The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1901-08-20
No. %
Live Stock.
SHEEP IN THE SOUTH.


/
! ters-Land Plaster-sheep as scavsngers-
In the Cotton Vigilance the Price of
Success.
Correspondence of The Progressive Farmer.
Our so ewes are now supposed to
have been brought to end of spring
months, shorn and with a lot of good
lambs by their side, so the summer
comes next. The change from ex-
olusively dry feed of winter, should
be gradual. If the range is large
enough it is we'll to let them on it
every day from the time they can
get anything green in the spring, but
it is scarcely economy to do so if the
sheep are high grade flock that
have been well fed and are in good
condition. If they are turned out to
Craze where they can only secure
half enough green food to keep up
good condition, they will not con-
sumo an additional amount of dry
food to keep up condition so the
change requires some thought and
care that they may not scour and
fall away in flesh, which is not only
detriment to the animal, but seri-
ously to the wool, causing "break'
in the fibre that is, each fibre of
wool begins to grow out weaked and
shrunken in size until the sheep re-
gains improved condition.
Wool so grown is much injured
for making good cloth. The best
wool of any grade or class is grown
by sheep that are constantly kept
healthy and in good condition. Then,
also, constant good condition means
highest product of wool. A fall of
five so twenty pounds of flesh per
head means waste of feed to bring
the flock up again, also loss of one
fourth to one pouni of wool per
head, or from five to twenty-five
cents per head and likely loss of
lambs and some old ones.
This loss in condition is as likely
to occur in the spring in change from
dry to green food as in the fall from
green to dry food though not gen.
orally so much thought about be-
cause Summer is here and the sheep
will get along anyway" Tt is costly
mismanagement. A violent change
from dry feed to an unlimited sup
ply Of green feed is cruelty to the
animal as we'll as loss to the owner.
It will pay to have the ewes and
lambs, in fact all the sheep, come in
and lie at night in their barn and get
some bran or other mill feed, cotton
seed meal and some nice dry hay.
They will often eat some of the Lat.
ter as an antedote for an overloaded
stomach of green stuff. 1t pays to
have some rye cut quite green be-
fore the seed hardens, or oats cut
the same way, and feed the sheep a
little every night or during long
rainy days.
Because sheep can live out of doors
in summer, day and night through
all kinds of storms, by no means
makes it most profitable to have
them do So If sheep are kindly
cared for they will want to come
in to their fold every night and get
some salt mixture and little feed,
and they should have learned that it
is comfortable safe place. Then it
is convenient for the owner, shep-
herd or person in charge to see them
at least twice day, to note whe5her
every one of the flock is not only
getting along all right, but that
each one is doing the best that can
be done with it.
Finally, if there was no other rea-
son for folding the sheep at night,
even during summer, it will pay TO
do so for the manure thus secured
to be properly used as a fertilizer
about which more will be said again.
It must not be understood that
any part of the sheep folds are to be
kept in a filthy condition. They
must be kept dry and clean, not
necessarily by scraping and sweep
ing, but by bedding sufficiently with
straw, refuse hay, leaves or saw dust,
ami daily sprinkle of land plaster.
The application of land plaster
should never be omitted, winter
or summer, because it pays as
retainer of nitrates in the fertili-
zer, as well as an absorber of ann
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