| Feeding | Basic sheep care | Breeding and lambing | Selecting breeding stock |

Feeding

Grazing

Oxford Down is known to be a good grazing breed and thus it makes sense to make most of the grazing season for both strengthening the ewes as well as maximising the growthrate of lambs. About one hectare of farmed pastures is needed for ten ewes with their lambs, towards the autumn the area needed is slightly larger as the pastures grow slower and lambs are getting bigger. For the Finnish pastures, it is worth increasing the protein content by sowing clover Ð grazing on these pastures it is possible to achieve a bodyweight of 22-25 kg at the age of 5-6 months and daily growth rates of about 250-300 g. In addition to good quality pastures, the sheep will only need access to clean water and minerals designed for grazing season. It is also recommended to place a salt lick nearby the sleeping area and a good grazing area needs either some woodland or covered area to shelter from heat on hot, sunny summer days.

Indoor feeding

Ewes

The indoor feeding period of ewes can be divided roughly into three principal periods: feeding during breeding, pregnancy and nursing. As the Oxford Down breed is not suited for all year lambing, so called flushing-feeding which prepares the ewes for breeding always takes place towards the end of the summer or early autumn. If grazing period has been planned properly, moving ewes to new, good quality pastures is sufficient for flushing. Otherwise, for about 2-4 weeks before breeding, the ewes are likely to need supplementary feed depending on their body condition. It is most economical to prepare the supplementary feed in-house. The sheep will eat grain whole, and thus there is no need for milling or crushing. All grains are suitable for the supplementary feed (however, rye should be used with care), additional protein can be obtained by using either rape, which is more economical, or more tasty soy. How much additional protein is needed depends on the protein content of the grain used. For rough fodder both dried hay or silage can be used. We have got very good results using pre-dried chopped silage. A proper analysis of the feeds used is the basis of successful feeding management. Good quality straw can also be used, especially in addition to silage, throughout winter. A diligent sheep farmer may also dry some leafy tree branches in summer to be given in the post-lambing period when ewes normally suffer from lack of appetite. On a daily basis, the ewes will need mineral supplements following the manufacturer's instructions, and naturally the availability of clean, fresh water has to be guaranteed at all circumstances. Salt lick is part of the standard provisions also during the indoor feeding period.

The flushing of ewes after weaning in July-August is essential for successful breeding and it is worth checking the body condition of ewes before allowing a ram in the flock. During the flushing and breeding periods about 400 g of supplementary feed is given per day per ewe when the condition score is below 3, when the score is 3, about half of the amount above is needed and the ewes which are fatter than that they should not get any additional feed. Rough fodder is given freely, but as a rule of thumb, approximately 2 kg of dry hay, 4-5 kg of silage or about 3 kg of predried chopped silage is given per day per animal. After breeding the amount of supplementary feed is gradually decreased, generally it can be left out altogether during the mid-gestation, if the rough fodder given is good quality silage. Part of the rough fodder can consist of straw depending on the condition of the ewes. One thing to keep in mind when planning the feeding during the gestation is that over-weight ewes normally have most problems in lambing and nursing. Also, fatter ewes tend to have more difficulties in getting pregnant than their sisters of ideal weight. On the other hand, it is good to keep in mind that young ewes will need additional energy for their own growth.

Starting about one month before lambing, supplementary feed is added to the diet gradually, for example 100 g per week so that when lambing starts ewes will be given about 600 g of supplementary feed per day. It is not necessary to increase the amount of rough fodder but it is best to keep the least filling rough fodder for this period. Sufficient energy intake is guaranteed by adding molasses in the drinking water or adding molasses to the supplementary feed mix. After lambing, the amount of supplementary feed given depends on the number of lambs and the conditions score of the ewe. A rule of thumb is that about 400 g of supplementary feed is needed for each lamb nursed. When the lambs start to eat supplementary feed themselves, the amount given to the ewes is reduced gradually. By the time ewes are let out to pastures, there is no need for supplementary feed. Managing and planning the feeding using software designed for this purpose guarantees the best and most efficient feeding of the sheep based on the feed produced in the farm.

Rams

During breeding the rams that are kept with the ewes get the same supplementary feed. After breeding, the rams that are in good condition will do well with a minimal (100 g per day) or without supplementary feed. Mature rams, not in breeding, can be fed only once a day. Clean, fresh water, minerals and salt lick are part of the standard diet for rams also. In addition, rams like to eat branches of spruce or bark from tree trunks. This kind of 'past-time' also decreases the likelihood of squabble between rams, especially if the ram flock is big.

During the grazing season rams can be placed to weaker pastures or forest-pastures, as long as the supplementary feeding is started sufficiently early before breeding.

Lambs

Oxford Down lambs are normally trained for eating supplementary feeds at one week of age using so called creep-feeder. To start with, a protein-rich creep feed mix, e.g. one of the commercially prepared lamb creep feeds, can be made freely available, but after about six weeks of age it is sufficient to give a portion of supplementary feed twice a day, a portion of about 300-600 g per day is advised depending on the target daily growth rate. We tend to keep water-molasses mix and rough fodder freely available for the lambs. When lambs are moved to pastures, supplementary feed can be left out and at about three months of age the lambs are weaned from the ewes by moving them to their own pastures. At the same time it is a good opportunity to separate the male and female lambs to their respective pastures. Lambs that have been reared on good pastures are muscular but not fatty.

Our experiences of mixer feeders for sheep feeding

In autumn 2005 we purchased SEKO Samurai mixer feeder. As there is not much experience of the use of mixer feeders for sheep, not to mention published research, we have selectively adapted mixfeed recipes meant for cattle. I find the lack of software for calculating the proportions of different classes of feeds in the mixture, the biggest letdown. This means that the calculations have to be done by hand using traditional worksheets and as a result the optimal mixture for each feeding stage can only be found by trial-and-error.

We prepare the mix daily and distribute the feed also once a day. Sometimes, in the coldest winter days a smaller portion of feed is given twice a day. One advantage of the mixed feed is that when animals are kept and fed together, there is little competition. On the other hand, the animals have to be within the same stage of production so that a single mix can be used each day. In our farm, the flushing of ewes in the autumn coincides with the feeding the last sheep for slaughter, which allows just one mix to be prepared. During the nursing, we have solved the problem of different needs of ewes so that the mix is prepared for the ewes with twins; singles get slightly less mix and additional dry hay, and the ewes nursing triples get some supplementary feed on the top of the mixed feed. The lambs get the same mix and an additional creep feed.

Mineral supplements are freely available and are given together with the vitamin supplements on the top of the mixed feed to secure even distribution. The loss of feed is negligible because the mixer feeder easily chops even the coarsest feed such as dry hay and wholemeal silage, producing a fine mix, which the sheep will eat thoroughly.

The mixed feed has also been good for the growth of the lambs, but we have noticed that mixing the feeds results in more efficient growth than giving the feeds separately and therefore it is important to pay attention to the energy content of the feed to avoid excess fat on lambs.

The required quality of feeds used for the mix is the same, as when they are given separately as one poor quality component will spoil the mix. We have found, however, that there is a significant saving on the workload and the time spent - preparing the mix takes about half an hour and delivery about quarter of an hour daily. We have, therefore, much more time for other tasks such as inspecting the sheep and talking to them.

Basic sheep care

Shearing

As the wool of the Oxford Down sheep does not felt easily, it is often sufficient to shear the sheep once a year. For the wellbeing of the animals, shearing every 8 months, however, is recommended. The easiest method is to place the sheep to be sheared in a small pen where you can get hold of it easily. Using a shearing frame, which can be lifted from the floorlevel to the working level, spares your time and your back. The work is much easier if the blades are in good condition and they are cleaned and oiled often enough. Each of us develops our own preferred routine of shearing, but we have found it fastest to cut one run in the middle of the back and then starting from this shear the sides, neck and underneath in one piece of fleece, and then finish of the head, legs and tail.

Hoof care

Taking care of the hoofs is a hard but a very important procedure. As the Oxford Down is a large and heavy breed, taking care of hoofs is particularly important in order to avoid feet problems. The overgrown hoofs are first trimmed using special hoof trimming shears and then the outside horn bent underneath is trimmed off. For a small, young sheep this procedure can be carried out by sitting the animal in front of you but for larger fully grown sheep it is best to lay the sheep on its side inside a shearing frame.

Deworming

When the hygiene of the pen and the pastures is taken care of the need for prevention of internal parasites is greatly reduced. Ewes and fully grown rams are wormed in April, which is the time of the year when the internal parasites get more active due to increased light level. Later in the spring and in the summer we worm only those animals that show symptoms (diarrhoea, weight loss, itching etc.). The lambs kept for livestock are wormed in the autumn at the time of shearing and every sheep sold is wormed before delivery. The new regulations have made it more difficult to get hold of worming preparations suitable for sheep, there is practically speaking no over-the-counter preparations and price of the worming preparations available through a veterinarian often is so high that it only makes sense to worm the sheep when there is a clear need for it.

Breeding and lambing

Breeding

One healthy Oxford Down ram should be able to impregnate a flock of about 50 ewes within two heat cycles (about 6 weeks). Generally, however, it is advisable to reduce the number of ewes to about 20-30 ewes per ram so that the ram will have an opportunity to mate with each ewe at the best stage of their heat cycle thus increasing the success rate. Oxford Down is not a suitable breed for around the year lambing due to poor pregnancy rates in the spring. Flushing is used to synchronise the heat cycle of the ewes so that it is not necessary to prolong the breeding period unnecessarily. Shearing also has an effect in synchronising the heat.

In our farm we join the rams with the ewes for about 4-6 weeks. Mating is monitored using ruddle painted on the front of the ram and the 'marked' ewes are listed daily to aid estimating the lambing time. This helps planning the lambing and the feeding before lambing. The ruddle colour is changed after three weeks (= one heat cycle) which helps monitoring the repeat mating.

It is important to keep an eye on the condition of the ram, especially if the flock of ewes is large. If necessary, the ram can be removed from the flock to a separate pen to rest and eat for a day or two as the most virile young rams easily forget to eat when surrounded by ewes.

Lambing

The Oxford Down ewes have very good mothering ability and are quite independent in lambing. The first signs of lambing are that the ewe withdraws from the flock and scrapes indicating that the ewe is preparing 'a nest'. The udder tightens and the vulvas swell and turn dark red, also the tail moves up. It is easier for the ewe to deliver if it has a sufficient space to move around during lambing. This is why we usually put the ewe to lambing pen only after the lambing. The lambing starts with the passing of the water bag. If the lamb is in its normal, so called 'three point' position it usually is born within 0.5-2 hours after passing of the water bag. If it takes longer it is necessary to check that the lamb is in the correct position, this is head and front legs first. Remember, however, that especially for the first time lambing the ewe will need more time.

If the lambing is not progressing despite the constrictions or if the lamb is malpresented, it is necessary to help the ewe. When this is needed, take care of good hygiene and always act calmly, also calming the ewe. Once the lamb is born, the airways need to be opened by, for example, hanging the lamb from its hind legs and using tissue to clean the nostrils and mouth. As soon as possible the lamb should be given to the ewe to be mothered. The following lambs normally are delivered within the next half an hour, but it has happened in our farm that a healthy sibling is delivered a couple of hours after the first one.

Finally, it is important to clean and check the ewe's udder and make sure that milk can be drawn from both teats. Once the ewe has cleaned the lambs and is ready to get on its feet again, it is a good time to move the ewe together with its lambs to their own pen, make water mixed with molasses available and reward the ewe's efforts by giving an extra portion of supplementary feed.

Selecting the breeding stock

Yearly selection is carried out in order to keep the best individuals for breeding stock and choose the animals that do not, for one reason or another, fulfil the criterion, for culling. Largely this selection process depends on the subjective judgement of the sheep farmer and with the experience the farmer will gain an eye for selecting structurally good sheep. This selection would indeed be very simple if every time a first-class ewe impregnated by a first-class ram would result in first-class lambs. As it is not quite as simple, some tools have been developed in order to make selection easier. These tools include subscribing to the national monitoring programmes and making the most of the data made available, using ultrasound to measure the ribeye muscle on four months old lambs and making the most of the structural evaluations done in livestock sales.

National monitoring programmes

National monitoring plays a central role in the breeding process of mutton breed. The reports produced allow monitoring of the productivity of both your own flock as well as other flocks within the monitoring network. Years of research and breeding together with modern efficient data analysis allows the use of mathematical indices for describing the breeding value of the ewe as well as the newborn lamb. In sheep production monitoring, data is collected for each animal on a yearly basis for breed and pedigree information, lambing, complications and eliminations. For the breeding process, it is important to make sure the lambs are weighed at the right stage and that the data is then sent as soon as possible for analysis. The lambs are weighed at three days (birth weight), six weeks (42 days) and four months (120 days). Based on the weight at four months, the sex of the lamb, its pedigree and the breeding data of the previous years, so called BLUB-index is calculated for each lamb. For a sheep raised for breeding purposes this index has to be minimum 100, criterion being more strict for rams than for ewes.

The ultrasound measurements

In 1997 we joined a national project which aimed at improving the muscularity of the livestock by measuring every year ribeye muscle thickness and the depth of the back fat layer on four months old lambs by using ultrasound equipment. This data allows the calculation of mutton production index, fat index and EUROP index (live animal muscularity class). According to our experience these measurements have made animal selection easier and given a good base for breeding leaner and more muscular sheep.

Disease control

To maintain the good state of livestock health in Finland there are national monitoring programmes for monitoring and controlling the most serious and contagious sheep diseases. Our farm takes part in scrapie monitoring programme and in the Maedi-visna -prevention programme we have the highest M3 status.