Hair Sheep Arrive!

Part of the goal of the Using Livestock Technology for Resource Conservation Project is to manage cattle and small ruminants in ways that will decrease leafy spurge and other undesirable plant species in the pastures.

In agriculture working with neighbor and friends is common practice. Since we don’t have a large herd of small ruminants we are working with our friends in Osmond, NE. The Choat family shares the same philosophy we do; Let animals express their God-given tendencies and learn how to steward them accordingly. After a summer of limited rainfall, we finally received rain and were confident we could bring the sheep in. On August 16th two loads of hair sheep and three livestock guardian dogs arrived at No Name Creeks. Ewes were sporting NoFence small animal collars and had been trained to the virtual fence prior to arrival. Ewe lambs were by their side and were allowed to creep in front of the older ewes.

We were eager to see what plants the sheep would eat. They started grazing grasses and browsing shrubs and low hanging tree leaves, and yes, they ate the spurge. They plucked the slender leaves from the stock of the spurge leaving it unrecognizable. Once the sheep were moved off the spurge the leaves regrew. The sheep will come back to graze the spurge again later in the fall, in an attempt to stress the spurge going into winter.

Hopefully with repeated grazing over the next two years, we will see a decline in spurge and other woody plants in the grassland and oak woodlands. We will keep you updated her on the blog!