The Shepherd's diary: Learning on the job.
16th edition; 18.05.23
One of the fibre optic cables near to us was damaged the other day, which meant that we had no internet for a while. In the old days this wouldn’t have been a particular problem, but it meant that Jackie couldn’t work, and I wasn’t able to upload the writing that I did during the week. Without further ado, here is the Newsletter…
Sheep.
It’s a good thing that we only got two sheep. It’s hard for them to be “useful” to us given the amount of land that we have for them to graze, but at the same time there are so many things to learn about sheep, and two is a manageable number for a novice to take on. They are definitely helpful to us in one way; they provide us with manure each day… up to five litres of the stuff if I go out and collect it from the pasture, more like two litres if I only take it from their nighttime pen. It all helps to augment and improve our compost, there is a diverse collection of bacteria in sheep manure due to the way that they digest their food, and when that ends up in the garden, it compliments the microbiome of the soil.
This week was busy, trying to find time to get the guest room ready for the summer, I left the sheep in a very lush walled in paddock with lots of shade from various fruit trees. They loved it, and there was enough grass to keep them going without exhausting the supply. Each morning, I would put them into the paddock and collect them again in the evening, with a few checks in-between to be sure that they didn’t tip their water bucket. By the third day, I noticed that they looked a bit off, they had swelled up quite a bit in that time. The left side of their bellies was more swollen than the right.
I was able to figure out quite quickly what the problem was; Bloat. Bloat can kill sheep. Essentially the rumen will fill with gasses and begin to inflate - or bloat - if this problem is not relieved then the swelling can apply pressure to the diaphragm and cause death by suffocation. This can occur for a number of different reasons; like when the diet of the sheep is changed too fast or when the sheep eat too much fresh grass or anything that is too rich in nitrogen. Having spoke to the previous owner of the sheep, the dietary changes seemed minimal, we both feed our sheep a small amount of mixed grain in the evenings, which makes it much easier to get them back into the pen for the night.
It seemed that the problem was on the grazing side of things. But the first thing that I needed to do was address the issue of the bloat. By the time that I had figured out what was happening, it was already nighttime. I was ready to call the vet first thing in the morning, but judging from the research that I did online, prompt action was the most prudent. According to a vet in New Zealand, administering a solution of baking soda to the sheep’s mouth will help the gas bubbles in the rumen to break up. Further research helped me put a plan of action together.
I mixed two tablespoons of baking soda into two jars, then filled them half with water and half with cooking oil, mixing well. Crusoe is the tamer sheep, and it was not difficult to grab her and get a syringe in her mouth, I had to refill the syringe multiple times since it only had a capacity of 20ml. After injecting each syringe, I rubbed the left side of her abdomen and I could feel and hear the gasses moving around and consolidating, then it would suddenly erupt from her mouth in an enormous belch. This process took ten or fifteen minutes, and I can only imagine how relieving it must have felt for her.
Frankie was a tougher nut to crack. She was never as trusting as Crusoe, so just grabbing her was not an option, I tried a few times, and she would bound around the pen, her bell frantically ringing (Jackie and the toddler were sound asleep just meters away in the shack). I fashioned a crude lasso, and with that I was able to capture her. Lassos are a fascinating tool that require genuine skill to use effectively (and whenever I have a few minutes to spare I’ve taken to casting the lasso over a fence post to practice).
When the loop was around her neck, I moved in fast, keeping the rope taut, and grabbed her collar within seconds. In order to control a sheep, it's important to get behind them, one hand on the collar or the mane, the other on the side, and the legs holding the animal steady. This way, a sheep will quickly calm down, realising that there is no escape.
When I had Franky under control, I carefully manoeuvred her to the gate, where I had the syringe and jar waiting. There was more gas in her rumen than in Crusoe’s, I spent twenty minutes under the starry night sky, getting her to belch it up bit by bit. Afterwards, I was tired, but I continued to read from the first-hand experiences of farmers across the world. It became clear that sheep grazing is a delicate process, much more so than I had assumed. What I had done that night was a healthcare intervention - one that paid off because the swelling of the abdomens was visibly reduced - but I don’t like being in such a reactive state. My mission now is to learn how to graze the sheep in a way that doesn’t cause them to experience bloat.
Having read a few government PDF’s from Australia, a number of anecdotal reports from farmers and shepherds, and based on my own preliminary observations, I’ve designed a new rotational grazing plan for the sheep, and the initial results seem positive. The first thing to note is that some of the anecdotal reports contradict each other, for example some people say to feed the sheep hay before letting them onto the fresh green pasture, but I’ve also read that it won’t work because the sheep will figure out the ruse and ignore the hay in anticipation of the choice meal. It’s clear that sheep - along with many other animals - are individual creatures, and a true grazing solution will have to be tailored to the specific animals in question.
When we got our first flock of chickens last year, we tried to get them to eat our kitchen scraps - we’d seen other people doing this - but the chickens never touched those scraps. Eventually, we bought more chickens - mature adult chickens - who were more than happy to eat the scraps, and as soon as our cockerel saw them do that, he joined in and started eating the scraps too. Another batch of chicks that we bought spent two months living in their own little coop, and during that whole time, never figured out how to jump up onto the perch that we made for them. The first chicks that we had - the ones who wouldn’t eat scraps - easily figured out how to use the perch.
The lesson that I took from all this is that animals are much like humans, we experience a kind of shared understanding of our world, and we call it culture. I would argue that animals also experience something like culture, having seen various groups of chickens having their own way of doing a thing, and then through integration learning how to do it differently, was eye-opening. So to cut the tangent short, I have to take into account the nature of these particular sheep in order to save them from further bloat.
I would say that I gained the most insight into this problem by reading the writings of a German farmer in New York State. His farm is called White Clover Farm and his website is full of useful insights that he developed during 25 years of farming. I’ll note now that his general solution to a sheep that experiences recurring bloat is to simply cull it, which is not something that I can do, given the size of my flock. Before he reaches that stage though, he has developed a system of grazing on his farm that reduces bloat to a rare occurrence, I’ll let you read all about his experiences if you’re interested.
My new sheep management system is based on three central tenets:
- Keep them full.
This will prevent them from getting excited and overindulging on unhealthy amounts of nitrogen rich fodder.
- Give them consistent daily access to fibrous fodder as well as green grass and legumes.
Early in the morning, I take the sheep to graze through lands that are dominated by various kinds of perennial scrub, which are very fibrous. When they are satisfied, sometime in the early afternoon, I will take them to a grassy pasture where they can eat grass, clover, and other lush plants at a safe pace. This combination of fodder seems to reduce the risk of bloat.
- Encourage them to walk around.
Just like we humans, a certain amount of movement can help to consolidate and release uncomfortable gasses. There are other obvious health benefits to this too. I’ll note that if the sheep are hungry, then they will not want to go for a walk, they know where the grass is and if I don’t take them in that direction, then they will not cooperate. For this reason, I always end the day with some mixed grain - not a large amount because I’ve heard that this will encourage the wool and hooves to grow too fast - the mixed feed is like candy to these sheep, and they will happily come back to their nighttime pen to feast on it. In addition to this, I cut about a kilo of semi dry grass - almost hay - and stuff it into the wall of their shelter for them to browse on during the night. When I come for them at dawn, they are calm and satisfied, having had the opportunity to eat at all times of the day and night, and they’ll walk with me wherever I take them - Crusoe on a leash and Franky following - which allows me to complete this daily cycle consistently.
There are better ways to manage sheep, White Clover farm for one and a man called Greg Judy are both good examples, but they are large scale and have completely different land. I’m taking the lessons from them and others, trying to apply the wisdom to my own environment and sheep. The initial results of these changes are positive; Crusoe does not show any signs of bloat and though Frankie had the worst affliction, with some prophylactic oil in the morning and evening, she is also improving. This condition can develop fast, I thankfully spotted it at a very early stage, the sheep were not immobilised, which meant that the baking soda intervention combined with a rapid change in their grazing pattern seems to be solving the issue, but if this routine does not eliminate the problem then I’ll have to call the vet and seek further advice and medical care. I’m hoping that the health management approach will be sufficient.
In any case, I will give an update on this situation one week from now.
Grains.
On the cereal grain front, the experiments continue to go well. When we had the pigs with us, we gave them straw to make a bed beneath their shelter, and now there is wheat growing beneath the canopy of the forest. The typical yield from the stalks that are growing down there is lower than those that grew in the sun near the house, but an interesting proof of concept nonetheless, and I’m enthusiastic to continue this experiment.
The spelt patch is doing well, despite being overgrown with camomile. The yield per stalk appears to be around two dozen kernels, which I’m happy with. It was a busy march this year, so I didn’t make a spring planting of spelt, but next year I would like to find the time to do that; I’ll germinate the seeds in trays in February, allow them to establish roots and transplant in March, then it will be a case of observing the performance and comparing the results with the crops that were planted in autumn and left dormant over winter.
It's mid-May right now and though I’m not sure when the spelt will be ready for harvest, It's looking good, and I think that it might be ready to come out of the ground in June, whereas the wheat that I grew last year germinated in March and wasn’t ready till July for harvesting. This fall I will replant the spelt seed that I harvest and also do the same with some wheat, comparing the differences in growth.
I know that they grew winter grains here in the olden days, and judging by my observations, leaving the grasses to go dormant over winter is a good choice if it means an earlier harvest in summer, avoiding the worst of the heat and dryness. The other benefits of winter growing are that the roots have more time to develop and can provide the grain with more nutrients and do better in dryer soils. The downside is that come spring, the weed problem is very challenging, though considering the head start that the spelt had, I’m not sure that this is a really bad thing. I’m happy to make a compromise on yield if I can assure a higher quality of grain when harvested.
Furthermore, I found what I believe to be oats and barley growing in areas there the pigs were fenced, this would be from their mixed grain feed I assume. I’ll harvest and re-cast it in the fall, this will give us a head start on feeding pigs when we reintroduce them to the farm in a few years.
The rice experiment had a setback this first year; of the hundreds of seeds that I tried to germinate, only twenty of them sprouted… I was given these seeds by a neighbour who is a member of a seed bank that preserves heirloom seeds, she informed me that since they are already three years old, the germination rate will be low. I thought it might be like the first batch of spelt that I planted last year, which had a germination rate of about 50%-60%, this rice however only germinated at a rate of approximately 2%. The positive thing about this variety is that when the conditions are optimal, it can yield up to 300 grains per plant, so a low germination rate is not that big of a deal if you have a good stock. In any case, I plan to keep a dedicated bed in the garden every year to preserve the stock of fresh seed, which should have a much better rate of germination. They are all in the ground now and should be ready for harvesting come September.
No pictures this week, I haven’t had the time to organise them. I took the toddler on our first trip with just the two of us, which involved twelve hours away from home. It’s been one of his few experiences in a big city, and he spent much of it being overwhelmed by the sheer number of buses and trucks that are driving all over the place. He loves buses and trucks, imagine what it was like waiting for half an hour in a bus station. When we finally got back home, I installed the hinges onto the new door that I’ve been working on, and now I’m finishing the newsletter. The clock is about to strike midnight, and I’ve been busy since five in the morning, so I’ll give myself an extra half hour of sleep tomorrow.
So much to learn by observation, experience and access to the conclusions of others. All of it is fascinating. I'm impressed by your intervention with the sheep, also making and using a lassoo in the middle of the night! Have you thought of asking experienced neighbours to look with you at the composition of the pasture? There might be a plant or a combination of plants growing at that time of year that are known to cause bloating. My grandparents kept rabbits for the table and I loved gathering greens for them - dandelions, plantago, chickweed. But it was drilled into me that the tiniest bit of scarlet pimpernel (anagalis arvensis, easily confused with chickweed for a 4 year-old), would kill them. Perhaps that's why I learnt early to observe plants closely!
Wow, scary and such quick thinking and doing!