From: maxfield@athena.cs.uga.edu (Joan C. Maxfield)
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: Lawnmowers vs Environment
Keywords: The ultimate mower
Date: 11 Apr 92 15:08:14 GMT
Organization: University of Georgia, Athens

In article <1992Apr10.002748.10880@trl.oz.au> starkie@eddore.trl.OZ.AU (Brad Starkie) writes:
>If a hand mower seems like too much work there is of course the ultimate 
>in environmently friendly lawn mowers a SHEEP or GOAT. I've been 
>considering getting a sheep myself, as we have a lot of fruit trees
>and goats would be more likely to eat them than a sheep I understand.
	Sheep will normally graze plants 6" high and under.  Goats
	prefer plants 6" and taller.  If you are just keeping a lawn
	down I would opt for sheep, unless you have areas of tall
	grass that you want to get rid of, in which case a goat may
	help.  Sheep manure is also pretty small, it gets down to the
	soil and fertilizes without mess or smell, you won't even see
	it! Sheep also don't pull up the plants they graze, they chop
	it off a few inches from the ground leaving the roots uninjured.
	Ok I'm warning now, I'm going to praise sheep and tell you all
about how easy and fun they are so if your not interested in them hit
N, otherwise you'll be very bored!
	First I'll admitt that I am an animal science major with a
specific interest in ovine production (ie. Im in sheep school)  For my
sweet sixteen I got a 6 month old shropshire lamb.  I had to learn
from experience how to raise sheep because nobody I knew had any and
Ct is not a big sheep state. I am also down on goats because they
smell nasty and tend to try to lift your skirt with their horns.
	Sheep have to be the world easiest animal to raise for several
reasons.  First, they are very, very, stupid.  They don't sit and
wonder how to jump a fence and get away unless there is another sheep
on the other side, or a dog on the inside.  They are happy to just sit
and eat.  Second, sheep, being ruminants, have virtualy no nutritional
requirements. A nice green lawn is more than enough, and if the grass
dies in the winter plain old timothy hay is plenty, although I gave
Pokey, my sheep, small amounts of commercial grain and dried mollasses
in the winter if it got extremely cold, this is why she was
overweight.  If you have a vegetable garden you will now have a place
for all that uneaten, old, but not rotten produce.  Pokey and Heyewe
were especially fond of pumpkins and other squash.  Third, they are
very small, relatively easy to catch and
hold.  They don't need alot of space, my 2 sheep stayed comfortably in
a 8x4 pen at night.  They don't even need a completely enclose area
for shelter, just a windbreak and a cover.  A 3 sided hutch is fine if
face away from the wind and the open side makes it easier to clean
out.  My sheep have lived in several places, a problem if you don't
live on a farm and have several, one was a huge doghoue like structure
attached to the side of a building.  All I had to do was rake up the
old hay and droppings and add a little fresh hay or straw on the
ground for dry bedding and add the old to the compost heap.  A little
lime sprinkled on the dirt occasionally helped keep it dry during wet
weather.  
	There are a few drawbacks to live lawnmowers though.  First,
they are very,very, stupid.  They will eat chipping paint, they will
tangle themselves in brambles, they are dependant on you to ensure
their health and safety. Second, they are very small, they are easily
terrorized by local dogs, either yours or your neighbors.  If you own
a small, hyper dog or a herding breed that hasnt ever seen a herd you
may want to stick to the push mower or consider keeping your dog on a
run far away from your sheep, an active or barking dog will make for
neurotic sheep.  Neurotic sheep drop like flies, stress is stress.
Sheep also have to be vaccinated against various diseases, luckily the
2 big ones are combined in one vaccine and only need to be given
annually.  The vaccines and syringes can be purchased mail order and
easy to give if you have the inclination.  If you don't live in an
agricultural area, one call to a vet that treats sheep will give you
the inclination, they charge alot to drive more than 10 minutes.  Foot
rot is also a problem in wet areas but now has a vaccine that only is
given twice.  
	There is also the question of wool and milk.  I personally
wouldn't expect to get milk unless you breed and even then those teats
are way up in the groin and theres no way Im sticking my head under a
sheep for a glass of milk, which is about all you'd get:)  I'm told
it's very rich, it is used in some cheeses but is usually replaced by
cows milk because sheep are hard to milk.  Wool is great, I send mine
(well, my sheeps) to a company in Maine that will process it for you
without removing the lanolin, this makes it very soft and it won't
itch.  They also will buy small lots for credit and you can buy yarn,
blankets, roving (ready for hand spinning) and other wool products.
The drawback to this is that the sheep MUST be sheared at least once a
year.  You can do it yourself, I have hand shears, or you can hire
someone to do it for you.  It's an interesting experience.  I bought a
spinning wheel a few years ago and planned to try to make my own yarn,
unfortunately, I haven't had the time to even figure out how the
sucker works.  I hear it is a very relaxing hobby, funny that I'm too
busy to do it!
	Well, thats all I'll force on you for now, if anyone is truley
interested in knowing more try the book "raising sheep the modern way"
by Paula Simmons (I think) she also has other books for small
operations, or drop me e-mail, I'm always willing to tell about what
I've learned (ask Kay about my cats! or hers!)  If I had a lawn (I
garden out of window boxes for now) I would definately get a sheep.  I
had to leave my 2 back in Ct, I don't think the landlord would like
them as much as I do.  Check your library and call your county
extention service, you may even get a zoning waiver for a "pet" sheep
(lord knows the pot bellied pigs are causing a stir in zoning laws)
and by all means drop me a line, there is a lot more I could add and
I'm more than willing to answer "silly" questions.  

Joan





-- 
J. C. Maxfield				maxfield@athena.cs.uga.edu
DISCLAIMER:  I don't speak for the University, but they often speak for me!
Newsgroups: rec.gardens