Looking up through the corral on a bright, sunny winters day. The ewes are fed a hay ration in their paddock every day but return to the corral for about a pound of oats and barley as lambing draws near. At lambing time I have usually increased this to a pound in the morning and a pound in the evening to make sure that they are in good condition for nursing and supporting their twin lambs.
The Oakwood Clun Forest flock in February out in the paddock. Generally our flock amounts to around 80 ewes which would include 8-10 ewe lambs. Because our ground stays frozen solid for 4 months of the winter it is ideal for feeding our hay on.
Many folk like to tell that the Clun Forest ewes are small and never make a good sized market lamb. Here are 4 ewes at lambing time. A good moderate size and good udders. The lamb buyer that I sell to likes lambs in the region of 110 lb live. That's what I deliver. The larger lambs I use in my freeze market and usually range from 55 lbs to 65 lbs cold, dressed weight.
A set of twins at lambing time. Clun Forest sheep are well known for their spirited start in life, looking for a teat within minutes of lambing. That's what makes them so popular for the shepherds lambing on pasture. The ewes are very motherly, keep their twins together and usually have more than enough milk.
If you look at these two lambs you will see the difference. The one on your left is a suffolk X Clun Forest, (our Suffolk ram on a purebred Clun Forest ewe.) You will notice how much neater and smaller the head on the pure Clun Forest lamb, on your right, is in comparison. Clun Forest lambs do have a neat head and make for an easy delivery at lambing time. We rarely get a mal-presentation at lambing. This is much to do with the compact size of the lamb. A larger lamb will be more inclined to be presented wrongly, backwards, one leg back, head back, etc.. This is what makes them so popular for breeding to ewe lambs of any breed.
A week old Clun Forest lamb. Note the neat size for its head. That's what makes for an easier lambing season!
A memorable picture of my flock leaving the farmyard in the morning as they head out to pasture for the day.
This is our Clun Forest ram called Butch. He's a 5 year old ram that I bought as a ram lamb from Glynn Brooks. An exceptional ram, thick and long. When I first used him on ewe lambs I was concerned that his lambs might have been chunkier and cause a harder delivery at lambing. This was unfounded. I have sold some fabulous rams from him and will be keeping his best twin ram from the 2011 lambing so as not to lose his genetics.
Another of our Clun Forest rams. This is a picture of Cassidy in July, one of our top sires. The photo to the right of this is a four and a half month old twin ewe lamb. You can see their similarities. He leaves excellent ewe lambs and I'll be using him again this year on a selected group of ewes. One of the best bloodlines imported in the 70s and 80s from the UK..
A beautiful Cassidy twin ewe lamb, purebred Clun Forest, born in April. This photo was taken at weaning in August. I kept her for a replacement and she gave me twins at 12 months old. For a size comparison there is a mature ewe standing right behind her.
Another Cassidy ewe lamb. Once again a purebred Clun Forest.
Cassidy has been one of our Clun Forest flock sires for 5 years. An oustanding ram leaving ideal ewe lambs and market lambs. This picture was taken in mid November, well after freeze up, and more than a week into breeding.
A pair of twin Suffolk X Clun Forest lambs at 4 1/2 months old. Similar ewe lambs go on to be great producers in a flock, incorporating many of the Clun characteristics.
A purebred Clun Forest lamb at 4 months of age. Look how he compares to the shorn ewe behind him.
More lambs on pasture at 4 months of age. You can see their mothers in comparison. The lambs are almost the same size as the ewes.
More lambs on pasture at 4 months of age. You can see their mothers in comparison. The lambs are almost the same size as the ewes.
A typical 4 month old lamb. Note the ewe standing behind him, so similar in size.
A set of twin Suffolk X Clun lambs with their mother. I marked these two lambs, one a ewe and one a male specifically to take this photo. A friend had asked what the cross would look like and whether they would do well. So I took this photo for her. This is early August and the lambs were born in April. You can judge them for yourself.
The same lambs as in the previous picture. The ewes and lambs return to the corral in the evening to avoid any predator problems. A creep feeder is set up for them and so the lambs do have access to a ration of whole oats and barley during the summer months. They don't actually use much of this, but it is there for anyone to take advantage of and it is especially beneficial in starting them on feed after weaning.
Weaning time in mid August. Starting them on some grain to supplement the poorer autumn pastures. Just over 100 lambs all like peas in a pod!
A group of Suffolk/Clun Forest ewe lambs waiting to be picked up. I breed a third of my ewes to a more traditional style Suffolk ram. I have a great demand for these crossbred ewe lambs and they are often spoken for a year ahead. With this great interest in this cross I have been able to steer ewe lamb buyers to some of my more efficient producers who have bought Clun rams from me and who have crossbred ewe lambs for sale.
