# Where to keep the ram?



## Christiaan (Mar 13, 2004)

We are beginning to raise Jacob sheep for wool and meat. So far we have two ewes, one with a lamb, two wethers going to freezer camp this weekend, and a ram we'll be picking up in a few weeks. 
As we are only raising them for our own use, is it feasible to keep the ram with the ewes all of the time? All of our contacts raise for market so they have to closely control when lambs are born, but we don't need to do that. We only have 2 1/2 acres that they share with poultry and our Highland cow with her calf, so penning up the ram becomes a problem.
We are hoping to hear from the voice of experience!


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

With only 2 ewes, and limited pasture space, I think you'd be better off to use a young Ram to breed them, and then put him in the freezer.

Keeping a Ram can be risky, since they CAN be dangerous.

You really only *need* one for a few weeks out of the year


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## BarbadosSheep (Jun 27, 2011)

Bearfootfarm said:


> With only 2 ewes, and limited pasture space, I think you'd be better off to use a young Ram to breed them, and then put him in the freezer.
> 
> Keeping a Ram can be risky, since they CAN be dangerous.
> 
> You really only *need* one for a few weeks out of the year


I agree. It does not make sense to keep a ram full-time, unless you are unable to get replacement rams every year. besides, you may want to keep ewe lambs for breeding and can't breed them back to their father anyway so getting a fresh ram will allow you to use him on the old ewes plus the young ones.


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## Carol K (May 10, 2002)

I suppose you will have to see how your ram is, but I do just that, I keep everyone together right now and it works for me. My ram is very laid back and placid though so I am very lucky in that it works for me. Like you it didn't matter to me when they lambed, the convenience of them all together was a big help to me, especially through the winter.


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## RoyalValley (Apr 29, 2009)

Good question!! We do not have the option of getting a new ram every year as there are very few Dorper flocks around here, and our ram is super nice.  

I am wondering as well, now that we have ewe lambs on the ground and 1 ram lamb we want to breed to some of our unrelated ewes....when do we need to have the ram away from this year's ewe lambs so they won't have a chance of being bred by him?


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## Callieslamb (Feb 27, 2007)

Last year, I kept my flock together. I have 2 rams and 4 ewes. One ram was much younger so it worked. This year, I put them all out together - 9 lambs, 4 ewes and 2 rams. The rams worried the ewes to distraction. One rm wouldn't let one of the ewes stop and rest. I had to separate them. I'm not sure if they will settle down or not. I think I have one of the rams sold. Maybe that will settle them down a bit. 

Right now, I have the rams inside the barn and the ewes and lambs outside from 12-4 or so. Then we switch. It's working while the lambs are still small. Though my sheep are supposed to be able to be bred at any time, not just seasonally, I didn't notice any breeding activity while it was hot out. When the temps cooled in Oct, then we started having some action. I separated them in Mid-Sept so I could time the lambs for late March.


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## equinecpa (Mar 21, 2011)

So far I have left my ram with the ewes and have had no problems. I will separate him in a little while because I don't want winter babies. I'll put him with this years lambs for the time being and then back with the flock around October. 

As for breeding the lambs, most ewe lambs won't breed until they are at least 10 months or so.


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## Callieslamb (Feb 27, 2007)

Finns can easily lamb at a year.


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## carolinagirl (Jun 27, 2011)

most hair sheep breeds can easily get bred as young as 5 months or so, sometimes even earlier. I would not leave a ram with ewe lambs at all once they are weaning age.


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## Judy in IN (Nov 28, 2003)

I have a placid ram also. He stays with the main flock, and any ewe lambs get separated out.

I hate to replace him, since he's such a good ram. He would follow me anywhere, as long as I have a bucket in my hand, lol.


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## Maria (Apr 24, 2003)

I have Shetlands, which are seasonal breeders, and we keep them all together except during breeding season. Right now we have 7 ewes, 3 rams and whatever our lamb count is today. 

I've found the senior ram to be invaluable in breaking up ewe fights. If they get too serious, he intervenes every time.

For a while this spring we had 6 rams roaming (we didn't butcher last fall when we should have). That's tooooooo many. All the young ones started ganging up on the second oldest ram and although the senior ram tried to protect his buddy, he couldn't block them all. 

After we butchered the 3 young hoodlums and decided the 2 year old was too awesome to kill, we had 3 left. 3 seems to be a managable number. The second oldest ram lost his position and is now low male in the hierarchy- but now that that's settled, they all hang out together as peaceful as can be.

In fact there are 3 distinct groups right now roaming our yard keeping the grass trimmed. Ewes with lambs, ewes that haven't lambed yet, and the 3 rams.

When fall comes, we'll divvy them up according to who we want bred to whom and move the cattle panels paralleling the fences to make a double fence. If there's only a single fence between rams, they'll tear it up butting each other through the wire.


edit: All three rams are not aggressive to people at all.


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## sheepish (Dec 9, 2006)

Our Rideaus lamb at less than a year.

Young rams can be very fertile too.
When we had Corriedales, we once went out to give the sheep their Christmas treat and found a ewe with twins. There was no ram with them, so it must have been a February born ram lamb who wasn't separated from the ewes and got at least one cycling before their normal season.


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## JPiantedosi (Apr 23, 2012)

Why cant you let lambs be bred by their father? Before ya'll get crazy.... I have been around performance bird dogs for a while from nationals level down to weekend trial dogs and there is alot of line breeding done to achieve what people are looking for.

Same is true with horses.

I agree that it is not ideal, but I had planned to keep a ram for 2 seasons and them move him along. Is it really that big of a deal or is it just personal preference?

Jim


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

> Why cant you let lambs be bred by their father?


You can, especially if you're going to eat them anyway.
If you want breeding stock, you just have to be willing to cull heavily


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## kabri (May 14, 2002)

I thought our Cheviots were only seasonal breeders too, but years ago we got a 2 year old ewe in the spring, right at lambing time. She had never been bred. We put her with the ram and weathers. She gave us a lamb in August! So separating is better unless you dont care when they lamb. 


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD


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## zephyrcreek (Mar 30, 2012)

I have Romeldales and they can breed year round. My ram is super mellow, and does not bother the girls or me. I put him in for breeding and will leave will be pulling him out in the next week or two when lambing is over for us. I will not make the same mistakes this year as I made last year. My sheep will be covered this year (their wool is worth too much money not to keep them covered) and I will use a marking harness during breeding season. It is too much work not know exactly when the girls are due to lamb. I think it is even worse when you only have a few ewes that you are really waiting on. I came home from a road trip today to find a brand new ram lamb in the jug with momma. I have spent the last three weeks watching her like a hawk as I thought she was going to pop at any moment. Three weeks is a long time of running out and checking every few hours. I am NOT doing that again. That being said our ram will winter with the girls and be removed after lambing season again until fall.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

JPiantedosi said:


> Why cant you let lambs be bred by their father? Before ya'll get crazy.... I have been around performance bird dogs for a while from nationals level down to weekend trial dogs and there is alot of line breeding done to achieve what people are looking for.
> 
> Same is true with horses.
> 
> ...


Sheep are a little different. They don't take long term line breeding or inbreeding well.
Even with very heavy culling.
Back when I started with Black Welsh Mountains, most were heavily related and showing some major health problems because of the small gene pool. 
Once I saw what was going on, I sold my Rams and all but one ewe, the ewe raised some very nice Brecknock Hill Cheviot crosses. Her cross lambs showed no signs of the long term inbreeding issues, like the pure bred BWM were.
After I changed over to the Brecknock Hills, and a few years after that. Oogie and a couple of other breeders managed to get permission to import some semen from the UK to save the BWM in the US.

Now the Brecknock Hill are facing the same issues. Though not as bad as the BWM where at the time... they are going to need help, with some new blood in the coming years. 

So from what I have personally seen, I would not recommend in or line breeding sheep. At least the breeds I have dealt with.

However, if someone isn't interested in having breeding stock, and just want freezer lambs every spring, breeding back should be fine.


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## WV Farm girl (Nov 26, 2011)

We have been raising dorper for 2 years, this is our 3rd. We have been keeping the ram with the flock. This summer though we are considering running him in a separate pasture with a couple goats. We have never had a problem before but are wanting to breed a little more towards market now.


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## jklloyd (Mar 28, 2011)

I would advise buying a three or four month old ram and keeping it with the ewes until they are bred and then selling it. It will be easier to handle and you won't have to feed it except for three or four months. 

Keeping a ram on a small acreage with constant contact with humans is asking for a problem. You can never trust the ram. Let him serve his purpose and then sell him.


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