The success of a sheep enterprise is determined by several factors. One of the factors is getting it right when it comes to choosing breeding stock lambs. Getting this part right will ensure that one has the appropriate animals on their farm. As much as other methods of selecting sheep are used, visual appraisal still tops the list. As with other selection criterion, one cannot tell with certainty the future productivity of an animal. When in search of Breeding stock lambs KY should be given priority.
Health of the animal must be the first aspect to consider. One is likely to fail if they start off with unhealthy lambs. Normally, besides being bright, healthy lambs stay alert. They will never isolate themselves from others. A healthy lamb appears to be in better body condition relative to its age, plane of nutrition, and stage of production.
One should avoid all lambs or breeding farms where sheep exhibit certain signs of being unhealthy. The signs include extremely poor body condition, pink eyes, sore oral lesions, limping, animals that have abscesses, or show respiratory signs. Respiratory signs include sneezing, snorting, and running noses. One should never purchase such animals for breeding. It is better to be safe than sorry.
The other visual appraisal criterion is the soundness of the animal. A person should only consider a lamb to be sound if it is in good physical state and does not have any serious physical defects. People must know that an animal with physical problems has low survival chances and cannot remain productive for a long period of time. Lack of lambing can be quite counterproductive for breeders or anyone.
The next item to be checked on the list of visual appraisal is the mouth of the ewe. The correct or normal mouth should have the bottom and top jaws properly aligned. This means that the pad and the incisors are flush with no incidents of overshot or undershot. Ewes with overshot or undershot jaws are to be avoided since this trait tends to be hereditary.
However, slight variations in jaw alignment should be expected as they are quite normal. The slight variations are not an inherited defect. When in doubt whether the variations in jaw orientation are normal or abnormal, one should observe the structure of the jaw from the side. Also, one should feel the teeth in order to further confirm what is seen. Overshot or undershot jaws affect the grazing ability of the animal.
Visual appraisal of the condition of the teeth should also be done. Mostly, the condition of the teeth depends on certain factors. Such factors include condition of the land and diet. Easily eaten diet grinds the teeth of sheep slowly while animals on coarse diet tend to have their teeth grind away faster. The focus should be on the molar teeth rather than the incisors since they do are the ones that grind food.
Lastly, the structure of the lamb generally is another aspect to watch. Its legs and feet need to be straight. It must also be squarely set on the corners of the torso. One needs to consider conformation as well. It tends to differ among different breeds. However, there is a tendency of smooth shoulders and straight backs being desirable.
Health of the animal must be the first aspect to consider. One is likely to fail if they start off with unhealthy lambs. Normally, besides being bright, healthy lambs stay alert. They will never isolate themselves from others. A healthy lamb appears to be in better body condition relative to its age, plane of nutrition, and stage of production.
One should avoid all lambs or breeding farms where sheep exhibit certain signs of being unhealthy. The signs include extremely poor body condition, pink eyes, sore oral lesions, limping, animals that have abscesses, or show respiratory signs. Respiratory signs include sneezing, snorting, and running noses. One should never purchase such animals for breeding. It is better to be safe than sorry.
The other visual appraisal criterion is the soundness of the animal. A person should only consider a lamb to be sound if it is in good physical state and does not have any serious physical defects. People must know that an animal with physical problems has low survival chances and cannot remain productive for a long period of time. Lack of lambing can be quite counterproductive for breeders or anyone.
The next item to be checked on the list of visual appraisal is the mouth of the ewe. The correct or normal mouth should have the bottom and top jaws properly aligned. This means that the pad and the incisors are flush with no incidents of overshot or undershot. Ewes with overshot or undershot jaws are to be avoided since this trait tends to be hereditary.
However, slight variations in jaw alignment should be expected as they are quite normal. The slight variations are not an inherited defect. When in doubt whether the variations in jaw orientation are normal or abnormal, one should observe the structure of the jaw from the side. Also, one should feel the teeth in order to further confirm what is seen. Overshot or undershot jaws affect the grazing ability of the animal.
Visual appraisal of the condition of the teeth should also be done. Mostly, the condition of the teeth depends on certain factors. Such factors include condition of the land and diet. Easily eaten diet grinds the teeth of sheep slowly while animals on coarse diet tend to have their teeth grind away faster. The focus should be on the molar teeth rather than the incisors since they do are the ones that grind food.
Lastly, the structure of the lamb generally is another aspect to watch. Its legs and feet need to be straight. It must also be squarely set on the corners of the torso. One needs to consider conformation as well. It tends to differ among different breeds. However, there is a tendency of smooth shoulders and straight backs being desirable.
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