Sheep

Sheep farmers and industry professionals are invited to a series of free events taking place in Cornwall next month to learn about the results of a pilot study exploring the potential of introducing worm-tolerant genetics into flocks.

With the aim of improving the choice of top-performing rams throughout the UK, AHDB’s Signet Breeding Services have launched new breeding values for abattoir traits, which will form an integral part of the National Terminal Sire Evaluation going forward.

Sheep farmers are being encouraged to make the most of funding from the Defra Animal Health & Welfare Pathway by choosing an appropriate time to carry out the Worming Treatment Check, such as when there are lambs at pasture that require treatment, said SCOPS independent sheep consultant Lesley Stubbings.

The Dorset Horn and Poll Dorset Sheep Association’s National Show has fast become a success and drawn breeders from across the country since its calendar debut – and this year will be no different.

Due to changing weather patterns in the UK and Ireland, blowfly season is now starting earlier, lasting longer, and becoming increasingly difficult to forecast. To help farmers prepare for the upcoming season and minimise the risk of fly strike, the British veterinary organisation NADIS (National Animal Disease Information Service) offers some advice.

A seasonal study, carried out on Islay as part of the RHASS Presidential Initiative (PI), has demonstrated that treating livestock ‘as little as possible, but as much as necessary’ for liver fluke can deliver a multitude of benefits for both animal and environmental health.

Vets are urging farmers to vaccinate their flocks with Cevac Chlamydia early in the season to help protect their ewes from EAE (enzootic abortion of ewes) and avoid a lack of the Cevac Chlamydia vaccine anticipated later in the year.

Having grown up with a farming background, 17-year-old Libby Kate Lawrence is now working 12-hour lambing shifts on various farms in Suffolk and Essex. In an interview with Farmers Guide, she spoke about her farming experiences and plans to travel the world working with livestock.

The South of England Agricultural Society‘s Education Committee is proud to announce that their Loan a Lamb scheme will reach nearly 4,000 school children across Sussex and Surrey this year, significantly impacting students’ understanding of agriculture and its contribution to our lives.

Farmers must be on their guard for roundworms in sheep this season by regularly conducting faecal egg counts, as data from last year revealed record peaks in worm egg counts despite a hotter than average summer.

An annual survey by the National Sheep Association (NSA) has sparked concerns that farmers may be permanently forced to live with the devastating consequences of dog attacks, as sheep worrying “continues to be swept under the carpet”.

Exciting plans are underway for a National Sheep Association (NSA) event this autumn that will bring together the nation’s sheep farmers for a fresh style of enjoyable and informative farming conference.