The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1928-06-08
Most Lambs Born
During Spring
Sheep Industry Of Today Is
More on Lamb Than
Mutton Basis.
prepared BY the United states Department
OF Agriculture.1

OF Agriculture.3
Although 20 per cent of the lambs
raised in the United States are born
in March, April and May, fresh lamb
reaches the market in steady supply
throughout the year. This is accomp-
lished In spite of the fact that little
Of 1t reaches the status of mutton.
Forty years ago very little lamb was
obtainable. Sheep were then usually
slaughtered at from five to ten years
of age, after considerable service in
wool production. Today, instead of
getting heavy mutton of uncertain age
and flavor and carrying much fat, the
housewife gets genuine lamb from ami
mails ranging from four to twelve
months old, mostly of mutton-type
breeds or crosses between wool and
mutton types. In other words the
sheep industry of today is largely on.
lamb rather than mutton basis.
Maintain Steady Supply.
How steady market supply If
lamb is maintained despite the fact
that most lambs. are born In the
spring is explained by the United
States Department Of Agriculture.
Some lambs, of course, are born in
the late fall and early winter. These
begin to arrive on the market In the
early spring, and are known in the
trade as genuine "spring lamb" Some
of the extremely early ones get spe-
cial attention and are marketed as
dollhouse lambs. However, this part
of the supply is only a small frac-
ton of the years totaL the main
bulk of it coming, as already men,
toned, from the lambs born in
March, April and May and which are
marketed from June to November.
About half o. the years market re-
ceipts reach market from August to
November. life they were all slaugh-
tered Immediately, year-round sup
ply of lamb to the consumer would
be impossible.
But they are not all slaughtered
Immediately. Fortunately for the
consumer, and also for the producer
because crOwding OF consumption de-
presses prices, ms ny Of the lambs
shipped to central markets In the
summer and fall are taken back to
the country to be fattened on grain,
alfalfa and other feeds. They are
returned to market for slaughter In
thu winter and early spring before
the next crop of lambs begins to ar
rive on the market. In this way the
lamb feeders il the irrigated districts
of Colorado and Nebraska and in the |
corn belt play considerable part in |
eQualizing the movement of lamb into
consumption throughout the year.
siostly Western Stock.
1t Is Interesting to note that s. per
cent of the nations lamb crop is |
raised in IL western states unde0 |
0pen-range conditions. Lambs so
raised are known to the trade as
westerns" California sends the
earliest patches to market in the |
spring. Those from the Rocky noun
tain region usually arrive later, many i
of them not until fall, when they are
available for the feeder for fattening |
for winter and early spring markets.
Lambs raised from small farm flocks |
in the corn belt and in the eastern |
half of the country are usually sold |
for slaughter as soon as they reach
desirable weights. This is because the
possibility of parasitic infection makes
them unsatisfactory for fattening pur-
poses. In short, the natural spread
ing of supplies from various sections,
throughout the marketing period, is
a great assistance to the sheepman
in achieving orderly marketing.
Lambs sold for slaughter bring
United States producers more, than
$100O00,000 annually. Fifty per cent
of the inspected slaughter, which rep
resents about 500,00O.000 pounds of
meat. is consumed east of Ohio and
north of the Potomac river, New York
city taking almost a third of the sup
ply. Fifteen per cent of the supply
is consumed in the three Pacific coast
states. The remaining percentage Is
distributed throughout the country.
When the per capita consumption Of
lamb in the Middle West and the
South equals that of the East and the
Pacific slope. the sheep industry will
have to raise a great many more
lambs.