Sheep, Swine, and Poultry Part 9

By the best flock-masters, sheep are usually washed in vats. A small stream is dammed up, and the water taken from it in an aqueduct, formed by nailing boards together, and carried till a sufficient fall is obtained to have it pour down a couple of feet or more into the vat. The body of water, to do the work fast and well, should be some twenty-four inches wide, and five or six deep; and the swifter the current the better. The vat should be some three and a half feet deep, and large enough for four sheep to swim in it. A yard is built near the vat, from the gate of which a platform extends to and incloses the vat on three sides. This keeps the washer from standing in the water, and makes it much easier to lift the sheep in and out. The yard is built opposite the corners of two fields--to take advantage of the angle of one of them to drive the sheep more readily into the yard, which should be large enough to contain the entire flock, if it does not exceed two hundred; and the bottom of it, as well as the smaller yard, unless well sodded over, should be covered with coa.r.s.e gravel, to avoid becoming muddy. If the same establishment is used by a number of flock-masters, gravelling will always be necessary.

[Ill.u.s.tration: WASHING APPARATUS.]

As soon as the flocks are confined in the middle yard, the lambs are all immediately caught out from among them, and set over the fence into the yard to the left, to prevent their being trampled down, as often happens, by the old sheep, or straying off, if let loose. As many sheep are then driven out of the middle yard into the smaller yard to the right, as it will conveniently hold. A boy stands by the gate next to the vat, to open and shut it, or the gate is drawn together with a chain and weight, and two men, catching the sheep as directed under the head of "tagging," commence placing them in the water for the preparatory process of "wetting." As soon as the water strikes through the wool, which occupies but an instant, the sheep is lifted out and let loose.

Where there are conveniences for so doing, this process may be more readily performed by driving them through a stream deep enough to compel the sheep to swim; but _swimming_ the compact-fleeced, fine-woolled sheep for any length of time--as is practised with the long-wools in England--will not properly cleanse the wool for steaming. The vat should, of course, be in an inclosed field, to prevent their escape. The whole flock should thus be pa.s.sed over, and again driven round through the field into the middle yard, where they should stand for about an hour before washing commences.

There is a large per centage of potash in the wool oil, which acts upon the dirt independent of the favorable effect which would result from thus soaking it with water alone for some time. If washed soon after a good shower, previous wetting might be dispensed with; and it is not, perhaps, absolutely necessary in any case. If the water is warm enough to allow the sheep to remain in it for the requisite period, they may be got clean by washing without any previous wetting; though the snowy whiteness of fleece, which has such an influence on the purchaser, is not so often nor so perfectly attained in the latter way. But little time is saved by dispensing with "wetting," as it takes proportionably longer to wash, and it is not so well for the sheep to be kept so long in the water at once.

When the washing commences, two and sometimes four sheep are plunged in the vat. When four are put in, two soak while two are washed. This should not, however, be done, unless the water is very warm, and the washers are uncommonly quick and expert; and it is, upon the whole, rather an objectionable practice, since few animals suffer so much from the effects of a chill as the sheep; and, if they have been previously wetted, it is wholly unnecessary. When the sheep are in the water, the two washers commence kneading the wool with their hands about the dirtier parts--the breech, belly, etc.--and they continue to turn the sheep so that the descending current of water can strike into all parts of the fleece.

As soon as the sheep are clean, which may be known by the water running entirely clear, each washer seizes his own animal by the foreparts, plunges it deep in the vats, and, taking advantage of the rebound, lifts it out, setting it gently down on its breech upon the platform. He then--if the sheep is old and weak, and it is well in all cases--presses out some of the water from the wool, and after submitting the sheep to a process presently to be mentioned, lets it go.

There should be no mud about the vat, the earth not covered with sod, being gravelled. Sheep should be kept on clean pastures, from washing to shearing--not where they can come in contact with the ground, burnt logs, and the like--and they should not be driven over dusty roads. The washers should be strong and capable men, and, protected as they are from any thing but the water running over the sides of the vat, they can labor several hours without inconvenience. Two hundred sheep will employ two experienced men not over half a day, and this rate is at times much exceeded.

It is a great object, not only as a matter of propriety and honesty, but even as an item of profit, to get the wool clean, and of a snowy whiteness, in which condition it will always sell for more than enough extra to offset the increased labor and the diminution in weight. The average loss in American Saxon wool in scouring, after being washed on the back, is estimated at thirty-six per cent.; and in American Merino forty-two and a half per cent.

CUTTING THE HOOFS.

As the hoofs of fine-woolled sheep grow rapidly, turning up in front and under at the sides, they must be clipped as often as once a year, or they become unsightly, give an awkward, hobbling gait to the animal, and the part of the horn which turns under at the sides holds dirt or dung in constant contact with the soles, and even prevents it from being readily shaken or washed out of the cleft of the foot in the natural movement of the sheep about the pastures, as would take place were the hoof in its proper place. This greatly aggravates the hoof-ail, and renders the curing of it more difficult; and it is thought by many to be the exciting cause of the disease.

It is customary to clip the hoofs at tagging, or at or soon after the time of shearing. Some employ a chisel and mallet to shorten the hoofs; but the animal must afterward be turned upon its back, to pare off the crust which projects and turns under. If the weather be dry, or the sheep have stood for some time on dry straw, as at shearing, the hoofs are as tough as horn, and are cut with great difficulty; and this is increased by the grit and dirt adhering to the sole, which immediately takes the edge off from the knife. These periods are ill-chosen, and the method slow and bungling. It is particularly improper to submit heavily-pregnant ewes to all this unnecessary handling at the time of tagging.

When the sheep is washed and lifted out of the vat, and placed on its rump upon the platform, the gate-keeper should advance with a pair of toe-nippers, and the washer present each foot separately, pressing the toes together so that they can be severed at a single clip. The nippers--which can be made by any blacksmith who can temper an axe or a chisel--must be made strong, with handles a little more than a foot long, the rivet being of half-inch iron, and confined with a nut, so that they may be taken apart for sharpening. The cutting-edge should descend upon a strip of copper inserted in the iron, to prevent it from being dulled. With this powerful instrument, the largest hoofs are severed by a moderate compression of the hand. Two well-sharpened knives, which should be kept in a stand or box within reach, are then grasped by the washer and a.s.sistant, and with two dexterous strokes to each foot, the side-crust, being free from dirt, and soaked almost as soft as a cuc.u.mber, is reduced to the level of the sole. Two expert men will go through these processes in a very short s.p.a.ce of time. The closer the paring and clipping the better, if blood be not drawn. An occasional sheep may require clipping again in the fall.

[Ill.u.s.tration: TOE-NIPPERS.]

SHEARING.

The time which should elapse between washing and shearing depends altogether on circ.u.mstances. From four to six days of bright, warm weather is sufficient; if cold, or rainy, or cloudy, more time must intervene. Sometimes the wool remains in a condition unfit for shearing for a fortnight after washing. The rule to be observed is, that the water should be thoroughly dried out, and the natural oil of the wool should so far exude as to give the wool an unctious feeling, and a lively, glittering look. If it is sheared when dry, like cotton, and before the oil has exuded, it is very difficult to thrust the shears through, the umer is checked, and the wool will not keep so well for long periods. If it is left until it gets too oily, either the manufacturer is cheated, or, what more frequently happens, the owner loses on the price.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FLEECE.]

Shearing, in this country, is always done on the threshing-floors of the barns--sometimes upon low platforms, some eighteen or twenty inches high, but more commonly on the floor itself. The place where the sheep remain should be well littered down with straw, and fresh straw thrown on occasionally, to keep the sheep clean while shearing. No chaff or other substance which will stick in the wool should be used for this purpose. The shearing should not commence until the dew, if any, has dried off from the sheep. All loose straws sticking to the wool should be picked off, and whatever dung may adhere to any of the feet brushed off. The floor or tables used should be planed or worn perfectly smooth, so that they will not hold dirt, or catch the wool. They should all be thoroughly cleaned, and, if necessary, washed, preparatory to the process. If there are any sheep in the pen dirty from purging, or other causes, they should first be caught out, to prevent them from contaminating others.

The manner of shearing varies with almost every district; and it is difficult, if not impossible, to give intelligible practical instructions, which would guide an entire novice in skilfully shearing a sheep. Practice is requisite. The following directions are as plain, perhaps, as can be made:

The shearer may place the sheep on that part of the floor a.s.signed to him, resting on its rump, and himself in a posture with his right knee on a cushion, and the back of the animal resting against his left thigh.

He grasps the shears about half-way from the point to the bow, resting his thumb along the blades, which gives him better command of the points. He may then commence cutting the wool at the brisket, and, proceeding downward, all upon the sides of the belly to the extremity of the ribs, the external sides of both sides to the edges of the flanks; then back to the brisket, and thence upward, shearing the wool from the breast, front, and both sides of the neck, but not yet the back of it, and also the poll, or forepart, and top of the head. Then "the jacket is opened" of the sheep, and its position, as well as that of the shearer, is changed by the animal's being turned flat upon its side, one knee of the shearer resting on the cushion, and the other gently pressing the fore-quarter of the animal, to prevent any struggling. He then resumes cutting upon the flank and rump, and thence onward to the head. Thus one side is complete. The sheep is then turned on the other side--in doing which great care is requisite to prevent the fleeces being torn--and the shearer proceeds as upon the other, which finishes. He must then take the sheep near to the door through which it is to pa.s.s out, and neatly trim the legs, leaving not a solitary lock anywhere as a lodging-place for ticks. It is absolutely necessary for him to remove from his stand to trim, otherwise the useless stuff from the legs becomes intermingled with the fleece-wool. In the use of the shears, the blades should be laid as flat to the skin as possible, the points not lowered too much, nor should more than from one to two inches be cut at a clip, and frequently not so much, depending on the part, and the compactness of the wool.

The wool should be cut off as close as conveniently practicable, and even. It may, indeed, be cut too close, so that the sheep can scarcely avoid sun-scald; but this is very unusual. If the wool is left in ridges, and uneven, it betrays a want of workmanship very distasteful to the really good farmer. Great care should be taken not to cut the wool twice in two, as inexperienced shearers are apt to do, since it is a great damage to the wool. This results from cutting too far from the points of the shears, and suffering them to get too elevated. In such cases, every time the shears are pushed forward, the wool before, cut off by the points, say a quarter or three-eighths of an inch from the hide, is again severed. To keep the fleece entire, which is of great importance to its good appearance when done up, and, therefore, to its salableness, it is very essential that the sheep be held easily for itself, so that it will not struggle violently. No man can hold it still by main strength, and shear it well. The posture of the shearer should be such that the sheep is actually confined to its position, so that it is unable to start up suddenly and tear its fleece; but it should not be confined there by severe pressure or force, or it will be continually kicking and struggling. Clumsy, careless men, therefore, always complain of getting the most troublesome sheep. The neck, for example, may be confined to the floor by placing it between the toe and knee of the leg on which the shearer kneels; but the lazy or brutal shearer who suffers his leg to rest directly on the neck, soon provokes that struggle which the animal is obliged to make to free itself from severe pain, and even, perhaps, to draw its breath.

Good shearers will shear, on the average, twenty-five Merinos per day; but a new beginner should not attempt to exceed from one-third to one-half of that number. It is the last process in the world which should be hurried, as the shearer will, in that case, soon leave more than enough wool on his sheep to pay for his day's wages. Wool ought not to be sheared, and must not be done up with any water in it. If wounds are made, as sometimes happens with unskilful operators, a mixture of tar and grease ought to be applied.

Shearing lambs is, in the Northern climate, at least, an unprofitable practice; since the lamb, at a year old, will give the same amount of wool, and it is thus stripped of its natural protection from cold when it is young and tender, for the mere pittance of the interest on a pound, or a pound and a half of wool for six months, not more than two or three cents, and this all consumed by the expense of shearing. Much the same may be said of the custom, which obtains in some places, of shearing from sheep twice a year. There may be a reason for it, where they receive so little care that a portion are expected to disappear every half year, and the wool to be torn from the backs of the remainder by bushes, thorns, etc., if left for a long period; but when sheep are inclosed, and treated as domestic animals, although there may be less barbarity in shearing them in the fall also, than in the case of the tender lambs, there is no ground for it on the score of utility; since any gain accruing from it cannot pay the additional expense which it occasions.

COLD STORMS occurring soon after shearing sometimes destroy sheep, in the northern portions of the country, especially the delicate Saxons; forty or fifty of which have, at times, perished out of a single flock, from one night's exposure. Sheep, in such cases, should be housed; or, where this is impracticable, driven into dense forests.

SUN-SCALD. When they are sheared close in very hot weather, have no shade in their pastures, and especially where they are driven immediately considerable distances, or rapidly, over burning and dusty roads, their backs are sometimes so scorched by the sun that their wool comes off. If let alone, the matter is not a serious one; but the application of refuse lard to the back will hasten the cure, and the starting of the wool.

TICKS. These vermin, when very numerous, greatly annoy and enfeeble the sheep in winter, and should be kept entirely out of the flock. After shearing, the heat and cold, the rubbing and biting of the sheep, soon drive off the tick, and it takes refuge in the wool of the lamb. Let a fortnight elapse after shearing, to allow all to make this change of residence. Then boil refuse tobacco leaves until the decoction is strong enough to kill ticks beyond a peradventure, which may be ascertained by experiment. Five or six pounds of cheap plug tobacco, or an equivalent in stems, and the like, may be made to answer for a hundred lambs.

This decoction is poured into a deep, narrow box, kept for the purpose, which has an inclined shelf on one side, covered with a wooden grate.

One man holds the lamb by its hind legs, while another clasps the fore legs in one hand, and shuts the other about the nostrils, to prevent the liquid from entering them, and then the animal is entirely immersed. It is then immediately lifted out, laid on one side upon the grate, and the water squeezed out of its wool, when it is turned over and squeezed on the other side. The grate conducts the fluid back into the box. If the lambs are regularly dipped every year, ticks will never trouble a flock.

MARKING OR BRANDING.

The sheep should be marked soon after shearing, or mistakes may occur.

Every sheep-owner should be provided with a marking instrument, which will stamp his initials, or some other distinctive mark, such as a small circle, an oval, a triangle, or a square, at a single stroke, and with uniformity, on the sheep. It is customary to have the mark cut out of a plate of thin iron, with an iron handle terminating in wood; but one made by cutting a type, or raised letter, or character, on the end of a stick of light wood, such as pine or ba.s.swood, is found to be better. If the pigment used be thin, and the marker be thrust into it a little too deeply, as often happens, the surplus will not run off from the wood, as it does from a thin sheet of iron, to daub the sides of the sheep, and spoil the appearance of the mark; and, if the pigment be applied hot, the former will not get heated, like the latter, and increase the danger of burning the hide.

Various pigments are used for marking. Many boil tar until it a.s.sumes a glazed, hard consistency when cold, and give it a brilliant, black color by stirring in a little lampblack during the boiling. This is applied when just cold enough not to burn the sheep's hide, and it forms a bright, conspicuous mark all the year round. The manufacturer, however, prefers the subst.i.tution of oil and turpentine for tar, as the latter is cleansed out of the wool with some difficulty. It should be boiled in an iron vessel, with high sides, to prevent it from taking fire, on a small furnace or chafing-dish near which it is to be used. When cool enough, forty or fifty sheep can be marked before it gets too stiff. It is then warmed from time to time, as necessary, on the chafing-dish.

Paint, made of lampblack, to which a little spirits of turpentine is first added, and then diluted with linseed or lard oil, is also used.

The rump is a better place to mark than the side, since it is there about as conspicuous under any circ.u.mstances, and more so when the sheep are huddled in a pen, or running away from one. Besides, should any wool be injured by the mark, that on the rump is less valuable than that on the side. Ewes are commonly distinguished from wethers by marking them on different sides of the rump.

Many mark each sheep as it is discharged from the barn by the shearer; but it consumes much less time to do it at a single job, after the shearing is completed; and it is necessary to take the latter course if a hot pigment is used.

MAGGOTS. Rams with horns growing closely to their heads are very liable to have maggots generated under them, particularly if the skin on the surrounding parts becomes broken by fighting; and these, unless removed, soon destroy the animal. Boiled tar, or the marking substance first described, is both remedy and preventive. If it is put under the horns at the time of marking, no trouble will ever arise from this cause.

Sometimes when a sheep scours in warm weather, and clotted dung adheres about the a.n.u.s, maggots are generated under it, and the sheep perishes miserably. As a preventive, the dung should be removed; as a remedy, the dung and maggots should be removed--the latter by touching them with a little turpentine--and sulphur and grease afterward applied to the excoriated surface.

Maggot-flies sometimes deposit their eggs on the backs of the long, open-woolled English sheep, and the maggots, during the few days before they a.s.sume the _pupa_ state, so tease and irritate the animal, that fever and death ensue. Tar and turpentine, or b.u.t.ter and sulphur, smeared over the parts, are admirable preventives. The Merino and Saxon are exempt from these attacks.

SHORTENING THE HORNS. A convolution of the horn of a ram sometimes so presses in upon the side of the head or neck that it is necessary to shave or rasp it away on the under side, to prevent ultimately fatal effects. The point of the horn of both ram and ewe both frequently turn in so that they will grow into the flesh, and sometimes into the eye, unless shortened. The toe-nippers will often suffice on the thin extremity of a horn; if not, a fine saw must be used. The marking-time affords the best opportunity for attending to this operation.

SELECTION AND DIVISION.

The necessity of annually weeding the flock, by excluding all its members falling below a certain standard of quality, and the points which should be regarded in fixing that standard, have already been brought to notice in connection with the principles of breeding.

The time of shearing is by far the most favorable period for the flock-master to make his selection. He should be present on the shearing-floor, and inspect the fleece of every sheep as it is gradually taken off; since, if there are faults about it, he will then discover it better than at any other time. A glance will likewise reveal to him every defect in form, previously concealed, wholly, or in part, by the wool, as soon as the newly-shorn sheep is permitted to stand up on its feet. A remarkably choice ewe is frequently retained until she dies of old age; a rather poor nurse or breeder is excluded for the slightest fault, and so on. Whatever animals are to be excluded, may be marked on the shoulder with Venetian red and hog's lard, conveniently applied with a brush or cob. Such of the wethers as have attained their prime, and those ewes that have pa.s.sed it, should be provided with the best feed, and fitted for the butcher. If they have been properly pushed on gra.s.s, they will be in good flesh by the time they are taken from it; and, if not intended for stall-feeding, the sooner they are then disposed of the better.

Those _divisions_, also, in large flocks, which utility demands, are generally made at or soon after shearing. Not more than two hundred sheep should be allowed to run together in the pastures; although the number might, perhaps, be safely increased to three hundred, if the range is extensive.

Wethers and dry ewes to be turned off should be kept separate from the nursing-ewes; and if the flock is large enough to require a third division, it is customary to put the yearling and two-year-old ewes and wethers, and the old, feeble sheep together. It is better, in all cases, to separate the rams from all the other sheep at the time of shearing, and to inclose them in a field which is particularly well-fenced. If they are put even with wethers, they are more quarrelsome; and when cool nights arrive, will worry themselves and waste their flesh in constant efforts to ride the wethers.

The Merino ram, although a quiet animal compared with the common-woolled one, will be tempted to jump, by poor fences, or fences half the time down; and if he is once taught this trick, he becomes very troublesome as the rutting period approaches, unless hoppling, yoking, clogging, or poking is resorted to, either of which causes him to waste his strength, besides being the occasion of frequent accidents.

THE CROOK.

This convenient implement for catching sheep is of the form represented in the cut accompanying, of three-eighths inch round iron, drawn smaller toward the point, which is made safe by a knot. The other end is furnished with a socket, which receives a handle six or eight feet long.

[Ill.u.s.tration: SHEPHERD'S CROOK.]

In using it, the hind leg is hooked in from behind the sheep, and it fills up the narrow part beyond that point, while pa.s.sing along it until it reaches the loop, when the animal is caught by the hook, and when secured, its foot easily slips through the loop. Some caution is required in its use; for, should the animal give a sudden start forward to get away, the moment it feels the crook, the leg will be drawn forcibly through the narrow part, and strike the bone with such violence against the bend of the loop as to cause the animal considerable pain, and even occasion lameness for some days. On first embracing the leg, the crook should be drawn quickly toward the shepherd, so as to bring the bend of the loop against the leg as high up as the hock, before the sheep has time even to break off; and being secure, its struggles will cease the moment the hand seizes the leg.

No shepherd should be without this implement, as it saves much yarding and running, and leads to a prompt examination of every improper or suspicious appearance, and a seasonable application of remedy or preventive, which would often be deferred if the whole flock had to be driven to a distant yard to effect the catching of a single sheep.