of the small intestine.
• Capillaries move the digested material to the
  liver where it is stored mainly in the form of
  glycogen until it is circulated around the body.

71
LARGE INTESTINE.

• The large intestine removes a large percentage of
  the water in the food which becomes concentrated.
• A small amount of microbial breakdown of the
  food occurs in the large intestine.
• The waste material is stored in the rectum before
  it is expelled through the anus as faeces.

72
Sheep blowfly
73
Sheep blowfly

• Most flystrike is caused by the Australian sheep
  blowfly, Lucilia cuprina.
• Development of the sheep blowfly, Lucilia
  cuprina, is temperature-dependent, with warm
  temperatures favouring rapid growth.
• Eggs are laid on susceptible sheep. Lucilia
  cuprina breeds almost exclusively on living
  sheep. Wet, fleece-rotted sheep are susceptible
  to bodystrike. Young sheep are most at risk.
  Fleece rot is especially severe in sheep which
  have been thoroughly wet twice. Sheep with lumpy
  wool, foot rot, scours, injuries and lambing
  stain are also at risk. Eggs hatch after about
  11 hours.

74
Common blowflies that strike sheep
in NSW
90 of strikes
75
Sheep blowfly

• Newly-hatched maggots feed in damp, rotted
  fleece. Maggots moult twice while feeding on
  weeping skin surface. After about 4 days,
  fully-fed maggots drop from sheep - usually at
  night - and burrow into soil.
• Adult flies live for only 2-3 weeks. But, if
  protein resources are available, females may lay
  several egg batches.

76
Sheep blowfly life cycle
77
Sheep blowfly

• CONTROLLING BLOWFLIES
• Non-chemical controls
• Shearing and crutching.
• Selection of replacement rams resistant to body
  strike.
• Culling hoggets which are susceptible to body
  strike.
• Culling adult sheep which may have to be treated
  for strike.
• Flytraps.
• Mulesing.

78
TREATING STRUCK SHEEP
Shear struck wool and a 50 mm barrier of clean
wool around the strike, close to the skin to
remove maggots Apply a registered flystrike
dressing to the shorn area to prevent
restrike Collect the maggot-infested wool into a
maggot-proof (plastic) bag to kill all maggots.
This breaks the life cycle. If necessary, sheep
treated as outlined above can then be jetted
along with other susceptible sheep. Remove struck
sheep from the mob.
79
HAND JETTING
Only jet susceptible sheep (weaners) Use a
Dutjet, particularly for longer wool
Fit a pressure gauge at the handpiece. Jet at
600kPa (100psi) Follow the label instructions for
insecticide dilution