# Newbie sheep questions!



## Calistar (Nov 6, 2014)

Hi all! I have gotten it into my head that I might like to keep a couple of sheep as pets. I've been doing lots of research, but had some specific questions that I haven't been able to find clear answers to online. Hoping you can help! I live on 15 acres in southern California. I have two miniature horses and have had pygmy goats, but never sheep before.

I discovered Babydolls and fell in love with their sweet little faces, although I have heard very good things about Shetlands, too. I'd be looking for sheep as pets and to play around with processing and spinning the wool, and would like to stay with as small a breed as possible. How do Babydolls and Shetlands compare size-wise? If anyone has pictures of the two together, all the better! I have also heard of Babydoll/Shetland crosses, but can't seem to find any pictures of the results. I'm curious as to which traits from each breed a cross would inherit.

I'm in a very dry part of California, and my 15 acres is all weeds, so I'd be feeding mostly hay year-round. How much hay does a small sheep eat? Would it be comparable to the amount one would feed a pygmy goat? What kinds of hay can they eat? I've seen a lot of mention of feeding orchard grass hay, but that is ridiculously expensive in my area-- $30 for a square bale. Timothy is much more affordable-- is that okay to feed sheep? 

How well do sheep eat weeds? I know they're more grazers than browsers like goats. I was always very disappointed in my goats in that department-- my little pygmies were the pickiest darn things, and would not touch weeds! Are Babydolls and Shetlands decent weed-eaters, or are they the picky pygmies of the sheep world? Do they suffer from any ill-effects of being left to graze too long, like how horses can founder?

Okay, last question for now! Are sheep likely to attract additional predators? We'll have an occasional lone coyote prowling across our property, but that's about it. I haven't had any issues with anything bothering the miniature horses. I owned my two pygmy goats for 13 years and nothing ever bothered them either. Obviously sheep are a little more vulnerable. Would a couple of sheep be likely to draw predators that wouldn't come around otherwise? I imagine that the sheep wouldn't attract anything that the goats didn't, right? I'd be planning on adding a new pen out by my horses to keep the sheep in during the day, but moving them to the old goat pen at night. The goat pen is 8' high chain link and pretty darn secure. (I'm sure many of you are familiar with the challenges of trying to keep a goat INside a fence!)

Ok, I lied, one more question! I have heard that sheep smell. Are they really that bad? I'm not planning on keeping them in the house or anything, but one family member is a little concerned about the potential smell. 

That's it for now! Thanks in advance!


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Welcome to the sheep forum! Is a great place to learn. 

Sheep really don't have a smell to them... not even Rams.
Same can't be said for Billy Goats.

Yes, predators can be issues for sheep and other animals. Something to always keep in mind.

Some weeds are poisonous to sheep, is good to learn what they can't and shouldn't eat.

I raised some Babydolls for awhile. They don't offer a lot of wool to spin, what they do have, after a year, is short. Which can make it hard to handspin for beginners.
The ewes are sweet hearts, very gentle.

Shetland's have a range of fleece quality, if you can, go check out the flock and its fleece.
If you want tame sheep, try to find ones that have been halter trained. Granted its rare, but there are a few people out there that offer this.
Or.. go into a flock of sheep and see who comes up to you first... those will most likely be the most easy to tame down.

If you plan on mixing goats/mini's and sheep. Most sheep, can't handle the amount of copper goats and horses need. 
Copper poisoning is all to common.
You want to offer a loose salt and a loose mineral mix just for sheep, specially where you live. With the heat, they will need it. 

If you don't want to have to worry about the copper issue as much... getting a couple of Icelandic Sheep would be better. 

Feed, it will depend how much you will need. 
Timothy is fine for sheep. 
If you get wethers, do not feed Alfalfa as it can cause crystals to form.
Feed conversion would be close to a pygmy, but remember, the sheep are also growing fleece, so they might eat a little more.

If you introduce pasture grazing slowly, you shouldn't have any issues.


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## Callieslamb (Feb 27, 2007)

What Bergere said....

Wethers are generally cheaper than ewes or ewe lambs. Especially if you want pets with a nice fleece.


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## Awnry Abe (Mar 21, 2012)

Sheep don't smell like what your pygmy's BF would in the fall months. In fact, I'd say they don't smell at all.


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## Calistar (Nov 6, 2014)

Thanks for the answers so far, everyone!

I guess I should clarify. I no longer have the pygmy goats. I owned two wethers until last month when the last one died of old age at 13 years old. (I like to joke that I only like to pay to keep useless animals, between the male goats and the miniature horses!) So the sheep wouldn't be in with any other animals, but would likely be kept near the horses. For the predators, what I was wondering was if anything would come after the sheep that didn't come for the goats. Do coyotes sit around and think "Well, those goats looked tough and gamey and they make too much noise, but man do I love mutton!" Nothing ever bothered my goats, so does that mean nothing is likely to bother the sheep while they're kept in the same pen the goats were?

Bergere, thanks for the alfalfa warning. I wish someone had told me that when I started out with my goats-- I learned the hard way about the crystals! Now I'm afraid to feed alfalfa to anything! 

Will sheep keep foxtails down if they're put out in the field before the foxtails are big enough to put up seed heads? They'd be worth their keep for that purpose alone, if they'd do it!


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## Bettacreek (May 19, 2012)

Slightly older post, but yes, rams in rut DO absolutely have a funk to them. It's not as bad as goat bucks in rut, but it's still not a pleasant smell. I just limit my time with the ram as much as possible during rut. That greasy, nasty stink doesn't wash off very easily, lol.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Bettacreek said:


> Slightly older post, but yes, rams in rut DO absolutely have a funk to them. It's not as bad as goat bucks in rut, but it's still not a pleasant smell. I just limit my time with the ram as much as possible during rut. That greasy, nasty stink doesn't wash off very easily, lol.


Interesting.. I had Brecknock Hill, Black Welsh Mountain and Babydoll southdown Rams... and they Never had any smell to them.

What bred do you have?


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## dlskidmore (Apr 18, 2012)

My sheep have a faint lanolin smell, but nothing too bad. Poop of course stinks if it accumulates somewhere with no bedding or cleanup. But overall I don't find them objectionable when well cared for.

Your foxtails may have a poor effect on wool quality. If you are hand combing this is more easily remedied than carding or sending it to a mill for drum carding.

Sheep are pretty smart about weeds. Mine will devour ragweed, but completely ignore horse nettle (poisonous). I suggest you regularly bush hog anything they don't eat, at the very least every time those plants come into flower, before they produce seed. 

If you want to try to build up some pasture, feed hay out in one of the worst areas until it is well trampled and covered in wasted hay and manure. Move the feeder and repeat. The organic material will help hold the sparse moisture in your environment. There is often enough seed dropped from the hay that you don't even have to reseed. You might overseed with a native grass though that is better suited to dry climate than Timothy. In order to maintain pasture in a brittle environment, you'll need temporary fencing and move the animals frequently. There's a TED talk by Allan Savory worth watching, although it's hard to implement all his ideas on a small scale.


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## hercsmama (Jan 15, 2004)

Bergere, I can tell you that my giant ram Shiner has a decidedly "Rammy" smell about him.
Not as strong now as when we first got the girls, but it's still there.
He's a Columbia. Now the Barbados Rams odor was no where near as strong as his. It's a very heavy lanolin odor, and as was already mentioned, takes several washings to get rid of. No where near that foul buck in rut odor of goats, but it's there.
I personally don't mind it, although it can get a bit strong, but I'm a spinner, and like the smell of fleece. Yea, I'm a weirdo.:facepalm:


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Wonder if it has something to do with the breed and how much lanolin they produce?

Breeds I had were heritage breeds and little to no lanolin. Ram's didn't smell any different than the ewes or lambs, any time of the year.

Now the wet wool smell.. is stronger in the breeds with more lanolin in them. Rather an earthy smell but not bad.

Nothing like a Goat buck!!!!


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## lexierowsell (Dec 10, 2013)

Neither my rambo ram nor my BFL ram were extra stinky this year. I mean, they smell like wool and sheep, but nothing exceptional. 

Washington got a bit harried looking, and had some lanolin build up on his face (he looked like a football player greased haha) from all his exertions...


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## Bettacreek (May 19, 2012)

I have Shetlands. It's associated with rut. He wasn't stinky until breeding season. I enjoy "sheep smell" but that raunchy rut funk is pretty foul. He has this bad habit of standing upwind of me when I work in the coop too, the brat.


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## grandma12703 (Jan 13, 2011)

bergere said:


> Interesting.. I had Brecknock Hill, Black Welsh Mountain and Babydoll southdown Rams... and they Never had any smell to them.
> 
> What bred do you have?


 
Our rams also get a smell to them during this time. It isn't as bad as the billies but still a smell for sure. We have Suffolk/hamp/shropshire rams.


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## crittermomma (Sep 26, 2013)

I have a big Katahdin ram and he definitely has the ram "smell" - it is nasty smelling!


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## Robin’s Nest (Aug 16, 2020)

We have raised Nigerian Dwarfs for a while. Have been so pleased that their poop doesn’t stink...at all. Thinking of getting some small sheep and wonder if their poop is similar to goats? I think cow poop stinks but with my chickens and goats, none of the neighbors have complained. And believe me...if there was a bad smell, these neighbors WOULD complain. Thoughts?


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