Many hobby
farmers, or acreage owners, have found that sheep or goats are great
for pasture control. These small animals are much easier to handle
than cattle, and require less space. They can be kept as pets,
raised for meat, or as companions when only one horse is owned.
There are a few differences between sheep and goats, the most
concerning being diet (sheep cannot have copper but goats need it).
With many breeds of each there is most certainly something for
everyone.
If you are
interested in keeping sheep or goats, this article is to provide
basic information as well as to suggest other articles for further
reading.
Sheep and Goat Diseases
You should speak
to your veterinarian in regards to what sheep, or goat, diseases are
common in your areas. Two of the most concerning are scrapie, and
footrot. As well there are concerns about parasites so you will want to worm them yearly. If you plan on breeding sheep or goats you will also want
to be aware of mastitis, or an infection of the udder.
Breeds of Sheep and Goats
There are
hundreds of different sheep and goat breeds, some suited more for
dairy, others for meat, and others for fiber. Two of the most
popular goats for fiber are the Cashmere goats and a Angora goats.
For sheep there
are many hair sheep breeds which are less maintenance for people who
do not want to worry about shearing. There are also some novelty
sheep such as the Jacob sheep (often having 4 horns) and the rarer
breeds such as the Icelandic Sheep.
With the wool
sheep shearing is a concern as they can over heat if left with their
wool on. Tail docking is usually often done in wool sheep.
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| Katahdin hair sheep ewe and lambs |
Breeding
If you are
interested in breeding sheep or goats, both have a similar 5 month
gestation so the billy, or ram, is put with the flock usually in the
fall for spring kids, or lambs.
You need to be prepared to bottle feed kids or bottle feed lambs as sometime doe or ewe is unable to do so for all her offspring.
Fencing
Fencing is also a concern in that goats can climb (or sneak under) many types of fence. Proper fencing is needed as well to keep predators out. A 3-strand barbed wire fence will not contain sheep or goats.
Guard Animals
In areas where coyotes, or other predators (even stray dogs) are a concern, many people keep a guard animal with their sheep or goats. There are many dog breeds for this purpose as well as a donkey or llama.
