In my opinion, sheep are relatively easy animals to raise. I
chose Painted Desert Hair Sheep. They require good feed,
clean water, some form of shelter and basic health care.
They lamb in as little as 5 months and grow quickly.
Starting with good quality stock is your first step. Poor or
low quality animals will hender you and make reaching your
goals harder and take longer to obtain. Sickly animals will
cost veterinary bills and may end up dying anyway.
Sometimes paying a little more initially will reduce
problems down the road. There are those good deals you
find once in awhile, but educate yourself and know what to
look for. Are the animals just under fed or is there a
A few things I have learned while having sheep:
1.) Worm as needed, get a fecal done at your veterinary to
see what type of worms you have,then use the proper
wormer to help get rid of them. Using the wrong wormer is
wasting money and your precious time.
2.) Monitor copper intake to prevent toxic levels that can
cause death since sheep don't metabolize it well and it can
built up. They do need copper to live but in less amounts
then most other animals.
3.) Feed a coccidosis preventive to help your lambs, I had
a large veterinary bill and lost the lamb anyway due to
coccidia. Coccidia is more prevalent in wet weather.
4.) Vaccinate for at least CDT to prevent overeater's and
tetanus.I had a ewe lamb get into horse feed and come
close to dying.
5.) Painted Desert sheep can be flighty, when working with
them, do it in a calm manner. If you stay calm and work
them safely you and your sheep will be happier.I use cattle
panels to squeeze them into a smaller area to make them
easier to get a hold of them. The less trauma the less likely
you or your sheep will get hurt.
6.)I feed DE (diatomaceous earth) because I have seen
how it helps improve body condition, horn growth and may
help get rid of worms.
7.) Never stop learning and educating yourself, it can save
you money and maybe your sheep's lives.