The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1904-08-27
SUMNER CARE OF THE FLOCK.


No stock of the general farmer re-
ceives so little care through the sum-
mer season as the sheep. After shear
ing they are seldom seen oftener
than once week, when, usually on
Sunday morning, they are salted and
sometimes counted, many not even
taking time to count if, from the size
of the flock, all seem to be there, and
l have known men who didn't pre-
tend to know within ten or a dozen
of the number they should have.
A farmer was once showing me his
sheep. 1 asked him how many he
had. He cast his eye over the flock
as though making a calculation, and
said: "Well, they won't miss I25 a
great ways"
No stock we keep responds more
readily to good care than the sheep,
and their summer care is quite as
important as that of the winter. IF
well cared for during the summer
season they come to their winter
quarters in good flesh, well fortified
against the rigors of the inclement
seasons. "Well summered is half
wintered" is truer of no stock than
of sheep.
No stock appreciates a frequent
change of pasture more than sheep.
While they are ravenous feeders,
they are especially dainty about eat
ing anything that has been fouled by
themselves; hence if they can be
changed from one pasture to another
as often as once in two weeks, so the
pastures will have been washed by
the showers while being rested, it
is of great advantage, and besides
being more acceptable to the sheep,
the pasture affords more feed than
when kept close by constant crop
ping.
Sheep can often be changed to
pastures new" to great advantage to
the farmer himself as we'll as to the
sheep. They are almost omnivorous
vegetarians. They delight in many
of the bitter astringent plants that
no other stock will touch, and if
given the opportunity will destroy
many of the noxious weeds.
A friend of mine had timothy
meadow in which there sprung up a
great growth of white top. Sheep
are particularly fond of this plant.
He turned large flock OH for few
days, when the weeds were from 6
to inches high, and they soon cut
them tight to the ground, literally
destroying every one, so the owner
was able to cut fine crop of clean
timothy hay that could not have been
sold in the market at all had the
weeds been allowed to grow up with
it. 1 have also known sheep to be
used to advantage pasturing down
clover meadows that were infested
with the clover leaf worm.
Ragweeds, plantain and other
weeds of which sheep are especially
seeding after harvest IF given a
chance at them for few days, just
at the right time, Of blossoming,
sheep will effectually use them up.
1 used to think I must only turn on
a few for fear they injure the seeding,
but have learned that the proper
course is TO put on a good big flock
ten or twelve to the acre-and
then leave them on only two or
three days. If left on too long they
turn their attention to the seeding,
and 1 had rather NOW the weeds
than pasture the seeding too close.
Flock masters who keep the fine
wool breeds know that it pays well
to get them up occasionally and trim
their hoofs. Some of them are in
clined to grow out long, and if the
season is wet they sometimes get in
famed and sore in the clefts, and
unless attended to in time it will
run into foot rot, and then there is
trouble.
Attention to many of these little
details in the way of summer care of
the flock means all the difference be-
tween profit and loss, and this should
be sufficient motive to prompt one to
his best effort, to say nothing of the
high toned satisfaction of having
sound, thrifty flock, of which nobody
need be ashamed.