The easiest Australian sheep to keep are Dorpers, White Dorpers, and Australian Whites, known as low-maintenance, self-shedding breeds that thrive in harsh conditions and resist parasites, eliminating the need for shearing, crutching, and frequent treatments, making them ideal for beginners and hobby farmers. Other easy options include Wiltshire Horns, also self-shedding, and small Babydoll Southdowns for limited space.
Wiltipoll Sheep The Wiltipoll is a breed developed in Australia. They are large easy care sheep, and may weigh up to 125kg in reasonable conditions. The ewes breed seasonally and are known as good mothers, with a high percentage of multiple births.
If you are not interested in producing your own wool, you should choose one of the hair sheep breeds, which will simply shed its coat annually so you don't have to worry about shearing. St. Croix, Barbados Blackbelly, and Wiltshire Horn are three breeds on the CPL.
Dorpers and White Dorpers are Australia's pre-eminent low maintenance meat sheep, adapted to vast range of conditions across the country. The success of the Dorper breeds in expanding the prime lamb production in Australia in barely two decades is well recognised.
Sheep are not difficult animals to raise; however, they do require a higher level of management than beef cattle. Therefore, if you have never raised sheep before, the first suggestion would be to begin with 20 to 50 ewes and then increase numbers in future years, if the sheep business is for you.
Like most flock animals, sheep don't thrive if kept alone, so you will need to have at least two. Most lambs are born in the spring – March / April – are weaned in July / August and slaughtered at around six months old in October.
You can have up to 10 sheep per acre, but for smaller properties that cannot rotate their paddocks as frequently, you are better with fewer animals, even as low as 2 sheep per acre. Sheep need to have shelter available all the time, this includes things like shrubs, trees, shelter sheds.
Australian White sheep are suitable for a variety of environments and are adaptable to cold and hot climates. Their growth rate is repaid and they finish well on grass. They do not require shearing and negate the need to treat them for parasites. This is an easy care animal that is very profitable.
Given the variation between different production systems, breeds and regions the age of lambs at slaughter varies widely from as young as 10 weeks of age to over 12 months but it is assumed that on average a UK lamb will be between 6 and 7 months old when slaughtered.
Because this is a relatively large and heavy sheep breed, issues of temperament must be considered. Overly nervous, timid or flighty animals 'showing a wild eye' [countenance] are regarded as untypical. A balanced temperament is characteristic of the breed, and should be purposefully bred for.
Katahdin: Hair sheep breed; low maintenance and adaptable to various environments.
For people that are inexperienced raising sheep or have fewer dollars to spend, it may be a good idea to start with mature ewes (ewes that have previously raised lambs). Mature ewes give birth to more lambs, are better mothers, and produce more milk for their lambs.
For the most part, the labor is not hard, but they require quality time and quality care. Timeliness of sheep management tasks is very important. You must have time to do the jobs when required and not put them off until next week or next month. You must have time to observe the animals and recognize their needs.
Easy Care Sheep are a revolutionary breed of sheep which requires minimal attention and veterinary care, sheds its fleece in the summer (and therefore does not need shearing) and yet offers very good lambing ratios and meat yields. When the fleece sheds it rapidly decomposes as a natural soil conditioner.
Raising just a few heads of cattle each year can provide you with a good bonus income since beef and dairy products are always in demand.
3-4 day rotation = ~900 sq ft per animal. 4 sheep = 3,600 sq ft total. 3,600′ = 60'x60′ paddocks.
The definitions for lamb, hogget and mutton vary considerably between countries. Younger lambs are smaller and tenderer. Mutton is meat from a sheep over two years old, and has tougher flesh. In general, the darker the colour, the older the animal.
'Hogget' is sheep meat between 1-2 years old. This tends to be produced from the slow growing hill breeds as they often do not fatten in time to be classed as lamb. Hogget is delicious and benefits from the tenderness of a relatively young animal along with some of the richer flavour of older sheep meat.
The average lifespan of a sheep is 10-12 years, although the age at which they cease to be 'commercially productive' is around 5 years earlier, hence most domestic sheep are killed at around half of their potential lifespan.
Katahdin are hardy, adaptable, low maintenance sheep that produce superior lamb crops and lean, meaty carcasses. They do not produce a fleece and therefore do not require shearing.
As a general rule, healthy sound Merino and British breed rams can be used at a rate of 1 ram: 100 ewes. This ratio can be modified to suit different conditions. For example, in very large paddocks with multiple watering points, more rams are required due to larger distances to be walked.
Keep some hay on hand and feed them often, depending on the amount of grass in the paddock of course. Feeding the sheep keeps them social, ensures they are getting enough to eat and also keeps them coming to the fence, so they are easier to catch them when you need to.
Profitability depends on your market. Goats often command higher meat and dairy prices in some regions and can reproduce quickly (kidding twins). Sheep thrive where lamb demand is strong, and wool can bring in additional revenue if the breed and market are right.
HOGGET (11 months to 24 months old)
For years there has been very little definition of when lamb is no longer lamb and when it is something else. Everyone has heard of mutton, but hogget? Simply put, hogget is a juvenile sheep either a young ewe or tup over 11 months old to 24 months.
Letting animals graze the same pasture for more than 3 days. Returning animals to a pasture before all the plants have regrown. At this time of year, that period is approximately 40 days. Not adding additional acreage into the grazing rotation when plant growth rates slow down.