Fayette County herald. [volume] (Washington [Washington Court House], Fayette County, O. [Ohio]) 1860-1???, 1871-04-27
Sheep and wooIln the Spring.

( ship Of sheep in large part Of th,
United States is confined, at pres
ent, to those confirmed shepherds
y who need but little suggestion q
instruction in handling their aocks
L The fiery ordeal through whicl
this great branch Of farm husband
; ry has Of late passed has driver
T from the field all speculation, anc
- with it nearly all bad management
I Few, il any, but those whose faitH
( could not be shaken, and who will
! stick by their focks through good
} and through evil report, remain On
: the field OF their former glory, theil
late disaster, and, as we believe,
their future fortune. Bnt all such
know, from years Of experience,
: how to manage their nocks. in
, view, however, Of The probability
that some few Of our readers may
be just about commencing the bust.
ness, if not in the older States, at
least in the new States and Terri
tories, we present few reasonable
hints:
|. All sheep require extra care
at this season Of the year, and
should be taken from dry to green
food as gradually as il is possible
to do It, Any extreme and sudden
change Of food will affect unravora-
bly, the health of the animal and
the character Of the fleece and eX
posure to storms will be attended
with the same results.
2. Breeding ewes in lamb should
receive especial attention; and to
facilitate this, should be separated
from the general flock They
should be tagged early and
thoroughly, fed abundantly and
with regularity, and have access at
all times to some sort Of shelter
from the cold rains Of spring, and
yet never be crowded. The attend
ance ofa careful shepherd is indis-
pensable throughout the lambing
season. In flock of a thousand
ewes. a good shepherd, as com
pared with a bad one, or none at
all, may readily save the value of a
years services. A beginner should
have in his library copy of some
standard work on sheep husband
ry, like Dr. Randall's "Practical
Shepherd and study it carefully.
3. With respect to washing the
feece-from several years obser-
walton Of the wool market of this
country, we are inclined to believe
that the question "whether it is
better 70 wash the fleece on the
back OF the sheep 2" is
one to he decided by each flock
master himself, in view Of the cir
cumstances by which he is sur
rounded. In favorable situations
in. tue Western States, or rather
between Indiana and the Colorado
plains, we should advise washing
on the sheep. Throughout a great
part of Illinois, Missouri, Iowa and
Kansas there are often burs in the
lleeces. The winter corn field
range, in which many are permitted
to feed, is apt to leave its marks in
the cookie burs which attach to the
wool. Now, as q rule, the manu-
facturers in the West are not so
well prepared to handle bury wool
as those Of the East, and these
latter rarely buy unwashed wool
in the West by reason of the in
creased freight or dirt to their fac
tories. Henre it is better always
to wash the bury Aceces If it can
be done conveniently. Beyond
this consideration we know of
nothing in favor OF washing, ex.
cept that well-washed wool sells t
more rapidly thahunwashed at fhe 1
usual rates of each on the market, +
because manufacturers believe they
get more wool for the same money ,
IN buying the former +
A Shearing should not be done ,
until after the weather is settled |
and all danger Of severe, cold
rains, is past, and it is desirable to
have sufficient shade in the pasture
to shield the newly-shorn sheep i
from the direct rays Of the sun
at mid day. Clip out the burs, if !
nottoo abundant; tie up the fleece
securely, but not compactly
5. If the clip be not sold or sent
to market at once, it should be f
stored in tight room, free from !
lust, and ii intended to be held for
my considerable length of time, /
should be well covered from the +
light. This latter rprecaution being /
aiken, the 1eeces will not 50 read I
ly become yellow and otherwise +
lnsightly. IN
&, AT shearing is The time and 4
opportunity to detect disease, and !
0 apply the needful remedy, and !
to make breeding selec- /,
ions, with a view to coupling in \
he ensuing fall The weight and )
hapacter of each fleece can then i
,e readily determined, the form of h
ach animal examined, and all de. Il
irable memoranda made, much '
more satisfactorily than at any f
,ther time -NattoaaI Lire Stock q
n
= Lieutenant Governor Cum n