Webinar: Managing Your Pastures Better

The first Grow Our Flock webinar for 2014 has been scheduled. Managing Your Pastures Better: Management Intensive Grazing (MIG) 101 will be offered on April 22 at 5 p.m. MDT (7 p.m. EST). Register now by going to https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5755892051703340802. After registering, a confirmation email about joining the webinar will be sent.

Dr. Woody Lane

Sheep are magnificent animals that evolved to eat grass. A sheep's rumen allows it to thrive on high-fiber forage and effectively convert sunlight and atmospheric nitrogen into valuable human products like meat, wool and milk. But how can shepherds use sheep to harvest this forage in a profitable and sustainable way?

By grazing, shepherds can use sheep to harvest this forage in a profitable and sustainable way. Good grazing requires knowledge and good technique. This webinar will discuss how forages grow, how to use sheep to manage forage in a sustainable and efficient way and the principles of MIG. By properly managing forages, feeding costs can be reduced, pastures improved, weeds reduced, break-even price reduced and profits increased.

The webinar is being hosted by  Dr. Jay Parsons from Colorado State University and Optimal Ag Consulting. The presenter is Dr. Woody Lane, a livestock nutritionist  and forage specialist from Lane Livestock Services.

How to Tell When Your Lamb is Finished

NCAT/ATTRA has develop a new fact sheep and video:  how to tell when your lamb is finished.

Download fact sheet



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbBrR3UGvsY#t=49

Scrapie Update

The February 2014 report for the National Scrapie Eradication Program has been posted to www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_diseases/scrapie/downloads/monthly_report.pdf. Published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), the report reviews the current progress of scrapie eradication in the United States.

Sheep with scrapie (image from Colorado State University)

Since the start of Regulatory Scrapie Slaughter Surveillance (RSSS) in fiscal year (FY) 2003, there has been a 90-percent decrease in the number of positive sheep found in samples at slaughter, adjusted for face color. As of Dec. 31, 2013, the percent of cull sheep found positive at slaughter and adjusted for face color was 0.015 percent.

Eight source flocks (including two goat herds) and three infected flocks were designated in FY 2013. One source flock and three infected flocks have been designed in FY 2014.

Before the United States may be declared "scrapie free," remaining cases must be found. Sheep and goats that are slaughtered outside the commercial slaughter facilities are being missed in the routine scrapie slaughter surveillance. Submission of samples from sheep/goats over 18 months of age found dead or euthanized on farms is critically important.

Without these submissions, scrapie-infected animals will go undetected, costing the sheep and goat industries anywhere from $10 million to $20 million annually. To learn more about submitting samples, visit www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_diseases/scrapie/gen_submission.shtml.

Detemining the Age of Sheep and Goats

ATTRA, the National Sustainable Agriculture Network Information Service has developed a video that shows how to age sheep and goats by looking at their teeth.



ATTRA is a program developed and managed by the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT). The majority of funding for ATTRA is through a cooperative agreement with the United States Department of Agriculture's Rural Business-Cooperative Service.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwpXzdE7h1I

West Virginia Small Ruminant Performance Test

West Virginia University conducts a small ruminant performance test at its Reymann Memorial Farm near Wardensville. Up to 60 and 30 bucks will be accepted for the 2014 test.

Rams and bucks of any breed are eligible for the program. Rams/bucks from recognized breeds must be registered and registration papers must be furnished by July 30. Crossbred rams/bucks, including percentages, will also be accepted.

Rams/bucks must be born between January 1 and February 28, 2014. Preference will be given to West Virginia cooperators, but out-of-state consignments will be accepted, if space allows.

Completed nomination forms and fees are due May 1. The estimated testing cost is $100 per animal, and it is due at the time of delivery to the test site. Rams/bucks must be delivered to the test site on May 14.  The test will run from May 28 to July 30. A sale will be held on August 30.

The West Virginia test uses the GrowSafe system to record residual feed intake and determine feed efficiency.

Download letter to consignors
Download consignment form
Download guidelines

New Product: Electric Hoof Knife

The Electric Hoof Knife is the newest and most innovative tool available for trimming goat and sheep hooves. Designed to improve hoof health and make trimming hassle-free, the Electric Hoof Knife is a power tool that buffs instead of cuts to remove hoof material.

After eight years of development, the Electric Hoof Knife now has a disc created specifically for trimming goat and sheep hooves. This lightweight tool is easy to maneuver and can trim tough and overgrown hooves with little effort on part of the user. People who have limited access to electrical power can easily run the Electric Hoof Knife off of a generator or an automobile’s DC/AC power converter, so the tool is accessible anywhere, anytime.

The Electric Hoof Knife Goat & Sheep set, which retails for $254.95, comes with the Electric Hoof Knife power unit, two Goat & Sheep Trimming discs, a pair of safety glasses, and a carrying case.

For more information, or to watch videos of the Electric Hoof Knife in action, visit www.ElectricHoofKnife.com or call (877) 320-8203.

MPWV Spring Educational Conference.

The MPWV Meat Goat Producers Association and University of Maryland Extension will hold an educational event on Saturday, June 7, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Carroll County Ag Center in Westminster, Maryland.

Seminar topics will include: traditional veterinary and health care; selling your goats; pasture and nutrition; non-traditional goat health care; and the pros and cons of registering your goats. A separate educational track for youth is being planned. It will cover selecting, raising, and getting your kid(s) ready for the show and sale. Speakers will include veterinarians, extension agents, and experienced goat producers.

The day will begin with a very brief business meeting and discussion of upcoming events. The deadline for early registration is May 15. The registration fee is $10/person or $20/family for members and $15/person and $25/family for non-members. Registration paid at the door is $5 extra.

For more information, contact Pam Adams at (443) 802-3734 or pam.adams@hp.com or visit the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/MPWVMeatGoatProducers.

The MPWV* Meat Goat Producers Association was organized to promote the meat goat industry and provide its members with information to help them breed and market high quality meat goats. The association includes members from Maryland, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Membership dues are $35 for the first year and $20 for subsequent years.

*Maryland-Pennsylvania-West Virginia

Herbal Dewormer Fails to Control Parasites

by Dr. Dahlia O'Brien
Virginia State University

Over the last few years, a number of studies have been done to test the effectiveness of commercially available herbal dewormers. Most recently, two studies were conducted at Delaware State University to test how effective Hoegger’s Herbal Wormer was in reducing fecal egg counts in meat goat kids and lactating does.

Wormwood

This dewormer is distributed by Hoegger’s Goat Supply (Fayetteville, GA) and contains a mixture of dried plant materials including wormwood, gentian, fennel, psyllium and quassia. Individually, these ingredients have all been reported to have possible deworming properties capable of reducing internal parasites in livestock. However, most of this information is anecdotal and not supported by scientific data.

So far, scientific studies evaluating commercial, non-chemical dewormers have found that they fail to reduce fecal egg counts in sheep and goats. The results from these two studies also supports that at the recommended dose and under the conditions of the studies, Hoegger’s Herbal Wormer was not an effective dewormer.

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