PRE-LAMB SHEARING

Press, Volume XCVI, Issue 28436, 16 November 1957, Page 9

PRE-LAMB SHEARING

PRACTICAL FARMER SUMS UP

Should Be A “Must” On . Most Fanns

An interesting contribution to the discussion on the question of pre-lamb shearing comes from a well-known farmer in the Kaikoura county. “I was,” he writes, ‘‘most interested to read your recent article headed ‘Pre-lamb shearing,’ but most surprised to learn there are so few converts. Quite a number of farmers in my district have been following this practice for a number of years, and none would ever dream of returning to shearing in No-vember-December. Our wool weights have progressively increased, lambing percentages gone up, and a general improvement recorded in the health of all sheep.” Our correspondent goes on to say that he believes pre-lambing shearing to be a ‘‘must” on nearly all farms carrying 1000 ewes or more, as he himself does. He explains that he shears his cast-for-age ewes again at Christmas. These 300 ewes clip at this second shearing 61b of wool which, he says, more than makes up for the 11b loss in pre-lamb shearing mentioned by Dr. A. E. Henderson, of Lincoln College, even accepting that this loss does occur. Incidentally, he claims that earlyshorn Romney two-tooths have topped most markets by well over £1 a head. ‘‘l feel sure,” continues our in-

formant, ‘‘that on hill country especially those farmers who ar? not gettipg 100 per cent, lamb? would if they pre-lamb shore get over this percentage with less loss of ewes and a minimum ol trouble. It is surely understandable that a big ewe carrying 10 to 121 b of wool on a wet night will not lie down to lamb and then get up in time to clean the lambs before one or even two (as sometimes happens) have been suffocated. A newly born lamb • one of twins) may roll down a slope, and there it stays because the mother, being weighted down by 121 b of wool and, say, 41b ol water, coupled with the exhaustion induced by lambing, may de cide that the remaining lamb will ‘do her,’ and consequently the other twin is left to its fate. “Not so in the case of the pre-lamb shorn ewe. She lamb? in shelter, is up straight away, and will do all that the woolly ewe hasn’t the strength to do. “Then again, bearing trouble is a thing of the past with us, and some years lambing is as high as 130 per cent. Wool weights, too, have gone up by 25 per cent. Early shearing makes for bettei farming because early-shorn ewes must be fed well when just off the shears, which is usually three or four weeks before lambing. “After docking and spraying ewes and lambs with anti-fly we are able to get on with cropping, haymaking and the work of picking good drafts of lambs off their mothers, who have been undisturbed since tailing.” Our correspondent adds that there is only rtne disadvantage through pre-lamb shearing that he can see. and that is the length of wool for dipping. This, he suggested, can be overcome to a certain extent by dipping after early weaning, say, the end of November.

In conclusion he expresses the opinion that if every farmer who was in a position to pre-lamb shear did so. the export of mutton and lamb would rise from 15 to 20 per cent, in a very short time.