Spring - Katahdin Hair Sheep International
Transcription
Spring - Katahdin Hair Sheep International
The Katahdin Hairald Quarterly Newsle�er of Katahdin Hair Sheep International Volume 26, No. 1 www.katahdins.org Spring 2014 Welcome New Members November 2013 February 15, 2014 New Youth Memberships Kaleb & Erin Rodgers of Action Farms ..............Vanzant, MO Tyler McAlister of O'Rays Farm.......................... Webster, FL Don & Carolyn Booth of Sand Ford Ranch.... Perkinston, MS Hannah Pirc of Good Shepherd Farm................ Meridian, ID Caleb Pirc of Good Shepherd Farm ................... Meridian, ID Ashea Nicole Graves of D & D Farms ...............Greenville, IL Cooper Gehring...............................................Columbia, MO Mitchell Woodlee of Woodlee Farms............ McMinnville, TN Jonathan N Wells of Wells Farm ...................Fort Meade, TX New Voting Memberships Stoney M Beavers, PhD of Covered Bridge Farm.................. ....................................................................... Hayden, AL William & Ellen Burton of Not Rub Farm ....... Blountsville, AL Ann Evans & James Jones of Enchantment Ranch............... .......................................................................Summit, AR Jonatan Chinolla............................................. Longmont, CO Pam Dodsworth of RockinDCross ................ Cedaredge, CO Rick & Cindy Gagnon of RNC Mouton Maison....................... .................................................................Indian Hills, CO Carla Roselli of Timberdoodle Farm................... Durham, CT Mirtha Guerra Aguirre of Green Acres Madison ..... Miami, FL Brandon Daugherty ......................................Rocky Face, GA Katherine & Aaron Davis of Highline Katahdin ....... Boone, IA Dean Brown.........................................................Hillsboro, IL Lee & Bethany Doyle of Hillside Farm.................Altamont, IL Alan VanDeWoestyne......................................... Geneseo, IL Mitchell Rader..................................................... Orlando, KY Melbern Wengerd ........................................ Munfordville, KY Rose Marie Hall of R & J Farm..................East Machias, ME Jon Heethuis of Deer Ridge Farm............................. Ada, MI Betty Landercasper of Grass Valley Farm...La Crescent, MN Judith M & Brian T Madsen of Straight River Lambing Company ..................................................... Faribault, MN Mark & Nancy Moulton of City View Farm.......Rush City, MN J. or R. Dillard of Dillard Farms ...........................Ironton, MO James M Spiers of Spiers Family Farm............. Wiggins, MS Tyler & Shannon Eaton of Blue Pepper Farm ........... Jay, NY Aden & MaryAnn Raber................................West Union, OH Carl Edwin Stevens of Pecan Tree............... Elmore City, OK Sarah Dille of Dille Run Farm .......................... Prosperity, PA Jeffrey C Jodon, Jr of Silverdale Farm ...................Julian, PA Stephanie & Jason McCauley of Shady Maple Farm ............. ...........................................................................Kane, PA Harm Trollip ............................................................Leola, SD Bill Bruning of Twin Cedars Farm ....................... Decatur, TN G Kent Chastain of Chastain Brothers Farm ....... Delano, TN John & Sandra Coward of Round House Farm ...................... .................................................................. Speedwell, TN Greg Needham of Thunder Road Katahdins .......................... .............................................................Maynardsville, TN Bill & Article Neese of JKA Farms...................Shelbyville, TN Ricky & Cindy Pardon of Pardon Farm..............Prospect, TN Matthew M Price of Square P Farm .............. Rogersville, TN Carolyn Barth of Full Expression Farm...............Leonard, TX Steve & Jala Runnels of Runnels Working Resort ................. .................................................................... Longview, TX Donya Tomlin of Viking Ranch...........................Rockwall, TX George Trapp of Come-By Farm of Texas..............Kemp, TX Nyle B Wells of Wells Farm ...........................Fort Meade, TX Pete & Kathy Gray of Gray Farm.....................Nokesville, VA Grace Langner of Pondering Oaks Farm .............. Cullen, VA Chuck & Lou Ann Neely of Riven Rock Farm....Monterey, VA David & Rhonda Rutherford of D&R Farming.... Lebanon, VA Gordon Taylor of Promised Land Farms..... Glade Spring, VA Glenda or Dick Cable of First Love Farm ........... Sequim, WA Mari Hunter of Nevrstop ................................... Republic, WA Jeff Fjeld & Renee Schwarzmiller of The Schwarzmiller Farm .................................................... Lake Stevens, WA Spring 2014 VOLUME 26 ISSUE 1 Jim Morgan & Teresa Maurer, Editors [email protected] Gail Hardy, Graphic Designer [email protected] KHSI Operations Jim Morgan and Teresa Maurer 479-444-8441 (ph/fx) • PO Box 778 Faye�eville, AR 72702-0778 [email protected] • www.katahdins.org KHSI Registry John Savage 1039 State Route 168, Darlington, PA 16115 724-843-2084 • [email protected] KHSI Board of Directors President - Lee Wright Vice President - Carl Ginapp Secretary - Roxanne Newon Treasurer - John Dyer Director - Maria Dosch Director - G.F. "Doc" Kennedy Director - Henry Shul� Advertising Display Ad Rates¬: Contact Operations for current rates and spec sheet. 479-444-8441, [email protected] Classifieds - Classified sale ads for Katahdin or Katahdin-cross sheep are free to all KHSI members in the Katahdin Hairald and at the KHSI website. For the Hairald, limit length to 40 words. Ad commitment for Spring 2014 Hairald due March 26, 2014. ¬rates for display advertising are subject to change upon approval of the Board of Directors. Ad design available from: Gail Hardy, Xpressions, Graphics Specialists 479-439-0726 • [email protected] www.xpressionsonline.us Inside This Issue Articles Directors Corner............................................................................................................2 The Five Point Check© System.....................................................................................2 Marketing Lamb Meat Part 1: From Field to Freezer.....................................................3 Evaluating Your Sheep Experts: Part One ....................................................................9 Breeding Sheep to be Shepherd Friendly: A Ewe Scorecard .....................................16 From the Feed Trough . . . TDN ..................................................................................22 The American Lamb Industry Roadmap Project .........................................................35 Regular Features Welcome New Members ..................................................................... inside front cover Katahdins and Katahdin Breeders In the News.............................................................6 Focus on Ewe-th .........................................................................................................14 Katahdin Recipe Forum...............................................................................................24 From the Resource Shelf.............................................................................................30 KHSI Member’s Guide.................................................................................................37 Classified Ads..............................................................................................................39 Advertisers Index (listed alphabetically) .............................................. inside back cover KHSI Business & Information 2014 Katahdin Youth Scholarship Application Information.......................................... 13 Working for Our Youth.................................................................................................14 KHSI to Change Registries on April 1st, 2014.............................................................19 Expo Hotel Rooms Limited—Reserve Yours Now or Sleep FAR Away! .....................33 Plan Now to Attend a Great Set of KHSI Expo Workshops on August 8 ...................34 2014 Katahdin Hairald Publications and Ad Deadlines ...............................................35 2014 KHSI Expo Requirements for Consignment .......................................................36 10th Annual KHSI Expo & Sale Schedule — Aug. 7-9, 2014 ........................ back cover Coming Events Hairald Calendar ...................................................................................................... 11 Indiana Katahdin Association Ewe Sale: April 26, 2014..............................................27 Katahdin Sale Round Up .............................................................................................29 Educational Events Calendar ......................................................................................36 Cover: "Katahdin Mama", 1st Place, Best Promotion Category, 2012 Photo Contest, Will Bowling, Kentucky Pictured Above: "Who Are You", 1st Place, Open Category, 2012 Photo Contest, Abby Mitchell, Tennessee ANOTHER RECORD YEAR AND A NEW REGISTRY Lee Wright, KHSI President Greetings KHSI Members, As I come to you in this edition, most of us are either well underway with the 2014 lambing season, or we’ll soon begin. New season means new life, and the excitement of starting over with a clean slate and trying new things we have learned or invested in during the previous year. We all have hopes of a better year than the last, no matter how good or bad the last one was. We can always dream and plan for a better future by using our previous endeavors, education, and even misfortunes as a solid pathway to success. Speaking of success, check out the KHSI Registry and Membership Activities chart below. My hat’s off to all of you for yet another record year. Seems like no matter how we raise or market our Katahdins, they continue to grow in popularity. My theory with just about any agricultural commodity is: productivity plus profitability usually tends to equal popularity. Hopefully our Katahdins will continue to maintain their productive and profitable traits for many years to come. We have a tremendously strong and growing membership, and I thank each and every one of you for all you do to continue to make KHSI, and Katahdin sheep so successful. In closing I want to inform you of a change that the Board of Directors has worked diligently on over the past few months. We have decided to make a change in Registries beginning April 1, 2014. At this time we will be having all of our KHSI Registry work done through accuRegister, based out of Darlington, PA. Before making the change we will have all of the necessary forms and procedures for submittal posted at the website. Feel free to contact KHSI Operations if you have questions regarding the process. In looking to the future of KHSI, the Board agreed that accuRegister seemed to offer more potential for growth and efficiency for all our registration needs. Until March 24, I encourage all of you needing to register and record sheep, to continue sending forms as usual to the KHSI Registry in Milo, IA. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Associated Registries and its staff for their years of hard work and dedicated service to KHSI and our members. I would also like to thank the KHSI Board and Operations for all of their work and time in making this transition happen. Until next time, Happy Lambing! I wish you all a bright and successful 2014. If there is anything either I or the Board of Directors can be of service with, please don’t hesitate to call or email. We are doing our best working for you and Katahdins everywhere! 2003-2013 KHSI REGISTRY & MEMBERSHIP ACTIVITIES AR YE 2013 & Y S N TR S S S O S S I N TI N N P P P EG ION IO S IO AL TRA TIO R HI T HI G SHI T T T R H S S A L L A S N C E A T O R I I R R A A F T G RD D T E U E TR TA E IS OT NS NS YO EMB OR RE CO TO EMB VO EMB T G A A C M RE RE TR M M TR RE 7401 937 4197 8338 12535 887 159 1046 2012 7213 918 4456 8131 12587 797 128 925 2011 6360 409 3912 6769 10681 630 79 709 2010 4496 257 2761 4753 7514 547 49 596 2009 4081 898 2584 4979 7563 473 21 494 2008 4401 669 2232 5070 7302 525 NA NA 2007 4343 743 2588 5086 7674 574 NA NA 2006 4935 1052 2844 5987 8831 535 NA NA 2005 3839 806 2718 4645 7363 529 NA NA 2004 3489 720 2232 4209 6441 530 NA NA 2003 3161 738 1711 3899 5610 514 NA NA The Five Point Check© System Editor’s Note: In the last issue of the Hairald, we promised an article with more detail on the Five Point Check system for determining if a sheep needs deworming. The editors are still looking for an author to write more on this subject. However, in the meantime if you have internet access, you can learn more by viewing this excellent slide show developed in 2013 by Susan Schoenian at this link: http://www.slideshare.net/schoenian/the-five-point-check If you don’t have a computer, go to your extension agent’s office or a public library and ask for help in accessing the slide show. PAGE 2 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 Marketing Lamb Meat Part 1: From Field to Freezer Kim Harrison, Harrison Valley Farms, Missouri 2013 has been the year of marketing for me! This fall, I embarked on a lamb meat marketing adventure and have lots of thoughts and ideas to share. We have been selling beef and lamb halves directly to our customers since 2005. We started direct marketing because we did not appreciate the sale barn experience, the lower prices our Polled Hereford feeders and finishers were bringing and the obvious lack of sheep handling skill at the closest market for our feeder lambs. In 2009 we started individually packaging our beef and selling it at farmers’ markets, while still selling beef and lamb halves. Then this past October in addition to selling our beef by the package, we added packaged lamb meat to our product offerings. We also added online purchasing options from our web site www.harrisonvalleyfarms.com, as well as placing our meat products in local mid-Missouri restaurants, big box grocery stores and smaller natural food markets. I have learned a lot about the entire process of farm to store shelf or restaurant kitchen. I thought I was a thorough and methodical planner, but the more I delve into this marketing effort, the more I realize I don’t know and didn’t plan for. But, I should have known more and you should too. Even if your focus is raising and selling the best foundation breeding stock possible supported by excellent flock management practices, you should be aware of the process of getting a lamb rib chop onto the plate of a restaurant customer, a package of frozen ground lamb onto the shelf of a grocery store, or a frozen crown rib roast shipped to Boston. I recently read the American Lamb Board’s 2013 Industry Report, which indicates both positive and negative industry findings, such as the decline of U.S. Lamb Meat consumption from close to 5 pounds per capita in the mid-1940’s to less than a half pound in 2012. Niche-market participants comment that the demand of their product outstrips their supply and there is little price sensitivity. I believe MKHSA and KHSI members should more ag- gressively educate ourselves about the farm to plate process, no matter what your interest or focus is. The better you understand the entire process, the better you can contribute to this process by providing your customers with what they need or want: whether it is a ewe that lambs easily producing stock that gains rapidly and efficiently on forage, or a rib chop that a chef uses for a $26.00 per entrée menu item. To stay organized, I’ll categorize my thoughts for Part 1 into the following areas: carcass, processing, and storage. I have written about marketing and distribution in Part 2, which will be published in the next Hairald issue. The Lamb Carcass: • What is the desired live weight of the finished lambs and when does the lamb crop need to hit this mark? My target live weight of our live intact ram lambs is 110 – 120 pounds because of the size of cuts it provides. Our packaged lamb needs to be of a size that looks like CONTINUED ON PAGE 4 Buy breeding stock from breeders raising the type of animals you want to produce Registered ram and ewe lambs available in early July. Always Open for Visitors All of the butcher lambs we produce are sold to high end restaurants and consumers in the Kansas City market through a direct marketer. Lynn & Donna Fahrmeier 13305 Flournoy School Road Wellington, MO 64097 816-517-5049 • [email protected] SPRING 2014 We don’t chase fads, we pursue what the consumer wants THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 3 MARKETING LAMB MEAT PART 1, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3 it is enough to eat, but not too big/ heavy so that the price per package discourages a purchase. • Are all lambs processed at once, or based on storage capacity, are lambs divided into processing groups based on when the target weight will be reached? We process in groups of 20 based on processor and storage capacity, as well as markets used and customer purchase preferences based on seasonal cooking desires. It is more efficient in terms of transportation costs to haul 20 rather than 5 lambs to the processor and then return to pick up the processed meat. • What is the target finished package weight of a lamb for my desired profit margins? Our goals are to have package meat of a 110 lb lamb weigh 39 – 40 pounds. This is different from a hanging weight percentage and doesn’t include some of the fat and bone trim that is tossed. So, if a ewe twins, ideally we have 80 pounds each year of finished and packaged lamb meat to pay for all production costs and contribution toward profit margin. Production ewes that don’t consistently produce this and rams that don’t consistently support this do not spend a lot of time on our farm. • Do you know the meat cuts on a typical (not customized for a particular customer or restaurant) carcass and how many of each cut? This information is very important for pricing and profit margin determination. For us this might include: o 2 boneless leg of lamb roasts o 3 shoulder steak packages/2 steaks per package, 1” thick o 4 sirloin chop packages/2 chops per package, 1” thick o 6 rib chop packages/2 chops per package, 1” thick, o 7 loin chop packages/2 chops per package, 1” thick o 15 1 lb. packages of ground lamb Note: Some processors will not accept 2 chops per package and the compromise can be four. Boneless cuts such as a boneless leg need a higher price since the leg bone is not being sold and bone is 25-35% of the weight of the leg. PAGE 4 Processing: • What type of processing plant needs to be used? A state or federal inspected facility? All states have federally inspected plants. Twenty-seven states have both federal and state inspected processing. To legally sell by the cut, the meat needs to be inspected, packaged and labeled in a facility with inspection. • If selling lamb by the half or whole, a marketer can use a facility that does not have a meat inspector. However, the person buying your lamb has to officially own the lamb prior to processing and the buyer should pay the processor and not you for the processing. It is OK to transport the lamb to the processor for the buyer since most will not have a truck or trailer to do this. • Processing lamb is more labor intensive than beef or pork. Processors not used to working with direct marketers and especially lamb marketers may need some TLC. They may label leg steaks as round steaks and think they need tenderizing like beef round steaks. • There are some retail opportunities that only require a state inspected facility. But there are also retail chains that require a federally inspected meat processing facility be used due to corporate policy. Typically processing costs are less at a state inspected facility. Using a state inspected facility may limit which retailers can carry your products. We use a state inspected processing plant. • What is the capacity of the processing plant selected? What time in the morning do you need to have the sheep there? Do they charge extra to handle sheep with “C” coats? The processor we use has a capacity of 20 head, we have to be ready to unload promptly at 7:30 AM on the scheduled day and there is an extra charge for working with sheep that have “excessive wool”, which includes animals with “C” coats. • Small processors may not process sheep during months that fair animals or deer are processed. This will impact when the finish- • • • • • • ing lambs need to hit their target weight. The processing date will affect production scheduling for the entire year, including breeding time period, ideal lambing period, weaning dates and when you’ll evaluate the need for supplementation to insure the target live weight is reached. We process from October through December. We lamb in early April. We need ewes that are good milk producers. And we need lambs that are highly efficient on spring and summer forage. We do not have much room for error. Storage: How much lamb meat will fit in a 24.9 cubic foot freezer? It should hold packaged lamb meat from 20 lamb carcasses with a hanging weight of 60 lbs. cut typically, like above. So, if you only process one or two times per year and want to have lamb meat to sell all year round to your customers, you’ll need to determine how many freezers you’ll need. Perhaps a walk-in freezer makes more sense (cents too!). We have found that processors usually do not “age” lamb, so the packaged meat will be ready for us to pick up, inventory, and put into your freezers just a couple of days after processing. Our freezer space must be ready! Hanging very lean grass fed lambs can result in evaporation. If 10% of the hanging weight evaporates in the cooler before packaging, your price per pound needs to increase by 10%. The temperature and humidity of the "hanging" cooler along with number of days of hanging all affect tenderness and dehydration of the meat. Do you have a backup plan for keeping your meat frozen should you lose electricity? Winter months can bring weather-related electricity loses that last for several days. Do you have a generator that can provide the needed electricity? Does your state, county or city health department have rules for the storage of meat? Typically, it is illegal to store product not available for future sale in the same freezer as THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG CONTINUED ON PAGE 6 SPRING 2014 A+ Stud DOC P185 A maternal half brother to "First Ever" out of ADS 0105, 2nd Place Fall Ram at Louisville. You will see him again. POY 44 DOC P297 Champion Ram at Louisville 2013, a May 25th yearling whose twin sister was second to champion ewe in class. He was with 160 ewes prior to the show and an additional 60 after the show. Visit with us at the major shows and sales this year. We and our sheep will be there. HLB 1138 and MVF 6931 are no longer with us, but their sons and daughters are very much so. Midwest Sale Champion Ram 2011, sire of 2012 Champion Ewe at Louisville ADS 0105 Our choice of the ram lambs at the 2011 Expo held in Pipestone Pipestone Katahdins G.F. & Deb Kennedy, and Gary Gorter Pipestone, MN • 507-215-0487 • [email protected] SPRING 2014 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 5 Katahdins and Katahdin Breeders In the News Editor’s Note: If you, your sheep or your farm have been featured in a news story, let us know at [email protected] or send the article to us at KHSI, PO Box 778, Fayetteville AR 72702. Ron Prokop and Michael Oglesby. Alabama. On October 14, 2013 Michael Oglesby gave a presentation to a group of lamb producers and to 41 members of the culinary class chapter at the Jefferson State Community College in Birmingham, Alabama. Ron Prokop (from Florida) had been in touch with Rae Maestas of the American Lamb Board to arrange for a PowerPoint presentation provided by the Lamb Board to Michael Oglesby. Ron Prokop of R & R Katahdin Ranch provided the natural all grass fed ground lamb for the meeting. Handouts with information on the different lamb cuts and preparation tips were provided by the American Lamb Board. There were also videos provided covering the American Lamb Industry. The students planned to use the ground lamb to enter the American lamb recipe contest sponsored by the America Lamb Board. https://www.americanlamb.com/ PAGE 6 Bob Nusbaum, Wisconsin. Bob, the lambs at birth and then sell them a KHSI member, recently gave a pre- for breeding stock or to a lamb buyer. sentation at the Sioux Falls Organic It has taken them several years, but Agriculture Conference. A story about they have selected for ewes who lamb the presentation was titled: Producer on pasture without assistance, do not Touts ‘one-touch’ management at need foot trimming, deworming and organic ag gathering. You can access do not require grain prior to lambing the presentation at http://www.tristate or during lactation. They are promotneighbor.com, type the word "katah- ing these easy care sheep for beef cattle din" in the search bar, and scroll to the producers. story. Bob and his wife Amanda tag MARKETING LAMB MEAT PART 1, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4 the lamb meat for sale. Regulations for storing and transporting frozen meat are typically much easier to meet than selling fresh. We tell our customers that our meat is frozen very fresh. Meat in the fresh meat case in a retail store may be several weeks old or stored frozen and then thawed for display. In Summary: Katahdin breeders really need to be well-educated on the ever-changing lamb meat markets and all of the processes that take place to make eating the lamb meat we so carefully produce a sought-after and enjoyable experience. By adding this knowledge to what we’re learning and practicing on good genetics, recordkeeping, breeding soundness exams, parasite control, forage management, nutritional requirements, showing and/or selling registered animals, predator control with guardian animals, and fencing options, I think we’ll continue to see strong growth in the Katahdin breed numbers. We need to keep in mind that the Katahdins are a meat-breed sheep. We are producing lamb meat for the American plate! Editor’s Note: This is adapted from Kim’s article in the Midwest Katahdin Hair Sheep Association Newsletter. THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 BIG WIN AGAIN at Louisville! Prairie Lane Farm is proud to be part of the Katahdin Show at NAILE and winner of the PREMIER EXHIBITOR AWARD for the second consecutive year! 1st Place Flock & Premier Exhibitor Award Junior Champion Ram 1st Place Early Junior Ram Lamb and sired by the 2013 NAILE Grand Champion Ram, who sold to Ed Julian, OH last year. Thanks to Frankie Stiefel, AL for his private purchase after the show! Reserve Junior Champion Ram 1st Place February Ram Lamb Thank you to Paul Howard for his private purchase. Thanks to All Our 2013 Buyers! Grand Champion Ram at Louisville 2013, and Reserve Grand Champion Ram in 2012. Thank you to Ed Julian for the purchase of CENTRALIA. 1st Pair of Ewe Lambs (Left) Reserve Junior Champion Ewe, 1st Place February Ewe Lamb (Right) 2nd Place January Ewe Lamb Stop by to see our Katahdins! ITE ! Henry Shultz & Family E BS W R U 6219 Audrain Road 125 • Centralia, MO 65240 • 573-682-7127 O SEE www.prairielanefarm.net or contact Sarah & Doug at 573-819-0806 • [email protected] SPRING 2014 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 7 D & J SMITH KATAHDINS D A Y T A i n E R L G o u a i s d v a ille! H e W Grand Champion Ewe 2013 North American International Livestock Exposition st 1 Place March Ewe Lamb SCD 2850 SCD 2754 1st Place January Ewe Lamb 2013 NAILE SCD 2780 2nd Place February Ewe Lamb 2013 NAILE ys a w l A s Visitor PAGE 8 e! m o c l e W Taking consignments to: • “Katahdin All-Female Sale”, Greenfield, IN • “Great Lakes Katahdin Sale”, Wooster, OH • “Midwest Stud Ram Sale”, Sedalia, MO • “The Katahdin Expo” in Hastings, NE Sheep also available at the farm David & Jane Smith 3985 N 300 W, Earl Park, IN 47942 219-474-3216 • [email protected] THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SCD SPRING 2014 Evaluating Your Sheep Experts: Part One James Morgan, Arkansas Fifteen years ago, shortly after we started raising sheep, I participated in a 14 week Management Intensive Grazing (rotational) course. One of the two main instructors, in response to almost every question, would start his trademark exasperating grin under his big gray cowboy-style mustache and ornery forehead hair curl and say, “It depends”. I still picture him today. At the time, I found that answer to often be frustrating and sometimes considered it the lazy answer. The more that I have learned about livestock production and the more questions that I answer, I realize that “It depends” is the best starting phrase for answers to many farming and ranching questions. In fact, if your sheep expert doesn’t answer your question with “It depends”, think twice before taking the advice and consider finding a new expert. Before going on with some “it depends” examples, let’s consider other HLB ics et Gen potential responses that should raise red or yellow flags before you accept the expertise. With the decreasing numbers of sheep extension agents, sheep research professors and DVMs who have experience with sheep, our options to find experts are becoming more limited. With the advent of the Internet, cell phones, and Facebook®, sheep producers can obtain “expert” answers from across the country or around the world in seconds rather than dealing with mail or traveling by horse like people did 120 years ago. It is great to have this instant access, but we do need to exercise care. Also, note that it is human nature to accept simple, definitive answers. Our whole sensory system and brain circuits are constructed to take complex information from the environment and to reduce it to simpler information that we can use. Our eyes have millions of photoreceptors and our nervous system reduce this to a single picture. Similarly, it is human nature to want to accept an expert who answers most questions with simple, authoritative one-size-fits-all responses. The novice sheep producer is most prone to accept the advice of the dogmatic expert. FLAGS OF CAUTION WHEN EVALUATING YOUR EXPERT: SOME EXAMPLES 1. If the answer to your question is not “It depends”. Yellow Flag. Most situations are complex and probably don’t have a simple answer. Evaluate the question and whether it is complex. Decide if you need to wave the yellow flag (later in the article, some of these questions will be explored). 2. “I tried this on one animal with those symptoms and she did much better. So, I showed that it works.” RED Flag. Many animals will get better no matter what we do or what a vet prescribes or a shepherd does. The “expert” may be correct, but the red CONTINUED ON PAGE 10 E G L E B NETICS A T C I D E PR We started our Katahdin flock, 10 years ago this July. Old Man was one of the biggest, heaviest muscle & biggest boned rams we had access to. Gaylin Ratliff owned Old Man and just happens he was RR. We have used 2 inbred sons (Big-un & Tex) and 4 other sons we raised (Nitro-Freckles-Grizzly & 1343). Most of our herd sires have Old Man in their pedigree, more than once. Herd sires now in use are great-grandsons & great-great-grandsons. With every generation being selected for the desired traits I require, making the desired traits even stronger makes our Katahdins more predicable. So if you need Katahdins that will breed true, come and visit our farm and see the results. All our 2014 Registered Ewe lambs are reserved. All Sheep RR Big-Un Lazy B Livestock, LLC All Sheep Originated from Scrapie Free Flock Howard & Lavonne Brown 8362NS 3550 Rd. • Prague, OK 74864 • 405-567-2559 • [email protected] www.lazybkatahdins.com SPRING 2014 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 9 EVALUATING YOUR SHEEP EXPERTS: PART ONE, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9 flag of caution should be waved. “One animal” is typical of not using a good evaluation process which should involve testing multiple if not hundreds of animals. Be cautious. 3. “Since I switched my whole flock to practice “X”, I no longer have problems.” RED Flag. E.g. this could be changing a mineral and not having to deworm. Without a controlled experiment it is really hard to tell. The person may be right, but the flag of caution should fly. 4. “Last year, I gave three animals this treatment and three animals without and the treatment worked.” Yellow Flag. Three animals are not enough, but it’s a start. In human health, drug tests usually require thousands of individuals. Many of the failed medical innovations are due to having based findings on a thousand patients rather than 10,000. Also, were the two treatment groups treated the same? If in different pens or pastures, they are not the same. Ask your questions! Is your farm or management system similar? E.g. An “expert” could say that all sheep need extra selenium supplementation. It depends on your forage and soil. 5. Starting an answer with a truth or a something that appears to make common sense and then expanding. For example, correlating a physical external character with an internal hormone condition or performance character. Red & Yellow Flags. Some have advocated that shiny hair above the thyroid or pancreas indicates that those glands are working well. It seems to make common sense, but there isn’t a physiological basis and these are red flags. Green Flag. However, there are some external characters that do indicate specific or general conditions. Shiny hair overall and good body condition indicate health. Bottle jaw is a very good indicator that almost always denotes severe anemia caused by barber pole worms or liver flukes. Green Flag. Drooping ears, not eating tasty quality forage, hay or grain, grinding teeth, standing with their head into a tree and/or a sheep moving away from the rest of the flock are PAGE 10 general symptoms of something not right. Symptom is not specific to an individual condition. Be careful of an initial small truth or something that appears to make common sense that is used to justify the opinion of the expert. 6. Is the expert trying to sell a technique or product or their sheep? Red or Yellow Flag. Just be skeptical. 7. Alternative treatment for the sake of alternative treatment. Or antiuniversity, anti- extension or antiintellectual. “The experts told me to do this, but I tried this personal remedy on one animal and it did better.” Yellow flag, maybe Red Flag. We farmers and ranchers have been led astray by the experts a few times over the years. It is human nature to often go with the underdog (common theme of popular movies). It is human nature to go with the farmer who didn’t take the extension agent’s advice and was right. But alternative treatments need to be treated with the same rigor of evaluation as scientific studies. Certain publications and forums are known for advocating alternative for the sake of alternative or anti-extension. Agriculture needs these publications and these individuals that are “thinking outside the box”, but we as producers need to adopt with caution, and use the yellow flag. In the next section of this article, I will provide a few common questions that are definitive and several that have as part of the answer “it depends”. QUESTIONS IN WHICH THE BEST ANSWER STARTS WITH - “IT DEPENDS” 1. Do sheep have to have a barn (or shade)? 2. Do you have to have lambs that are at least 60 lbs at 60 days? 3. Do I have to supplement my ewes before lambing and/or during lactation? 4. Are bigger sheep better? 5. Should I wean my lambs at 60 days of age? (see Fall 2013 Hairald, page 4 for an article that discusses this question in more depth) 6. Are sheep that are RR at codon 171 better than sheep that are not RR? 7. When should my flock lamb? 8. Which dewormer (anthelmintic) is best? 9. How many ewes can I run per acre? 10. Will rotational grazing help with parasite control? In this article, there isn’t enough room to answer each of the above questions. In all of the above questions, the “expert” and the “questioner” need to know more about the management system, environment, markets for the flock, flock health, flock history, nutritional program and/or flock goals before providing an answer. The focus of this article is not to answer all of these questions, but to encourage all of us to be critical thinkers and not pick the experts who have a simple and/or definitive answer to a question that requires an "It depends on your system" answer. “Do sheep have to have a barn?” We could spend three whole pages discussing this question, going through each aspect of when a barn is needed and when it is not necessary and even when it creates problems. The discussion might include: when it pays to build a barn, when it causes problems and costs the producer money, and when the answer should be “if you have a barn, you would be much farther ahead to lock the barn door and throw away the key (maybe just hide it)”. Some of it depends on your weather, predation risk, time of the year lambing is, feed resources, pasture fertility. “Are bigger sheep better?” It depends on your market. It also depends on your feed resources and their costs. If your main market is lambs being sold into the non-traditional (ethnic market) or if you are selling commercial ewes to a producer that sells 60-80 pound lambs for that market, a 125140 pound ewe is plenty large. A big ewe is inefficient for producing lambs of that smaller size. It is analogous to buying a two ton 4x4 diesel truck when the most power you ever need is to pull a small utility trailer with 5 head of sheep. You spend a lot more on diesel than you need to. A larger ewe will eat a lot more, providing a lot more growing power in the lamb that may not needed in the market you are trying to serve. THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG CONTINUED ON PAGE 13 SPRING 2014 Hairald Calendar KHSI periodically posts information on sheep sales and sheep events as a public service. Posting sale and event information does not imply endorsement or verification of the claims of any sale or event. Sales and events posted are not sanctioned by KHSI unless otherwise noted. Contact the KHSI Operations Office to ask for your event or sale to be posted. 479-444-8441 or [email protected]. Have You Paid Your 2014 Dues? Send them ASAP to KHSI Operations, PO Box 778, Fayetteville, AR 72702. **April 1, 2014. Starting April 1: New Registry Address. Send registry work to our Registry in Pennsylvania. See articles on pgs. 19, 20 and 21 for more info. May 3-4, 2014. Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival. Howard County Fairgrounds, West Friendship, Maryland, Info: www.sheepandwool.org May 24-25, 2014. Great Lakes Show and Sale. Wayne County Fairgrounds, Wooster Ohio. Show on the 24th at 9:00 AM. Contact Banner Sale Management at 309-785-5058 or go to www.bannermagazine.com. June 14, 2014. 5th Annual Midwest Junior Preview Show. Missouri State Fairgrounds, Sedalia, MO. Contact Kate Lambert at [email protected] or 660-541-0468 www.midwestjuniorpreviewshow.com/ June 23, 2014. Leroy Boyd Memorial Junior Youth Show. Missouri State Fairgrounds, Sedalia, MO. Katahdin only show. Contact Henry & Becky Shultz for more information. 573-682-5481 or [email protected]. June 23-25, 2014. Midwest Stud Ram Show and Sale. Missouri State Fairgrounds, Sedalia, MO. Katahdins show on the 23rd and sell on the 25th. Event lasts from 23-28th with other breeds showing and selling throughout the week. **August 7-9, 2014. Tenth Annual Katahdin Hair Sheep International Expo. Annual KHSI Educational Workshop, Membership Meeting and KHSI National Sale. At USDA MARC, Clay Center, Nebraska and Adams County Fairgrounds in Hastings, Nebraska. **- Indicates there is an article with more information in this issue of the Hairald. NOTE: Sales are listed in the Sale Roundup Feature elsewhere in this issue. TMD "Monty" ADS 0129 “Thank You” to all our 2013 buyers. Our breeding program is based on a solid foundation of these Outstanding Rams & our Excellent Ewes, who are heavy milking & great mothers. We produce lambs that are fast growing, heavy muscled, with good bone & correct conformation. TMD 10-38 Enrolled in LambPlan We will have ram lambs & ewe lambs available after weaning. "Buckeye" BAG 1739 We can arrange transportation to the Midwest Stud Ram sale in Sedalia, Mo in June or the KHSI Expo in August. “Bam” TMD 1315 Tom & Maria Dosch PO Box 517 • Frederick, SD 57441 605-329-7928 • 605-329-2478 • [email protected] • www.doschkatahdins.com SPRING 2014 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 11 Rack of Lamb Corral Registered Katahdin Hair Sheep TRB Our Stud Rams Diesel Today's News Old Money “Diesel” was the 2012 Grand Champion ram. We purchased him at the 2012 Midwest Stud Ram Sale from Buckeye Acres G enetics for $3300.00. We will be breeding several of his daughters this fall to Today’s News, our 2013 Grand Champion Ram. “Today’s News” was the 2013 Grand Champion ram. We purchased him at the 2013 Midwest Stud Ram Sale from Prairie Lane Farms for $2,000.00. He was also the Reserve Junior Champion Ram at NAILE. “Old Money” TRB140 Sire: “Diesel” Dam: “Glimmer”. Powerful Ram Lamb. We want to give a big Thank You to Kevin and Toni Beatty of MO. for purchasing him at the 2013 Midwest Stud Ram Sale. Our Ewes Hemi Glimmer Solid Dream “Hemi” was the Grand Champion ewe with 56 ewes placing behind her. She’s the real deal. We purchased her at the 2012 Mid West Stud Ram Sale. We bred her to our 2012 Grand Champion Ram “Diesel” She lambed January 10th, 2014 (twins). “Glimmer” is a beautiful ewe. She was 1st yearling ewe with 54 ewes placing behind her. We purchased her at the 2012 Mid West Stud Ram Sale. Her son and daughter did extremely well in the sale ring at the 2013 Mid West Stud Ram Sale. We bred her to our 2012 Grand Champion Ram “Diesel” She lambed January 2nd, 2014 (triplets). Rising Star Fine Wine “Solid Dream” A super ewe. She was 2nd Late Spring Ewe Lamb. We purchased her at the 2013 Midwest Stud Ram Sale. She topped the market in the sale ring. We will be breeding her this fall to our 2012 Grand Champion Ram “Diesel” “Rising Star” TRB137 Sire: “Diesel” . We want to give a big Thank You to Kevin and Toni Beatty of MO. for purchasing her at the 2013 Midwest Stud Ram Sale. “Fine Wine” TRB141 Sire: “Diesel” Dam: “Glimmer” We want to give a big Thank You to Joyce Kadel of IL. for purchasing her at the 2013 Midwest Stud Ram Sale. “Elegance” (not pictured) is everything you could ask for in a ewe. She is correct from top to bottom. She was 1st yearling ewe with 78 ewes placing behind her. We purchased her at the 2013 Mid West Stud Ram Sale. We bred her to our 2012 Grand Champion Ram “Diesel” She lambed January 9th, 2014 (twins). Our Flock is 100% RR & 100% Proven Show Ring Winners Rack of Lamb Corral TRB See You in Owners/Operators Todd and Renee Bauer 3020 Hwy 56 • Windom, KS 67491- 620-489-6240 or 620-245-1884 Sedalia! [email protected] • Website: www.rackoflambcorral.com PAGE 12 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 2014 Katahdin Youth Scholarship Application Information KHSI announces that applications for the 3rd Annual Katahdin Youth Scholarships Program will open on April 15, 2014. Two Katahdin Youth Scholarships will be awarded this summer. Applications are due on June 30, 2014. KHSI is continuing its scholarship program in 2014 for youth entering college or already in college or in graduate school. Two $500 scholarships will be awarded to youth for use at any US college or university. On April 15, applications will be available at the KHSI Website: www.katahdins.org Completed applications and reference letters must be received by June 30, 2014 to be considered for this year’s competition. Those without internet access can call KHSI Operations at 479-444-8441 to request application materials to be postal mailed. Eligibility: the applicant must be a youth member of KHSI, or their im- mediate family must have a current KHSI membership. Applicant must be under 21 as of January 1, 2014 or under age 26 if applying for graduate school and must have been involved with Katahdin sheep for at least 1 year. For questions about the scholarship, or to request application materials, please call KHSI at 479-444-8441, visit the KHSI website www.katahdins.org or email [email protected]. EVALUATING YOUR SHEEP EXPERTS: PART ONE, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10 QUESTIONS IN WHICH THE ANSWER IS DEFINITIVE 1. Are all Katahdins resistant to parasites?.......................................... No. 2. I have Katahdins and I hear they are more resistant, so I won’t have to deworm. Right? ............Wrong. 3. Can Katahdins get contagious hoof rot? ............................................Yes. SUMMARY So the next time you receive or read some advice, evaluate it with some questions. Did the expert answer with a) It depends, b) I tried this on one animal, c) last year I switched my flock to this practice and haven’t had any problems, d) I tried this on a few animals and compared to others, e) did the expert or the answer reel me in by starting with a bit of truth or apparent common sense which lowered my skepticism and led me on to something that isn’t true? f) playing on our innate wish to support the underdog who did something not advocated by the experts, and/or g) alternative for the sake of alternative. All these experts can be listened to and may have good advice, but it is important to think through their answers. In the next issue of the Hairald, part 2 of Evaluating Sheep Experts will cover finding trusted sources. Author’s Note: The author appreciates the valuable advice he received while developing this article. Have You Paid Your Dues? If not, this is your LAST ISSUE. SPRING 2014 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 13 Focus on Ewe-th THE GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING by Brooke R. Kern, Montana Youth Member It was a cold, windy day in the middle of October 2007. My parents and I had made the drive up from Absarokee to Livingston, Montana, in order to buy two registered Katahdin sheep to start my 4-H breeding sheep project. When we arrived at Pinto Ranch, Kindra Harlow had already selected two bred ewes for me and a surprise third ewe, unregistered and aged seven years, who would be a gift. My parents owned a flock of Columbia ewes, which they usually culled at six or seven, when the ewes stopped being productive. However, we were happy to keep the seven year old ewe, who Kindra had named Rosa, for at least one year to see if she’d lamb. Rosa has lambed every year since I received her. This March, at the age of thirteen, she produced a beautiful set of twins. We kept her separate from the younger ewes in the early spring so she and her lambs could receive extra feed until they could be turned out on grass. They all thrived. Over the years she has had some singles, some twins, and one set of triplets, and all her lambs have been vigorous and healthy. I’ve sold a couple of her ram lambs and kept a few of the ewe lambs. She’s a wonderful hardy ewe, a great example of the amazing Katahdin breed, and one of the most wonderful gifts I’ve received. READY FOR MORE! by Natalie Hodgman, Maine Many thanks to Brooke for sending me her article and Rosa’s picture. If you are a youth and you have something you would be willing to share, please send it! Send me pictures or a story about: - Your 4H, FFA, or farming accomplishments! - Your sheep, farm, or herding dogs, whatever! Send to natalie.hodgman12@ gmail.com Please include your name, age, where you live, what you did and a caption for your picture! Working for Our Youth By Henry Shultz Youth Committee Chairperson On behalf of the Youth Committee, I would like to thank all the Katahdin breeders who have contributed so far to the youth fund for scholarships and premiums. Over the last three years we have seen KHSI youth membership triple! This can be attributed to breeders, like yourself, who are willing to support the youth through contributions and volunteering your time. Youth are the future of not only our breed but the agriculture industry. When my girls were growing up, we found they liked to be involved in activities with other kids. The friendships & knowledge they gained were timeless. The Youth Committee strives to provide activities and projects for Katahdin juniors that will be both educational and fun. In its third year, the scholarship program is one we hope continues to grow. Each year we award two $500 scholarships to graduating high school seniors who have been involved with Katahdin sheep. More information about the 2014 scholarships can be PAGE 14 found in the article on page 13. Application deadline is June 30, 2014. To honor an active Katahdin breeder, the Leroy Boyd Memorial Show was started in conjunction with the Midwest Stud Ram Sale at Sedalia, Missouri. Junior Katahdin breeders can enjoy a week showing their animals and meeting others who share a passion for the breed. This show will be held on Monday June 23. Another event, the Midwest Junior Preview Show, added a Katahdin breed for the last two years and will be held June 14, also at Sedalia. This show hosts educational workshops as well as a junior show. Both of these events have seen Katahdin numbers double the last two years and I believe they will continue to grow. As these events are not solely Katahdin events, other youth are being exposed to Katahdins and seeing the benefits of the breed. The Youth Committee is excited to announce that Katahdins will be exhibited at the Eastern States Exposition in Massachusetts, also called the Big E, during both the junior and open shows. This will allow more exposure for Katahdins to kids on the East Coast. Watch your Katahdin Hairald for information on future projects that are in the works. The Hairald continues to host a Youth Page, Focus on EWETH, in each issue. Thank you to Natalie Hodgman, from Maine, for putting this page together. I would also like to thank Petra Carlson & Bob Shauck for all of the great photos they took at events this year. Seeing the youth involvement grow makes me even more excited about our industry! This bright future is thanks to the generous donations that have been made to the youth fund. KHSI accepts donations at dues renewal time and throughout the year for the youth funds—just send your check to KHSI, Attn: Youth Fund, PO Box 778, Fayetteville AR 72702 and indicate whether you wish to donate to scholarships, premiums or both. Thank you for giving us the privilege to serve on the Youth Committee and develop these projects. Editors Note. The youth committee consists of Chair Henry Shultz (MO), Kenneth Jessee (VA), John Dyer (IN), Howard Brown (OK), Dr. Bruce Shanks (MO) THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 Flock Prefix: BIR BIRCH CREEK FARMS Registered Katahdin Breeding Stock 100% Registered Katahdin Breeding Ewes Taking Orders for Spring 2014 Lambs Sired by: BAG 1725, "Diesel" Selected for: ¬ Performance on Forage ¬ Performance in the Show Ring ¬ Parasite Resistance ¬ Prolificacy Bred by Buckeye Acres Genetics, "Diesel" was Grand Champion high-selling ram at the 2012 Midwest Stud Ram Sale, selling for $3,300. SHU 3348, "Today's News" Bred by Prairie Lane Farm, "Today's News" was Grand Champion ram at the 2013 Midwest Stud Ram Sale, selling for $2,000. Also Reserve Junior Champion Ram at NAILE in 2013. W11 Flock Prefix: BIR Birch Creek Farms Brad, Tracy, Ben, & Kristi Williams Atoka, Oklahoma (580) 889-1646 • [email protected] SPRING 2014 Bred by Up Hill Ranch, Sired by MVF 6108 "Bojangles", and out of the 2010 Reserve Grand Champion ewe at the 2010 Midwest Stud Ram Sale. W11 is an RR Triplet half brother to POY 44, the Grand Champion high-selling ram at the 2011 Midwest Stud Ram Sale. THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 15 Breeding Sheep to be Shepherd Friendly: A Ewe Scorecard By Tom Settlemire, Brunswick, Maine Editor’s note: Tom Settlemire is Professor Emeritus of Bowdoin College, a Katahdin sheep producer, and a long time KHSI member. This article was first published in the Farming magazine. Sheep are amazing animals that can take nutrient sources not usable by man such as grass and other forage material and convert these sources into highly valued protein both as meat and fiber. But just like any form of biology, sheep have a wide range of genetic potential. As producers we need to measure and use these genetic variations to select for animals that on our particular farm will produce rapid growing, high quality offspring that will make our farming enterprise profitable and more enjoyable. There are important tools available to help all of us sheep farmers select animals that have the genetic potential to produce multiple births, fast growing heavy muscled lambs, and high quality wool under our specific farming conditions. The National Sheep Improvement Program (NSIP) with submission to LambPlan is a tool that is invaluable in helping us select sheep with the production potential we need. In addition to birth rate, growth rate and important carcass characteristics, I have found that traits important to making life easier at lambing time have a strong genetic connection. Such characteristics as ease of lambing, mothering ability and milk at lambing time have a genetic basis we can use to not only make life with our sheep easier and more enjoyable but have a clear connection to profitability. To measure these three important “lambing barn” characteristics over 30 years ago, I created a “Ewe Lambing Scorecard”. The purpose was to develop a system that would identify those ewes that lambed easily, went right to work as good mothers to clean and care for their new arrivals and had a good milk supply at the ready to feed their offspring. Some of the most frustrating times for sheep producers at lambing time are needing to work with ewes that don’t dilate, that give birth but think their job is over and walk away from their lambs, or that give birth to a beautiful set of twins but have no PAGE 16 milk at time of lambing to feed their new arrivals. I know these traits have influence on the factors used in production record systems but I have found scoring the above three traits at lambing time to be very useful and makes life at lambing time much less stressful for all involved. In the 1980’s the following protocol was put together. I began using the scorecard as one tool in selecting breeding stock. In 2005, the sheep flock was moved when I sold my farm to Crystal Spring Farm, Brunswick, Maine. Seth Kroeck, the farmer at Crystal Spring Community Farm, and I began together to manage Crystal Spring Katahdins. The scorecard is used to rate every ewe at lambing. Let me explain. I suspect that many of us at lambing time have had the experience of having a ewe come into labor, but she didn’t dilate and the birth of the lamb(s) only happened (or didn’t) because we were there and became the “midwife”. And then to top it off, after the lambs were born the ewe said, “hey, my job is done, I really don’t want to be a mother” – and she ignored the new lambs. So we begin the job of convincing her to take her responsibilities seriously. Then to add insult to injury, she didn’t have any milk. Now I agree that maybe each of our problem ewes don’t have all these faults, but all too often in the flock of sheep our family had back in the early ‘80’s one or more of the above happened with a ewe at lambing time. I decided it was time to say enough is enough and I don’t want to deal with three big problems at lambing time: ewes that had difficulty lambing, or were poor mothers and/or at the time they lambed they had no milk. So how to move forward? Records are a major help and I wanted a simple, user-friendly scorecard for each ewe at lambing time and then wanted to use that information as a tool in selecting breeding stock. The theory behind all this is that there is a genetic base to ease of lambing, mothering skills and available milk at lambing. And that if we recorded information about what was happening at lambing time and used that information to select only those who got high marks for the above, life in the sheep barn would be better. So I created a scorecard that has been used for over 30 years and the results have been rewarding. The scorecard has three components: Lambing score: At lambing time the ewe is given one of three scores: Score of A: she lambed normally (came into labor and in a reasonable length of time presented her lambs without intervention) Score of B: she lambed but required some assistance but only because lambs were breach, multiple lambs were in the birth canal at same time-but she had dilated and would have delivered a normal presentation without help. Score of C: the ewe went into labor, tried to deliver but had not dilated sufficiently to allow the delivery of a normal presentation. These ewes are automatic culls for me. I also scored any ewe with prolapses of any kind a “C” and placed her on the cull list. In addition none of her ram or ewe lambs would be kept or sold for breeding purposes. Mothering score: For me this score is very important. Here I am ranking the ewe’s action to immediately care for her new born by licking, talking/cooing to her new birth with total focus. A mature ewe is either a good mother or a cull- plain and simple. So the scores for this one are: Score of 1: great mother, immediate to the task at hand of cleaning and caring for her new lamb with total focus. And when lamb number 2 or 3 arrived, she was able to change focus as needed and keep her new offspring in her complete care. Score of 2: - CULL. If the ewe did not take her responsibility seriously and did not clean, connect with and nurse her new lambs, all of this means more work for you, more dead lambs and less joy in the lambing barn. Some might want to give a little slack to young ewes, those lambing at 12-16 months THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG CONTINUED ON PAGE 17 SPRING 2014 BREEDING SHEEP TO BE SHEPHERD-FRIENDLY, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16 of age. That decision needs to be one you make. Even here I would want the young ewe to become focused on mothering with very little intervention. In general, the more critical you are of “mothering skills” the easier life in the lambing barn becomes over the years. Simply said there is a genetic component to “mothering” and if you identify the good mothers and remove those with poor mothering skills you are on your way to a shepherd friendly flock. Only select for breeding stock those ewe and ram lambs who come from dams that are the stars and earn a score of “1”. Milk available at time of lambing: Score of I. Ewe has a full udder, normal teat size and all is ready for a lamb to nurse. If we are in the lambing barn when lambs are born, as one of the tasks we strip a little milk from each teat to remove wax plug and make sure milk can flow. We love the girls with full udders and all set to get lambs off to a good start! Score of II. Ewe has some milk but her milk production is not the full, distended udder we would like. Within a few hours she is in business and full production is in place. Again it is your choice as to how critical you are on this trait – but we have observed there is a genetic component and the more critical you, are the easier work in the lambing barn becomes over the years. Score of III. Cull. No milk, abnormal or misshaped teats, hard udder or for any reason a non-functioning mammary system. An example of how this scorecard can be used at lambing time is shown in the table below. The first ewe, number 1005, is a winner. She lambed normally (score of “A”), she was a great mother (score of 1) and she had a good milk supply for her lambs (score is I). You can’t get better than A-1-I!! The second ewe, number 1008, lambed easily (score of A), she is a good mother (score of 1) but her full milk supply came in a few hours later (score of II). You need to decide how important this trait is for your program and this ewe might be a cull or given another chance. The third ewe, 4034, lambed easily, (score of A) but is not a good mother (score of 2) but did have a full udder at lambing (score of I). Without question CONTINUED ON PAGE 18 Ewe ID lambing date lamb Id birth wt.pounds sex/type birth comments 1005 1008 4034 2089 2/10/11 2/11/11 2/15/11 2/17/11 1001 1010 1045 1094 8 9 11 10 e/tw r/s e/tw r/tw A-1-I A-1-II A-2-I B-2-II Caney Creek Farms Katahdins ing Lambrts Sta th 9 Feb. 2014 Herd Sires: HLB 298 - Nu D-Sign HLB 293 KA-BOOM JM 0-60 Prime Time All rams RR JDK Stud Rams JDK 207 DOC P40 VJ 9048 Foundation ewes from Kennedy-Dosch-Young Dwayne & Kathy Kieffer 4864 Smiley Rd. • Chapel Hill, TN 37034 931-703-0239 • 931-580-6909 [email protected] • www.caneycreekfm.com SPRING 2014 John, Judy & Scott Dyer THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG new email: [email protected] PAGE 17 BREEDING SHEEP TO BE SHEPHERD-FRIENDLY, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 17 for me this ewe is a cull. Unless she is caught and made to identify with her lambs, the lambs would more than likely die. This is an excellent example where keeping this ewe will mean more work next year. And just as important - if you kept any of her lambs you are keeping the genetics you don’t want. So both she and her lambs are meat animals. Mothering traits have a strong genetic base and poor mothers one year means the same for years to come. One exception might be a 12-16 month old ewe lambing for first time – but even here I would want to see strong mothering instincts kick in with very little encouragement from the shepherd. The last ewe, 2089, is an easy cull. She needed some assistance lambing (Score of B), did not show good mothering instincts (Score of 2- a cull score) and she was late in coming into milk for her new lambs (Score of II). Again I want to emphasize that most of our selection focus should be using production records. Production records and EPD’s are powerful tools in breeding sheep that provide PAGE 18 the base for successful sheep farming. And clearly the factors measured in the Ewe Scorecard are also reflected in lamb growth rates, factors that are evaluated in the NSIP and Lamb Plan indexing programs. But I have found there is a place for additional, easily measured information that can be collecting at lambing time and then used to select breeding stock that can make lambing easier for the shepherd. Sheep are amazing animals with a wide assortment of genetics and we can make our lives (and theirs) a lot easier and productive by aggressively using all the selection tools available. A logical question would be: what has happened in our flock using this ewe scorecard? Well, in the 2011 lambing season we had 122 lambs born in Maine during the months of January/February. The barn was checked for the day at 10 pm and again at 6 am and off and on during the day. Only one lamb was lost at lambing time. For that to happen you must have ewes that lamb easily, have strong mothering skills and have milk available to get their lambs off to a strong start. Nothing will make our sheep world perfect but the ewe scorecard maybe a tool you want to consider to help create a shepherd friendly and productive flock. Author’s Bio - Tom grew up on a dairy and sheep farm in Ohio and has raised sheep in Maine since 1970. He was a professor of biology and chemistry at Bowdoin College until his retirement in 2005. Along with Dr. Richard Brzozowski, University of Maine Extension Service, he has co-directed two sheep research projects with one focusing on breeding sheep that are resistant to infection by the barber pole worm, Haemonchus contortus, and the other creating a protocol to rid sheep of foot rot with the long term goal of breeding sheep resistant to that disease. He has been an active participant in the effort to create high quality pasture management systems involving rotational grazing for ruminant animals and was THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG CONTINUED ON PAGE 24 SPRING 2014 KHSI to Change Registries on April 1st, 2014 The KHSI Board of Directors voted to contract with John Savage of accuRegister in Darlington, Pennsylvania to be our new Registry Contractor starting on April 1st The KHSI Board decided to change registries to be better positioned for advances in software, programming and to offer increased flexibility in our services. Associated Registries in Iowa was in the process of hiring a new Registrar and the Board decided that this was an appropriate time for KHSI to implement a change. accuRegister provides KHSI with greater flexibility in custom database programming and more options for customizing certificates and service for KHSI. KHSI thanks Associated Registries in Milo, Iowa for three years of good service. KHSI greatly appreciates the service of their many hard working employees. We would like to recognize and thank current employees Elisha, Julie, Jacki, Barb and Janine for their hard work. KHSI would also like to thank Carrie Taylor Kelly and Karey Claghorn who were the previous Registrars for the breed. Associated Registries, and especially Elisha, assisted KHSI though a period in which registrations and transfers increased by over 65%. Before explaining more about our new Registry Service, KHSI will answer a few questions that you might be wondering about: I just sent my only copy of Registry certificates to the KHSI Registry in Iowa. Is my goose cooked? No, you are fine. The Registry in Iowa will continue to process certificates until March 31, 2014. After that, all work will be forwarded to our new Registry. It is after April 1st and I sent work to Iowa, what will happen? The registry service in Iowa is contracted to forward all mail to Pennsylvania. Should I not register sheep in March and wait for the new Registry? KHSI Board of Directors encourages our membership to do business as usual. Don’t wait. I need Certificates of Registration processed and in my hands April 115. In this case, the KHSI Board encourages you to send your work to the Iowa Registry by March 24. There will be at least a week delay in early April as accuRegister, imports the new database, does the final tests of the SPRING 2014 program (as part of the bid process, John Savage already tested his new Katahdin Registry database). Then, accuRegistry will be processing 2-3 weeks of work. What changes can the membership expect? Later in this article, we list a few changes that we think many members will appreciate. Other changes include 1) an increase in the cost for overnight shipping, 2) a change in the online registration forms that are used in conjunction with our PayPal services. There will be other minor changes. Do I need to change the address and phone number for the Registry? Yes. But if you forget and call the Iowa office or mail to the Iowa Registry Office, don’t panic. The Iowa office will forward mail to the KHSI Registry in Pennsylvania. They will also remind you to call the Pennsylvania office at 724-843-2084. Do I need to change my email address for the registry? It depends. If you have been using [email protected] the answer is no change needed. If you have been using [email protected], you should change it to [email protected]. If you forget, Associated Registries will forward your email for you. Do I need to change website addresses that I have bookmarked? The main site and the links for online registration will be the same but the process will differ slightly. Those who use online registrations will start at www.katahdins.org as usual. If you wish to look at online pedigrees (see item 1) below), you will need a new link. Do I need to use a new Work Order and Registration Application Form? Yes. You should have received a copy of the new registry form in the mail. You can also download one from the website starting on April 1, 2014. (note: The main changes are in the address.) BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE NEW REGISTRY accuRegister is owned and managed by John Savage. John has been registering sheep for other breeds since 2000, and has thirteen years of experience. John and his wife Chris have been members of KHSI since 2003. Currently, accuRegister is registering 10 breeds of sheep. Some of the changes that KHSI members can take advantage of include the following: 1) Registry Database Online. KHSI members will be able to look at the pedigrees online. For example, if you are thinking about buying a sheep and want to know if there are inbreeding issues with your current flock, a member will be able to look at three generation pedigrees online. 2) Submission by Excel Files. Many members have asked about submission of registration information by Excel files. This will now be possible. 3) Registration Certificate changes. The general format stays the same, but there are a few changes. a. Current Owners, as well as Breeders and Owners of Dam will now be listed on the front of the certificate b. Percentages of Recorded Sheep will be listed in the five generation pedigree, for example, if dams or sires in the pedigree are 50% or 75% c. Better Readability. The Registration number and sheep ID of the animal are much larger. When sorting through several certificates, it will be easier to find. Much of the information is in a larger and/or bolder font. d. A new certificate will be issued following each transfer. All past owners will be printed on the back by the computer. The KHSI Board of Directors and KHSI Operations Office are looking forward to John Savage’s computer skills to customize and provide Registry Reports that are electronic and more specific to the needs of the Katahdin association. John also has the abilities to program Operations Office Membership databases and Registry Membership databases in ways that minimize having to enter the same data repeatedly in different places. Again, KHSI thanks Associated Registries and their staff for all of their service in the past—you helped KHSI grow, and we thank you! We are looking forward to working with John Savage and accuRegister starting in April 1. If you have any questions about the change, please contact KHSI Operations at 479-444-8441 or [email protected]. THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 19 Circle This Date: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. KHSI Registry Staff (from le�) Alexis Gingerella, Registrar John Savage & Kris Savage KHSI Re 1039 State Route 168 • 724-843-2084 • regi PAGE 20 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 April 1, 2014 What Do I Need to Know? Effec�ve April 1: KHSI Registry, 1039 State Route 168, Darlington, PA 16115 724-843-2084 • [email protected] Con�nue to send registry paperwork to Iowa un�l March 24, 2014. KHSI Registry, PO Box 51, Milo, IA 50166. IMPORTANT: IF YOU NEED PAPERS IN YOUR HANDS BY APRIL 15TH, SEND THEM EARLY to Registry in Milo, IA. “It is a�er April 1 and I sent my cer�ficates to the Iowa Registry.” Relax! Don’t panic. Iowa will forward to the registry in Pennsylvania. For more details see the Directors Corner on page 2 and the ar�cle "KHSI to Change Registries on April 1st" on page 19. Registry • Darlington, PA 16115 [email protected] SPRING 2014 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 21 FROM THE FEED TROUGH . . . TDN If you’re going to buy a feedstuff, you need to know its energy value. But energy values are expressed in all sorts of cryptic terms: TDN, DE, ME, NEg, NEm. This can be worse than a stockbroker’s report. Let’s look carefully at one term that is used nearly everywhere ... The granddaddy expression of energy terms is the well-known and venerable “TDN” – Total Digestible Nutrients. As the name implies, TDN was designed to express the total amount of available nutrients in a feedstuff. TDN is based on the concept of “digestibility,” which simply means the proportion of a feedstuff absorbed as nutrients across the gut wall after being broken down in the intestinal tract by enzymes and microbes. The undigested portion of the feedstuff continues down the gut towards the exit. The TDN system did not spring full-blown from an ancient Sanskrit text. German and American scientists originally devised the TDN concept around the turn of the last century PAGE 22 (1900). Agricultural scientists had been searching for a single number to reflect the nutritional value of a feed. So, based on the limited chemical knowledge at that time, they decided to partition feed organic matter into four nutritional fractions: crude protein, crude fiber, crude fat, and nitrogen-free extract (NFE), which was defined to mean everything not accounted for by the other three categories. They calculated a total digestibility (TDN) by summing the digestible amounts of each fraction, although they first multiplied the fat fraction by 2.25 because fat contains 2.25 times more digestible energy than carbohydrates or protein. Nutritional reference tables typically list TDN values as percentages or pounds. The basic TDN formula has not changed in over eighty years. Today, many researchers scorn the TDN system because several of its assumptions are suspect or routinely violated. This skepticism has some merit. For example, NFE is calculated by subtracting the values for water, ash, protein, fat, and crude fiber from By Woody Lane, Ph.D. 100. This virtually guarantees that any errors in the other values are automatically passed along to the NFE value. It’s somewhat like an old-fashioned bucket brigade with the person at the end getting stuck holding the final bucket. Another problem is the concept of NFE, which was originally supposed to represent the more digestible carbohydrate fraction of a feed, which are primarily starch and soluble compounds. The problem is that, in reality, the NFE fraction also contains lignin, which has a digestibility of zero. Conversely, the crude fiber value of a forage can be very misleading because the procedure for analyzing crude fiber does not detect certain types of indigestible fiber, like lignin. Modern analytical techniques are much better at identifying a feed’s nutritionally important fiber — like neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF), but these new fiber values are not included in the TDN equation. In fact, THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG CONTINUED ON PAGE 23 SPRING 2014 FROM THE FEED TROUGH, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 22 the “fiber” number legally required on most feedtags is still crude fiber. Because forages contain many different types of fiber, the TDN system tends to underestimate the true digestibility of high quality forages and overestimate the true digestibility of low quality straws. TDN also assumes that all fat contains 9 kcal/g of energy. Unfortunately, this assumption is true only for fats like triglycerides, which are the major storage compounds in feed grains. Forages and byproduct feeds can contain all sorts of other fatty substances, such as steroids and waxes, that contain less energy than triglycerides. In the pasture world, however, this inaccuracy doesn’t amount to much because forage diets usually contain very little fat. TDN also includes an imprecision with protein, although this fault is selfcorrecting. The TDN formula assumes that crude protein contains the same energy level as carbohydrates (i.e. 4 kcal/g). Protein actually contains more energy than 4 kcal/g, but some of that energy is lost into the urine after digestion. By using the lower number of 4 kcal/g, the TDN formula cleverly includes a 30% correction for this loss. This makes the TDN value somewhat more accurate than its reputation. Many researchers usually miss this interesting point. Finally, TDN values are calculated from measurements on individuallyconfined animals fed a maintenance diet. This means that feed consumption is restricted and constant, and that the animals are not growing, lactating, or pregnant. But how many ranches run herds or flocks of confined animals on maintenance diets? Actually, the real questions become: how do “real life” feeding situations on productive farms and ranches affect these TDN values? And how do we compensate for these changes? We know that as feed intake rises above maintenance levels (i.e., for every sheep and cow that grows, lactates, or reproduces), the rate of passage of this feed also increases, which reduces the time fiber spends in the rumen, which reduces its fermentation time, which reduces its digestibility. On the other hand, increased feed intake also increases the total amount of nutrients available in the gut. On the other hand, if given a chance, sheep and cattle will always “sort” their feed, which is a fancy way of saying that they’ll eat the cream every time. As scientists are inclined to say, “Life is simpler at maintenance.” Even back in 1920, everyone knew that TDN wasn’t perfect. Scientists often pointed out its shortcomings and over the years developed some alternatives. Yet with all its blemishes, the TDN system is still around today. Ranchers and extension agents all across North America successfully use the TDN system to balance diets and purchase feeds. Why? Because TDN values are simple and practical, and for most animals most of the time, they work. There are more sophisticated energy systems for dairy farms and feedlot calves and lambs, where feed composition and intake are carefully measured and controlled. However, for many sheep CONTINUED ON PAGE 29 1300 S. Hwy 75 P.O. Box 188 Pipestone, MN 56164 2014 Catalog Pipestone Veterinary Services Order or Catalog Only: 800-658-2523 Main Office: 507-825-4211 Sheep Questions: 507-825-5687 Fax: 507-825-3140 Website: www.pipevet.com Email your Sheep Questions to: [email protected] Follow Dr. Kennedy's Blog askavetsheep.wordpress.com SPRING 2014 Join us on Facebook at Pipestone Vet Sheep-Goats THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 23 Katahdin Recipe Forum Maria’s Easy Leg of Lamb Submitted by Maria Dosch of South Dakota Ingredients 5 minutes of preparation, 8-16 hours of cooking Leg of Lamb Can of Mushroom Soup French Onion Soup Package Directions: Put the leg of lamb in the slow cooker. Pour the mushroom soup over the leg. Add package of onion soup. Cook on low for 8-16 hours. Notes: You need a large slow cooker that can hold a leg of lamb (oval shaped slow cookers are convenient). Maria often starts this in the evening for a large noon meal, or in the morning for an evening dinner. If you have a recipe that you and your family like, send it to KHSI Operations at [email protected] or PO Box 778, Fayetteville, AR 72702. We look forward to your recipes. If your recipe is based on (or copied from) a published recipe, please provide the proper credit. Maria Dosch and KHSI Operations (Jim & Teresa) will be editing this column. Round Mountain Farm Lamb Stew Submitted by Jim Morgan and Teresa Maurer of Arkansas Ingredients 15-20 minutes of preparation, 7-9 hours of cooking necks, legs and we don’t add any 1 quart homemade (or high quality) chicken stock meat. 1-2 cups diced onions Bay Leaf a few cloves garlic, minced Fresh Ground Black Pepper 2-3 cups chopped celery Kosher Salt 1.5 – 2 cups red wine (we substitute 1-2 cups chopped carrots sherry or white wine, if we don’t 2-3 cups diced cooked potatoes (add have red wine) at end) Directions: Brown the bones or meat. Put the meat and/or bones in slow cooker. Cover with plenty of black pepper, and a little salt. In the pan used for browning, add onion, garlic, celery and carrots – adding olive oil as needed. Cook until onions are transparent. Put the vegetables in the slow cooker over the meat. (Option: If you want to capture all the flavor, deglaze the sauté pan with 1-2 Tablespoons of wine to capture the browned meat and vegetable flavors and add that to slow cooker.) Add chicken stock and red wine and cook on low for 7-9 hours. Cook several diced potatoes separately until just tender, then add to slow cooker 15-30 minutes before serving. If you want, you can skim fat from the top of the cooker, prior to adding the potatoes. Olive Oil Lamb meat - many options - Stew meat, shoulder chops, kebab, neck slices, bone in stew, DenverStyle Ribs (ribs are fat, but taste very good). We even make this with only the bones the processor leaves after deboning shoulders, Notes: Homemade chicken stock is the secret to outstanding flavor for this recipe, but if you don’t have it, use the best quality you can find. If you prefer a thicker stew, you can add rolled barley flakes or thicken with corn starch. We use this recipe when we want a short preparation meal that is ready when we come home. 15-25 minutes of preparation in the morning, add the cooked potatoes when you get home and you have a meal. We also fix this for our friends, when we want a simple great tasting meal and plenty of time to sit at the table and fellowship. BREEDING SHEEP TO BE SHEPHERDFRIENDLY, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 18 given a national award by the American Sheep Industry in 1994 for his pioneering work in this area. In 2008 he was the first inductee into the Maine Shepherd’s Hall of Fame. He still is involved in the husbandry of Crystal Spring Katahdins in Brunswick, Maine. He can be contacted at [email protected] PAGE 24 Visit the KHSI website at www.katahdins.org! • Past issues of the Hairald • Check out the 1 Page online Ads – Breeder Pages Sending in Registry Work? Make sure you have addressed your envelope with a Pennsylvania Address if after April 1st THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 Goldstrike Mountain Farms Cash In on Our Genetics "Poncho" "Cash" "Cowboy" "Cisco" Excellent Bloodline Breeding Stock from Dosch Katahdins • Lazy B Livestock • CMG Katahdins 400+ Breeding Ewes 100% Registered Katahdins Tested for Codon 171 Spring Lambs & Breeding Rams Available Did I Do That? We also have Great Pyrenees puppies FOR SALE CTE Goldstrike Mountain Farms Curtis & Teresa Elliott Scottown, OH • 740-256-9247 [email protected] • www.goldstrikeboergoats.com SPRING 2014 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 25 Indiana Premier Sheep Sale Saturday, April 26, 2014 Hancock County Fairgrounds, Greenfield, IN Auc�on starts at 12 EST 2013 Reserve Champion Ewe Bred by Steve Landreth, IL Shown by Julian & Moore Sheep Co., OH All Female Auc�on: Yearling ewes, fall ewe lambs and spring ewe lambs. Yearling ewes may be exposed. All females will be registered and will be eligible to show in 2014. 2013 Champion Ewe Bred & Shown by David & Jane Smith, IN Breeders of the Champion Ewes at the North American will be consigning to the auction. Consignments will be from some of the top Katahdin breeders in the Midwest. 2012 Champion Katahdin Ewe Bred and Shown by Jeff & Jan Poynter, IL THE SALE WILL FEATURE KATAHDINS, SHROPSHIRES & TUNIS Contact persons for informa�on: Bob Adams, Katahdin sale manager and auc�oneer. ph. (317)408-2749 Email: [email protected] Ron Hash, President, Indiana Katahdin Assn. ph. (502)216-6337, Email: [email protected] John or Sco� Dyer: (812)362-8012, Email: [email protected] Contact the Katahdin sale manager to request a consignment form, request a catalog, or informa�on on motels in Greenfield with special rates. Consignments must be in by March 1 to be placed in the catalog. Ron Young, Katahdin breeder and past president of the Katahdin Hair Sheep International, will present a seminar on “Selecting a Katahdin Female for the Show Ring” a 11 am. Ron is a highly respected judge having judged most all of the major meat breeds at various state fairs and national shows. LOCATION: Greenfield is located 20 miles east of Indianapolis on Interstate 70. Fairgrounds 1 mile south. The Katahdin auc�on is sponsored by The Indiana Katahdin Associa�on. SPECIAL NOTE: Net sale fees will go to the Indiana Katahdin Associa�on to help promote the Indiana Katahdin 4H program. $250 will be given to the Champion Katahdin 4H ewe, at the 2014 Indiana State Fair, if the ewe is purchased out of this sale and there are at least 10 females shown by at least 5 4H exhibitors. $150 will be given to the Reserve Champion 4H ewe if she is purchased out of this sale with the same condi�ons as the champion ewe. The Indiana State Fair gives $250 to the Champion 4H ewe and $125 to the reserve champion ewe. PAGE 26 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 Indiana Katahdin Association Ewe Sale: April 26, 2014 Bob Adams, Indiana The Indiana Katahdin Association will be sponsoring an "All Female Auction" on Saturday, April 26, 2014 at the Hancock County Fairgrounds in Greenfield, Indiana. Katahdins are the third breed to sell and the Katahdin sale is expected to start around 1:30. Greenfield is in central Indiana just off I-70 and 25 miles east of Indianapolis. Only yearling ewes, fall ewe lambs and spring ewe lambs will be offered for sale. All of the sale offerings will be registered and will be eligible to show in the 2014 show season. Questions about consigning can be directed to Bob Adams at 317-408-2749 or [email protected]. Consignments are open to any registered producer, but ewes who do not meet the sale committee standards will not be allowed to sell. The sale is part of The Indiana Premier Sheep Sale and Katahdins will join the Shropshire and Tunis breeds in participating in the auction. The purpose of the sale is to make available top quality Katahdin females, within a reasonable driving distance, for those in the Midwest. The goal is to grow the event for Katahdins and to increase their educational program. In 2014, animals will need to be at the fairgrounds by 8:30 AM. At 11 AM, Ron Young will present a seminar on “Selecting a Katahdin Female for the Show Ring. Ron Young, of Buckeye Acres Genetics has been an active member of the US sheep industry for many years and Past President of Katahdin Hair Sheep International and Judge of many shows, including the 2012 and 2013 NAILE Katahdin shows. There will be plenty of time to attend the seminar, then look over the breeding stock and talk to the breeders. All animals are to be in the pens and ready for inspection by 10 AM. The organizers plan to grow this event and attract consignors and buyers from Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky and Ohio. If transportation is an issue, please contact us (contact information at bottom of article). Check with us for transportation for consigning and for purchased animals. Arrangements can be made for delivery to the Big Ohio Sale Weekend in Eaton, Ohio May 8-10. Sale catalogs will be available April 1 st and you can contact Bob Adams for a copy. Absentee bidding will be available for those that cannot attend the auction. Youth in Indiana have special buyer incentives. If interested in absentee bidding contact one of these 3 people: Bob Adams of Morristown, IN at 317-408 2749 or [email protected], Ron Young of Van Wert, OH at 419-203-6389 or John Dyer of Chrisney, IN at 812-3628012. KHSI Recommends that sellers send papers and payment for registrations and transfers to the KHSI Registry, as a courtesy to their buyers. BUCKEYE ACRES GENETICS Mark Your Calendar for Buckeye Acres Internet Sale June 11-12th Willoughby Livestock Sales wlivestock.com Visit our website for more information 2013 Grand Champion Ewe Midwest Stud Ram Sale (Sedalia) BAG 1940, sold to Charles Jones, Clarksville, OH SPRING 2014 2012 Grand Champion Ram Midwest Stud Ram Sale (Sedalia) BAG 1725 "Diesel", sold to Todd & Renee Bauer, Windom, KS BAG Ron & Carla Young Buckeye Acres Genetics 12282 Harrison-Willshire Rd • Van Wert, OH 45891 419-495-2993 • 419-203-6389 (c) [email protected] • buckeyeacres.com THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 27 SHU 3320 2013 Champion Ram, NAILE 2012 Reserve Champion Ram, NAILE CENTRALIA has already sired: ¬ High Selling Ram at 2013 Expo ¬ Junior Champion Ram at NAILE 2013 ¬ 1st and 2nd January Ram Lambs at NAILE 2013 ¬ 1st Place Late Spring Ram Lamb at Midwest Stud Ram Sale 2013 ¬ Henry and Becky Shultz new stud ram ¬ 3rd Place Late Spring Ewe Lamb at Midwest Stud Ram Sale 2013. EHJ Be Sure to Check Out Our Offering of CENTRALIA Sired Lambs at The Great Lakes Sale & The Midwest Stud Ram Sale JULIAN and MOORE SHEEP CO. EHJ Ed and Helen Julian Family 3009 State Route 44 • Rootstown, OH 44272 • 330-325-9150 • [email protected] PAGE 28 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 Katahdin Sale Round Up KHSI periodically posts information on sheep sales and sheep events as a public service. Posting sale and event information does not imply endorsement or verification of the claims of any sale or event. KHSI encourages the use of performance records and production data as the primary means of selecting sheep instead of emphasizing visual appraisal typical of most shows, sales, and auctions. Sales and events posted are not sanctioned by KHSI unless otherwise noted. Contact the KHSI Operations Office to ask for your sale to be posted. 479-444-8441 or [email protected] **April 26, 2014. Indiana Katahdin Association Ewe Sale. Approx 1:30 PM, Hancock County Fairgrounds, Greenfield, IN. May 25, 2014. Great Lakes Show and Sale. Wayne County Fairgrounds, Wooster Ohio. Sale starts at 11:00 AM. Contact Banner Sale Management at 309-785-5058 or go to www.bannermagazine.com June 25, 2014. Midwest Stud Ram Sale. Missouri State Fairgrounds, Sedalia, Missouri. Katahdins sell on June 25th. **August 9, 2014. 10th Annual KHSI Expo & Sale. Adams County Fairgrounds, Hastings, Nebraska **- Indicates there is an article with more information in this issue of the Hairald. FROM THE FEED TROUGH, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 23 and beef cattle operations, where ranchers typically feed with a frontend loader or unroll big bales down a hillside, TDN’s imperfections have minimal impact. Also, many standard nutritional reference tables typically list energy requirements in TDN units. The process of balancing a diet requires that the animal’s nutrient requirements and the nutritional qualities of the feedstuffs are all expressed in the same SPRING 2014 units. In most cases, nutrient requirements have only been independently determined in TDN units. But those are reasons why TDN works — some inaccuracies have a way of compensating for each other, and there are also a whole lot of TDN values that were originally based on good observations. So in the practical world, TDN is really not a bad choice after all. That is, unless you have to work with a front-end loader calibrated in decimal places or a nutritional reference table that lists energy requirements in terms of light years per kilogram. © 1994. Published with permission. Woody Lane is a nutritionist in Roseburg, Oregon. He operates an independent consulting business “Lane Livestock Services” and teaches nutrition, sheep, beef cattle, and grazing workshops across the United States and Canada. His email address is [email protected] THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 29 FROM THE RESOURCE SHELF Teresa Maurer, KHSI Operations 1) A webinar series entitled the “Ethnic Marketing of Lamb & Mutton” was held in November and December 2013. The webinars were organized by the University of Maryland (Susan Schoenian), University of Maine (Richard Brzozowski), and Ohio State University (Roger High). Speakers included Susan Schoenian, Katherine Harrison (Ohio), and Dr. Richard Ehrhardt (Michigan). The webinars were recorded, minimally edited, and made public for viewing. Links to the recordings and PowerPoint are available at www.sheepandgoat.com/ recordings.html#ethnic. The Maryland Small Ruminant Extension Program began doing webinars in 2011. Since then, webinars have covered various aspects of sheep and goat production, including ewe and doe management; nutrition and feeding; internal parasites; foot health, breeding and genetics. Recordings and PowerPoint presentations from all previous webinars are available at www.sheepandgoat.com/ recordings.html. 2) If you don’t have easy internet access, you may want to look into the Wild & Woolly newsletter. It is published quarterly by University of Maryland Extension. It is written by Susan Schoenian, Sheep & Goat Specialist, and edited by Pam Thomas, Administrative Assistant. You may contact Susan or Pam at the Western Maryland Research & EducationCenter (WMREC), 18330 Keedysville Road, Keedysville, MD 21756; (301) 432-2767 x343 (Susan) or x315 (Pam); [email protected] or [email protected]. The cost to receive the newsletter via U.S. mail is $10 per year (payable to the Uni- versity of Maryland). The newsletter can also be accessed for free online at www.sheepandgoat.com. 3) Sheep Canada is a quarterly magazine, packed with technical information to assist sheep producers to increase their productivity or reduce their cost of production. Sheep Canada features articles on health, genetics, behavior, and nutrition, as well as producer profiles, sheep research from around the world, advice for beginners and is useful to both Canadian and US producers. Sheep Canada is owned and edited by Dr. Cathy Gallivan. Cathy has made a lifelong study of sheep and the industry since 1975. She has worked in Nova Scotia and Alberta as a shepherd and government sheep specialist, and has developed and taught several fulltime and weekend courses in sheep CONTINUED ON PAGE 32 SILVER MAPLE SHEEP FARM 100% RR Breeding Stock Certified Scrapie Free 1/6/10 Accelerated Lambing ~ Ewes are Lambing every 8 months Online Sale May 21st & 22nd Willoughby Livestock Sales • wlivestock.com Selling 15 Top Katahdins HCK 1474 in his working clothes. Lambs sired by this long, thick, meaty Ram in my first online sale. We will be attending the South Central Katahdins Association Meeting in Castlewood, VA and Midwest Stud Ram Sale in Sedalia, MO Pasture Raised ~ Rotational Grazing ~ Raised with Cattle YOU'RE NOT BUYING A SHEEP, YOU'RE BUYING A PROGRAM AT WORK! ays Silver Maple Sheep Farm • Jay Greenstone w l A s r o t i Rose Hill, VA • 276-346-2444 • 276-346-7235 (c) s i V elcome [email protected] • www.silvermaplekatahdins.com W PAGE 30 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG JAG SPRING 2014 LANDRETH FARM KATAHDINS 70+ Yearling Ewes sired by RR rams BHL 0018, DOC P319, BB 113, TMD 10-71. 41 head are exposed to HLB 201, KJG 55A3, and CRS 5047 and will start lambing around 4-10-14. The remainder are open. Yearling Ewes & Fall Ewe Lambs For Sale Contact Us for more details. Delivery possible. BB113 We want to offer our congratulations to Julian & Moore Sheep Co., OH on 2013 NAILE Reserve Grand Champion Ewe SPL 1305, purchased from Landreth Farm at 2013 Midwest Stud Ram Sale. We also want to thank them for purchasing 2 fall ewe lambs by DOC P 319 at the farm just before Christmas. The BB113 ram is the sire of SPL 1305, the Reserve Grand Champion Ewe at We are planning to have nice consignments at the sale 2013 NAILE. Although he's no longer in Greenfield, IN in April and Midwest Stud Ram Sale being used, we have a good number of his in Sedalia, MO in June. daughters in our flock. BE SURE TO STOP BY AND SEE OUR SHEEP Also in our flock are daughters of RR RAMS with these prefixes: LCL, RSM, LU, BAG, SWP, BB, JF, and DOC. Landreth Farm Katahdins Steve Landreth 5149 Edgewood Rd • Edgewood, IL 62426 • (618) 292-1286 • [email protected] SPL SPRING 2014 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 31 FROM THE RESOURCE SHELF, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 30 production. Sheep Canada magazine (and Cathy) are currently located in the old general store built by her grandfather in 1914, on the family farm where she grew up in Deerville, New Brunswick. The print copy of the magazine is available by mail for $22 in Canada, $25 in the US and $35 to other international locations. At the website, you can see the table of contents of past issues and order back copies if you see something of interest. For those of you who use Facebook, you can visit: www.facebook.com/sheepcanada 4) American Consortium for Small Ruminant Parasite Control. This collaboration works on research, educa- tion and information that advances modern parasite control for sheep, goat and camelid producers. Their website at www.acsrpc.org helps producers find the latest information on parasite control and also features a Timely Topics section, Frequently Asked Questions and information on workshops and other training opportunities. 5) I recently enjoyed viewing the following 8 minute Youtube video on live-animal evaluation of finished lambs. It was produced by the nonprofit organization NCAT, and is very clear and straightforward. The lambs shown are wool sheep, but the general technique is useful for both wool and hair sheep. Putting a Hand on Them: How to Tell When Your Lamb is Finished Summary of video: If you market your lamb directly to the consumer, this is a technique you need to know. It will distinguish your product from others in the marketplace. The correct live-animal evaluation of finished lambs leads to a superior, differentiated product that your customers will not be able to resist. It also can lessen the overall cost of producing a premium lamb by more accurately determining when the animal is finished, thereby better controlling feed costs. www.youtube.com/ watch?v=pbBrR3UGvsY Did you forget to donate to KHSI Youth? Send donations for Youth Scholarship or Premiums. Can write donations off as Farm/Ranch Expense Through ice & snow Lambs still grow Come see us in Nevada, MO Doyle Weaver Katahdins Doyle & Judy Weaver, Nevada, MO 417-667-5294 • [email protected] Henry Shultz & Family 6219 Audrain Rd 125 Centralia, Missouri www.prairielanefarm.net PAGE 32 573682-5481 [email protected] THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 Expo Hotel Rooms Limited—Reserve Yours Now or Sleep FAR Away! Reserve no later than June 30 We emphasize again that it is extremely important to make your 2014 Expo hotel reservations now for Hastings, Nebraska. DO NOT WAIT. The blocks of hotel rooms for Katahdin folks will be kept open until July 1 and then released. On the Expo weekend, Hastings hosts the Kool-Aid Days. Kool-Aid was first produced in Hastings and every year this weekend serves as a HUGE town reunion with many coming back to visit, so hotel rooms will be impossible to get after July 1. It does NOT cost anything to reserve the room, and when you call you can ask about your deadline to cancel without a charge if your plans change. The 2014 KHSI Expo will be based at the Adams County Fairgrounds located at 947 S Baltimore Ave, Hastings, NE 68901. Sale animals need to arrive in Hastings on Thursday August 7 and the Expo Sale will also be held at Hastings on Saturday August 9. The headquarters hotel will be the Holiday Inn Express in Hastings. KHSI also has rooms reserved at the Comfort Inn West in Hastings. NOTE: the Friday August 8 events will be held at the USDA Research Center in Clay Center Nebraska (about 30 minutes away). A plus will be that Kool-Aid Days means that there are family activities if your children need a break. But, it also means that the hotels will only hold the rooms for KHSI until July 1st and then will release them for the Kool-Aid Days. Make your reservations now! KHSI has good rates for Wednesday and Thursday (Aug 6-7), but the rates go up on Friday and Saturday (Aug 8-9) because of the supply and demand part of Kool-Aid Days. At the Holiday Inn Express, Wednesday and Thursday nights cost $77 per night and Friday and Saturday nights cost $119.95. Call the Holiday Inn Express at 402-463-8858 or 800-HOLIDAY. The Hastings Comfort Inn on Osborne Drive West can be reached at 402463-5252 and costs $84 on Wednesday and Thursday and $104 on Friday and Saturday. The KHSI block of rooms is reserved under the word “Katahdin” for both hotels. The Adams County Fairgrounds, where the Expo Sale sheep will be housed, has camping. Call 402-4623247 for more information on camping or visit www.adamscountyfairgroun ds.com/index.php/home-mainmenu134/camping-mainmenu-137 Editor’s Note: I stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Hastings in September, 2012. It is very nice--a new facility with a nice room off the lobby where we can all get together and talk. The staff at USDAMARC said both hotels are very good. Year after year! Ewe after ewe! We Build Great Sheep! Plan NOW for our online sale July 24, 2014 Hillcrest Katahdins David S. Redwine, DVM Gate City, VA • 423-384-1982 [email protected] www.hillcrestkatahdins.com SPRING 2014 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 33 Plan Now to Attend a Great Set of KHSI Expo Workshops on August 8 By Wes Limesand, Fargo, North Dakota and James Morgan, KHSI Operations Drs John Pollak and Kreg Leymaster invited KHSI to hold their 2014 Expo Workshops at the USDA ARS Meat Animal Research Center (MARC) in Clay Center on August 8. KHSI is excited to accept their invitation and is looking forward to this outstanding opportunity to see and hear about the practical aspects of cutting edge sheep research. The USDA MARC is the largest livestock research facility in the United States and highly respected. Part of the board’s interest in this opportunity is that Katahdins have been part of MARC’s research program since 2000. You can find the program schedule that Dr Kreg Leymaster developed with us on the back cover of this issue. Dr Pollak, Director of the Research Center, will start the program with an overview of the research and the service USDA MARC is providing for the US livestock community. Dr Pollak has been a leading researcher in beef cattle genetics for many years with a long career at Cornell University before moving to USDA MARC. Kreg Leymaster will follow with a talk on the research on Katahdins that USDA has been doing over the last 13 years. This will be an excellent chance to find out what Katahdins can do. Dr Leymaster is a leading US researcher on ewe productivity and applies a stellar background in quantitative genetics to his research. Dr Leymaster has spoken at two previous Expos, one in Missouri in 2006 and one in Oregon in 2009 and is in much demand as excellent speaker. Many of our members have told KHSI Operations how much they have enjoyed hearing Dr Kreg Leymaster. KHSI is very fortunate to have Dr Noelle Cockett from Utah State University Dr Cockett was awarded the Camptender Award at the 2014 ASI Symposium in January. Dr Cockett has led the USA research effort that works with the international research community to sequence the entire sheep genome. Dr Cockett will present information on how sheep genomics will revolutionize sheep selection in the 21st century and tell us about new research on how genomics can help us now At this point, the attendees will split into three groups and we will rotate through three rotations. One group will start by taking a bus tour of the MARC animal facilities to see the research Katahdin flock and the new composite ewe flock. The second group will start with a presentation from Dr Mike Heaton from the USDA MARC, who will speak about the latest findings about Ovine Progressive Pneumonia (OPP). This ground breaking and innovative research at MARC is revolutionizing sheep producers’ ability to control OPP and better understand how it spreads. The third group will start with a 45 minute lunch. At the end of three consecutive sessions all three groups will have eaten lunch, toured the MARC animal research facilities and listened to the presentation by Dr Mike Heaton on OPP. So you won’t miss anything! CONTINUED ON PAGE 35 YOUR ROADMAP FOR GENETIC IMPROVEMENT Save the Date! Have you ever wanted to learn more about EBVs? Join the Katahdin NSIP Breeders Group for an evening of learning and networking! Learn about: EBVs and how to use them to improve your flock Selecting & submitting data to NSIP And much more! Thursday evening, August 7th Holiday Inn Express, Hastings, NE at the 2014 Katahdin Expo Time TBA www.katnsip.com PAGE 34 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 The American Lamb Industry Roadmap Project James Morgan, KHSI Operations Office The American Lamb Board recently contracted with the Hale firm to evaluate the lamb industry from production to plate. During 2012, the sheep industry experienced a dramatic drop in lamb sale prices and a decrease in the quality of meat in the meat case due to increased fat. The goals of the evaluation were to identify and analyze the major challenges facing the American Lamb Industry, to propose the most effective solutions to those challenges and develop a strategy for the industry that will strengthen its short-term and long-term competitive advantage and return the industry to consistent profitability. The report was presented at the American Sheep Industry Annual Convention in Charleston, SC on January 23, 2014. The evaluation was comprehensive and it pointed out where seedstock producers, commercial lamb producers, feeders, packers and processors all needed to work together to increase efficiency and insure profit. The Roadmap encourages sectors to decrease the finger pointing and to be part of the solution to provide consumers with the product they want and are willing to pay for. The evaluation projected two futures for the US sheep industry. a) Without aggressive change in the US sheep industry, the share of lamb eaten in the USA produced by US lamb producers in the next 5-10 years will drop from 50% of the total to 20%. A significant portion of the traditional lamb producers will be out of business and 80% or more of the lamb eaten in the USA will be imported. The eastern non-traditional lamb market is predicted to still be strong. However, if the traditional lamb producing areas and feedlots and marketing channels have collapsed, the USA will have huge further decreases in sheep extension agents and faculty, training of sheep veterinarians and in the ability of the American Sheep Industry association to support the agricultural polices that sheep producers across the country need. b) With aggressive change in the sheep industry, a different and positive future scenario is possible. There needs to be improvements in efficiency and quality that lead to consumer satisfaction and also profits in all sectors. You can read more about the Roadmap by going to the website at the end of the article. Two Katahdin breeders who attended the ASI convention offered their comments about the “Roadmap” : “I am excited about the sheep industry's ‘Roadmap’. As one who works directly with sheep producers who direct market their lamb and mutton to non-traditional consumers, I believe they are in a great position for better returns and growth. Every sheep producer can find ways to improve their product, their management and their business. I am excited about helping producers gain skills and knowledge to make wise choices with their flocks and their farm business operation. As a part of the US Sheep Industry, I believe that Extension should play an active role in the Roadmap in the areas of education and applied research”. Richard J. Brzozowski, PhD. Small Ruminant & Poultry Specialist; Agriculturist, U of Maine Cooperative Ext. “If the Sheep Industry is going to survive, we must be willing to adapt and change with the world around us. Most successful businesses are data driven. All of us have data. Let's plug it into the tools we have available to us and drive toward success. We can't change what we don't know”. Lisa Weeks, Virginia Katahdin producer writing about the importance of producers using data collection to improve their seedstock. You can look at the Industry Roadmap details and summary at this website: www.lambcheckoff.com/ american-lamb-industryroadmap-project/ KHSI EXPO WORKSHOPS, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 34 Following the rotations, Dr Bert Moore will speak on structural soundness. Dr Moore did research with Katahdins at North Dakota State for several years. Since leaving NDSU, Dr Moore has worked with beef cattle breed associations. Bert has been a long time friend of the Katahdin breed. After the program at USDA MARC, KHSI will move into our Annual Meeting which will be held at the MARC facilities in Clay Center. Then we’ll head back to the Adams County Fairgrounds in Hastings for a catered meal with lamb meat and an ice cream social at the animal barns where we 2014 Katahdin Hairald Publications and Ad Deadlines 1) Article Deadline/Display Ad commitment deadline (includes size of ad) 2) Display Ad content due to Xpressions 3) Classified Ads due to Operations 4) Mailing date (Bulk Mail) SPRING 2014 Summer Mar 26 Fall Jul 2 Winter Oct 9 Apr 08 Apr 08 May 2 Jul 15 Jul 15 Aug 8 Oct 21 Oct 21 Nov 14 can all view the Katahdins consigned for sale at the KHSI Expo. Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to listen to world class sheep research and its practical aspects, and then top off the day viewing our best Katahdins that will be available at the Expo Sale. Save on Mailing Time Register your Katahdins Online with your credit card. THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 35 2014 KHSI Expo Requirements for Consignment For Commercial Ewes - Registered Rams & Ewes (Editor’s Note: Final regulations will be published on May 15th, 2014. These notes will help potential consignors to make sure that their sheep meet weighing and data requirements.) REQUIREMENTS FOR BOTH COMMERCIAL & REGISTERED SHEEP SALES: • Consigned sheep must be at Adams County Fairgrounds in Hastings, Nebraska by 5 PM, Thursday Aug 07, 2014. • Sheep must be genotyped QR or RR at codon 171. Papers from genotyping company must be turned in by the time that consigned sheep are checked in. • Interstate Health Certificates are required. Certificates must include a statement from the Veterinarian that flock is free of contagious foot rot. Rams must have a B. ovis negative test within 30 days of sale. • All animals are required to have either Mandatory or Scrapie Flock Certification Program tags. • Consigned animals must be bred and raised by consignor. • One ram can be consigned without consigning any ewes. For each additional ram, you must consign at • • • • • • • • • • least one registered ewe or one pen of commercial or registered ewes. REQUIREMENTS FOR COMMERCIAL KATAHDIN EWE SALE: Minimum weight of 70 pounds for Spring Ewe Lambs At least three-fourths Katahdin Age Classes; Yearling (9/1/12-8/ 31/13), Fall ewe lambs (9/1/13-12/ 31/13), Spring Ewe Lambs (Jan 1May 31) Consigned as pens of 3, 4 or 5 ewes (not as individual ewes) Shed over 2/3 of body (ewes must not be shorn or clipped; commercial ewes may be tail-docked) Consignment Fee of $20/pen Expo Sale Committee has the right to reject commercial ewe sale entries. REQUIREMENTS FOR REGISTERED KATAHDIN SALE: Registered consignments can be individual rams, individual ewes or pens of 3, 4 or 5 ewes. Sale animals must not be docked or clipped and must not have C coats. Consigned rams must meet minimums for scrotal circumference (> Educational Events Calendar KHSI periodically posts information on sheep sales and sheep events as a public service. Posting sale and event information does not imply endorsement or verification of the claims of any sale or event. Sales and events posted are not sanctioned by KHSI unless otherwise noted. Contact the KHSI Operations Office to ask for your event or sale to be posted. 479-444-8441 or [email protected] 28 cm for ram lambs; > 32 cm for rams) • Accurate recording of date of birth, type of birth (1-2-3-4), and type of rearing (0-1-2-3-4 measured at 30 days of age), must be provided for each animal • Dam production records are required (number lambs born/reared for each year of production) • Optional; Birth, 60 day and 120 day weights are optional. Birth wts should be taken within 24 hours of birth, 60 day wts from 45-90 days of age and 120 day wts from 91-150 days of age. • Consignment Fee of $20 per individual ram/ewe or $20/pen if consigning a pen of ewes. Classes include Rams, Ewes & Ewe pens for the following ages: Yearlings (9/1/12-8/31/13), Fall (9/1/13 12/31/13), Jan 1-Feb 15 born, Feb 15-Mar 31 born, April 1 and after Contact: Jim Morgan, KHSI Operations at 479-444-8441 or [email protected] NOTE: Final Expo Sale Regulations & Consignment Forms will be posted at the KHSI Website Calendar Page by May 15, 2014. Deadline for consigning sheep is June 15th, 2014. Business Card Ads in Hairald for members advertising sheep are currently $15 B/W or $25 Color. May 2, 2014. Integrated Parasite Management (IPM) Workshop. At the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival, Howard County Fairgrounds, West Friendship, Maryland. Info: www.sheepandwool.org Round Mountain Katahdins July 12, 2014. Ohio Sheep Day. Shawn & Kim Ray Farm, Cumberland, Ohio. Info: www.ohiosheep.org Performance Selection on Pasture **August 8, 2014. Tenth Annual Katahdin Hair Sheep International Expo. Annual KHSI Educational Workshops on August 8th at USDA Meat Animal Research Center, Clay Center, Nebraska. **- Indicates there is an article with more information in this issue of the Hairald. PAGE 36 Selecting stock with balanced EBVs, superior Lbs Lamb Weaned and Parasite Resistance Jim Morgan & Teresa Maurer NW Arkansas • 479-444-6075 [email protected] THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG check out our Breeder Page at www.katahdins.org NSIP, SFCP certified scrapie free SPRING 2014 KHSI Member’s Guide 02/14 The Katahdin Hairald is the official publication of Katahdin Hair Sheep International, which provides education about: • registering individual Katahdin sheep and recording performance • maintaining the distinct identity of the Katahdin breed • approaches to promotion and marketing • summaries of research and development related to the breed 2013-2014 Board of Directors President: Lee Wright, [email protected], 276-698-6079, Virginia Vice President: Carl Ginapp, [email protected], 641-425-0592, Iowa Secretary: Roxanne Newton, [email protected], 229-794-3456, Georgia Treasurer: John Dyer, [email protected], 812-362-8012, Indiana Director: Maria Dosch, [email protected], 605-329-2478, South Dakota Director: G.F. “Doc” Kennedy, [email protected], 507-215-0487; Minnesota Director: Henry Shultz, [email protected] ,573-682-7127, Missouri Honorary: Charles Brown, Piel Farm, Maine Honorary: Charles Parker, [email protected], Ohio Honorary: Laura Fortmeyer, [email protected], 785-467-8041, Kansas Canada Representative: Darlene Jordan, [email protected], 306-746-4361 KHSI Operations: • Jim Morgan and Teresa Maurer; PO Box 778; Fayetteville, AR 72702-0778 Phone and FAX: 479-444-8441; [email protected] • Send the following to KHSI Operations (Arkansas)-Completed membership and renewal forms and $50 for calendar year dues (renewals due by January 31 each year) Note: new memberships and renewals can be paid online by Paypal at website. • Contact Operations for the following: - Request coat inspections before May 15 Address changes or other corrections for print or web Copies of histories, breed standards, etc BLANK work orders and registration applications. Note: forms and materials are printable from website www.katahdins.org - Brochures (20 free per member per year; additional at • • cost) & promotional items - Information on members with sheep for sale, anyone wanting to buy sheep - Articles, ads, and comments to be published in the Katahdin Hairald - Volunteer for KHSI Committees - Annual meeting information Office Hours (Central time): Monday, Wednesday, Friday (10 am - 3 pm). Calls at other times including evenings and weekends will be answered personally whenever possible. Answering machine, FAX and email: available for messages 24 hours per day. KHSI Registry: John Savage, 1039 State Route 168, Darlington, PA 16115 Phone – 724-843-2084; Email – [email protected] • Contact the Registry with questions about registration, recording, transferring, upgrading procedures. • Send the following to the Registry: - Completed forms for registering, recording, transferring and naming Katahdins • Office Hours (Eastern time): Monday to Friday 8 am- 4pm. • KHSI Committees: (Call 479-444-8441 to volunteer; Committee Chairs listed with committee) Promotion: Roxanne Newton - 229-794-3456 Youth/Education: Henry Shultz – 573-682-7127 Expo Sale: Wes Limesand - 701-235-2114 Breed Improvement: Ron Young - 419-495-2993 SPRING 2014 Publishing/Hairald: Lee Wright – 276-698-6079 Registry Liaison: Maria Dosch - 605-329-2478 Website: Carl Ginapp - 641-425-0592 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 37 Strelow Ranch Adams, ND 58210 Foundation Stock from Dosch Katahdins and Lillehaugen Farms February & March Lambing Sid & Julie Strelow 701-944-2404 • (c) 701-331-9393 [email protected] HalleluYah Farm & Lambs Certified scrapie free flock NWT-205 (pictured here) sired the #2 High Indexing Ram at the VA Tech AREC Forage Ram Test. Progeny will be available Spring 2014 bred for parasite resistance, thickness & growth email us for additional photos Dusty Markham • 386-984-0249 • [email protected] JUBILEE FARM Laura & Doug Fortmeyer Fairview, Kansas 30+ years experience with Katahdins 785-467-8041 • [email protected] Registered & commercial breeding stock Born on pasture, Raised on pasture PAGE 38 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 Classified Ads Classified sale ads for Katahdin or Katahdin-cross sheep are free to all KHSI members in the Katahdin Hairald and at the KHSI website. For the Hairald, please limit length to 40 words. Sheep Wanted Ads can be placed for free for non-KHSI members. Classified Ad Content due April 8th, 2014 to KHSI Operations Office for the Summer 2014 Hairald. Contact KHSI Operations, 479-444-8441 or [email protected]. SHEEP WANTED SHEEP FOR SALE SHEEP FOR SALE ALASKA INDIANA MISSOURI SW AK. Starter Flock. Looking for a starter flock of 4-5 lambs/sheep. Does anybody know of Katahdins in Alaska? Located in Anchorage area. Please e-mail with information Kat Gambill in Chugiak, AK. [email protected] Central IN. Registered & Commercial Lambs. Raising Katahdin sheep for 25+ yrs. Lambs from 70 head of adult ewes .Jan-Apr lambing. 4 separate flocks; provide unrelated rams & ewes Daniel Leslie of Leslie Farms, Tennyson, IN. 812-567-4542 or [email protected] South Central MO. Registered Flock Dispersal. Entire flock for sale, registered & registrable lambs & ewes up to 5 yrs. old. QR & RR. Closed flock, Pasture fed. $250 for bred ewes & $200 for rest. B&B Farms, Bernard & Brenda Paul. Norwood, MO. 417-7460084 [email protected] IOWA MONTANA Western IA. Registered Proven RR Ram Lambs & Mature Ram. 2 ram lambs & muscular mature ram used this yr. Need new rams for next season. Born April 2013. $7501000 ea.. Dustin Koyle of Grandpas Farm. Honey Creek IA. 712-642-9386 or [email protected] or www.grandpasfarmllc.com Eastern MT. Flock Reduction. 60 Registered & Commercial Bred Ewes. Due end of Feb. Then sell with lambs. Most young 1 to 3 years old. All RR/QR & bred to RR Rams. Ewes are $150 (whole group is $7,300). You Transport. Rita George, Montana Katahdins, Miles City, MT 406-234-5728, [email protected] KANSAS NEW MEXICO NE KS. Registered Ram Lambs. Taking orders. Sired by 2 time Grand Champion Ram "Fully Loaded LU 07-001". January 2014 born. Weaned & ready to go in 60-90 days! Joe & Jennifer Novak. Novak Livestock in Oketo, KS. 785-744-3454 [email protected] Central NM. Flock Reduction Sale. Registered sheep. OPP negative flock. Rams & ewes born 2011 to Feb 2013. QR & RR. Color. $150-$250. Pics available by by email or text. 505-861-0489. [email protected] David & Jenny Anglen, Iris Hill Farm, Bosque, NM. NORTH DAKOTA NE ND. Yearling Ram. Commercial/ Registred. White. Must be from excellent mother. Dennis in Brocket, ND. 701-655-3589 or [email protected] SHEEP FOR SALE CALIFORNIA Central CA. Registered RR Ewes. 25 high quality RR registered ewes. Pics available. Thick, fancy, hard working med-to large ewes that raise good lambs. No grain. Bred to good, thick home raised RR rams. Ewe lambs $250, mature ewes (2-6yrs) $400 Jackie Hagberg, Madera, CA 559-674-4355 or [email protected] Registered Ram & Ewe Lambs. Ewe & Ram Lambs available in May 2014. Tin Barn Katahdins. Julie Browne in Cazadero, CA. 707-785-2982 or [email protected] for information or photos ILLINOIS West Central IL. Bred/Exposed Registered Ewe Lambs. 2 bred registered ewe lambs, March born. Due in April. Both are black. 1 bred to a black ram & the other to a red ram. $250 each. Call, text or email me. Dana Nelson, Briar Ridge Farm, Colchester, IL 309333-9697 [email protected] Starting April 1st – Use Registry in Pennsyvlania SPRING 2014 KENTUCKY Yearling QR & RR Registered Rams. Born April/May 2013. Sired by BGK 743. All twins or triplets, showing good parasite resistance. Kay Cloyd, Bluegrass Katahdins, Lexington, KY, 859254-2840 or [email protected]. MARYLAND Central MD. Registered RR Lambs. Born Jan & Feb. Reserve yours now! Dams are 3 generations of 4-H Fair Katahdin Champions & history of twins & triplets. Available after 8 August. $275-$325 Thank you for supporting 4-H! Breanne Yencha, Harrogate West Farm, Sykesville, MD. 410-262-5599, [email protected] www.katahdins.org OKLAHOMA NE OK. RR Registered Proven Ram & 2013 Ram Lambs. 4 RR white May 2013 born twin/triplet ram lambs weighing 255-275 lbs at 8.5 months. SFCP-Select flock Also, proven ram, sire of the above rams. $500 each. Jill Deck of Tulsa, OK. 918-445-2156, 918-625-6045 or text to 625-6045. [email protected] TENNESSEE SE TN. Registered Ewes & Rams. Cedar Creek Farms has five Mar, 2013 QR ewe lambs $250 ea. Yearling & 2 yr old QR/RR rams availables. Quality sheep out of GLM, KDK, & CED genetics. Michael Stumpff, Cedar Creek Farm, Georgetown, TN. 423-505-4274, [email protected] THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 39 SHEEP FOR SALE TEXAS NE TX. Registered & Commercial Ram & Ewe Lambs. Reg ewe lambs, $225. Com ewe lambs $200, Reg ram lambs, $150 & com ram lambs, $125. Multiple lines, long bodied, very gentle sheep. Start lambing Feb 2014. Taking Deposits. Steve & Jala Runnels, Lonview TX. [email protected], 903-720-8201 VIRGINIA SW VA. Flock Dispersal Sale. Dispersing flock-health reasons. 110 ewes (yearling to 3-5yrs) Due starting Feb 1. Instant money making opportunity. 17 years of sheep. Genetics from finest flocks & breeders East Coast- Commercial Ewes. $350 pr.head.276-706-0799, 276-706-0665 Amy McVey, Melissa Frye, Grandview Farms in Saltville, VA. [email protected] WASHINGTON NW WA. Registered & Commercial Ewes. 2 yr old registered ewes, & non-registered ewe lambs & yearlings. [email protected]. Kate Montgomery at Blue Mountain Katahdins 360-452-2919 KHSI Registry moving to Darlington, Pennsylvania After April 1, send all registry work to 1039 State Route 168 Darlington, PA 16115 (724) 841-2084, [email protected] PAGE 40 Have you paid your dues? Do you want your Flock listed on the KHSI Website? Contact KHSI Operations at [email protected]. Classified Ads, continued [email protected] • www.xpressionsonline.us THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG SPRING 2014 Advertisers Index (listed alphabetically) Banner Publications, Illinois .......................................................................................29 Birch Creek Farms, Brad & Tracy Williams, Oklahoma ................................................15 Brokaw Farm Katahdins, Patrick, Brenda, & Lee Brokaw, Illinois..................................40 Buckeye Acres Genetics, Ron Young, Ohio .................................................................27 Caney Creek Farms, Dwayne & Kathy Kieffer, Tennessee............................................17 CMG Katahdins, Carl & Marcia Ginapp, Iowa ............................................................38 Country Oak Ranch, Mark & Sara Dennis, Louisiana ..................................................38 D & J Smith Katahdins, David & Jane Smith, Indiana ....................................................8 Dosch Katahdins, Tom & Maria Dosch, South Dakota .................................................11 Doyle Weaver Katahdins, Doyle & Judy Weaver, Missouri ...........................................32 Dyer Family Katahdins, John, Judy & Scott Dyer, Indiana ............................................17 Fahrmeier Katahdins, Lynn & Donna Fahrmeier, Missouri .............................................3 Goldstrike Mountain Farms, Curtis & Teresa Elliott, OH ..............................................25 HalleluYah Farm & Lambs, Dusty Markham, FL ..........................................................38 Hardtimes Farm, M.O. Register, Florida .....................................................................38 Hidden Meadow Farm, Kevin Ehst, Maine ..................................................................18 Hillcrest Katahdins, David S. Redwine, DVM, Virginia .................................................33 Hound River Farm, Milledge & Roxanne Newton, Georgia..........................................13 Indiana Premier Sheep Sale, Bob Adams, Indiana ......................................................26 JM Katahdins, John & Mitzie Cannon, Florida ............................................................38 Jubilee Farm, Doug & Laura Fortmeyer, Kansas .........................................................38 Julian & Moore Sheep Company, Ed Julian, Ohio............................................. 28 & 38 Katahdin NSIP Breeders Group..................................................................................34 KHSI Registry Changes ........................................................................................ 20-21 Landreth Farm, Steve Landreth, Illiois ........................................................................31 Lazy B Livestock, Howard & Lavonne Brown, Oklahoma .............................................. 9 LC Ranch, Leon & Christine Gehman, Pennsylvania....................................................32 Lillehaugen Farms, Luke & Maynard Lillehaugen, North Dakota.................................40 Pipestone Katahdins, Dr G.F. & Deb Kennedy, Minnesota..............................................5 Pipestone Veterinary Clinic, Dr G.F. Kennedy, Minnesota ...........................................23 Prairie Lane Farm, Henry & Becky Shultz, Missouri .............................................. 7 & 32 Rack of Lamb Corral, Todd & Renee Bauer, Kansas .....................................................12 Round Mountain Farm, Jim Morgan & Teresa Maurer, Arkansas..................................36 Sand Mounain Katahdins, Frankie & Michelle Stiefel, Alabama ....................................6 Silver Maple Sheep Farm, Jay Greenstone, Virginia....................................................30 Spraberry Acres, Clifford Spraberry, Texas ..................................................................17 Strelow Ranch, Sid & Julie Strelow, North Dakota.......................................................38 Sydell, Inc., Steve Thiesen, South Dakota ...................................................................22 Xpressions, Gail Hardy, Arkansas...............................................................................40 SPRING 2014 THE KATAHDIN HAIRALD • WWW.KATAHDINS.ORG PAGE 41 KHSI c/o Jim Morgan & Teresa Maurer P. O. Box 778 Fayetteville, AR 72702-0778 479-444-8441 10th Annual KHSI Expo & Sale Schedule Aug. 7-9, 2014 Adams County Fairgrounds, Hastings, NE and U.S. Meat Animal Research Center in Clay Center NE. Thursday August 7, 2014 Adams County Fairgrounds, Hastings, NE 8:00 – 5:00 Expo Sale Animal Check-in Holiday Inn Express, Hastings, NE 5:00 – 8:00 PM Hastings Expo Registration Friday, August 8, 2014 USDA-Meat Animal Research Center, Clay City, NE 7:30 AM Registration 9:00 Welcome – Dr. John Pollak, Center Director, USMARC 9:15 Experimental Evaluation of Katahdin – Dr. Kreg Leymaster 10:15 Break 10:30 Sheep Genomics – Dr. Noelle Cockett 11:15 Organize rotations. Participants split divided into three groups 11:30 – 1:45 Mini-Sessions and Lunch (Rotate after 40 minutes - 5 minutes between sessions) 11:30 – 12:15 First rotation 12:15 – 1:00 Second rotation 1:00 – 1:45 Third rotation Rotation A: Bus Tour USMARC Sheep Area Rotation B: Genetic Susceptibility to OPP – Dr. Mike Heaton Rotation C: Lunch 2:00 Structural Soundness – Dr. Bert Moore 3:00 Coffee Shop Panel – Questions for all speakers Dr. Pollak, Dr. Leymaster, Dr. Cockett, Dr. Heaton, Dr. Moore 3:30 KHSI Annual Membership Meeting 4:30 Closing Remarks Adams County Fairgrounds, Hastings, NE 6:00 PM Dinner 7:30 Ice Cream Social at Sale Barn, Pre-signup for Buyer’s Numbers Saturday August 9, 2014 Adams County Fairgrounds, Hastings, NE 8:30 AM Sale Animal Display and Viewing 11:30 10th Annual National KHSI Sale