AnSci 429
Advanced Sheep Production
Dr. Dan Morrical
337 Kildee
294-0847
morrical@iastate.edu
Quiz
1. A sick sheep is a dead sheep?
2. Sheep are dumb?
3. Wool is worthless?
4. Sheep are a good mowing service?
5. Sheep stink?
Historical
Sheep domestication
10,000 B.C.
Uses - food, fiber, milk and skins
Small easy to handle
Sheep are man dependent
Flocking instinct
Countries with large sheep numbers
Australia
Former Soviet Union
China
New Zealand
India
Turkey
Top 6 countries = 2/3 of world population.
NZ = 427 sheep per square mile.
U.S. Sheep Population Growth
First Sheep - Jamestown, 1609
1810
1840
7 million
19 million
60% Northeast
1884
53 million
westward movement
Ohio US Sheep Capital
1908
48 million
>50% in Western U.S.
1942
56 million (peak)
Steady decline since
Reasons for decline
Demand
Predators
Internal Parasites
Prestige and/or glamour
Diseases
Poor production efficiency
Technology development
Technology adoption
Government program
Reasons for decline
Skilled labor and high labor
Competition for land resources
Inefficient and costly
transportation
slaughter & processing
Wool income decreased
Operations by size, 1999
Flock
%
% of
Size
1-99
Producers
91.2
Sheep
27.9
100-499
7.2
22.0
500-4999
1.6
35.2
>5000
.1
14.8
Sheep - versatile and adaptable
Operations vary from:
Very extensive - 10,000 head range bands
Very intensive - 25 head acc. lambing
Range flockwool and lamb Income
20:80
Farm flocks wool and lamb Income
5:95
U. S. Sheep Industry, 2006
4.6 million ewes
1.15 lamb crop
60k operations ??
U. S. Sheep Industry
Range
Flock
Flock
s
Farm Flocks
Sheep Numbers - Leading States
2005
2nd
650K
3rd
450K
4th
390
K
5th
385K
1st
1090K
Lamb Slaughter Facilities
Iowa
*
*
Superior
*Lamb
Superior
*
Monfort
*
Ranchers
Lamb
Wolverine
*
*
Chiappetti
Iowa’s National rankings
9th ewe numbers
 5th lambs on feed
 2nd lamb crop (1.44)
 2nd operations

History
Record numbers in 1945 at 56 million
 Wool incentive program

 1955-1995
 paid
subsidy for premium wool
 sent wrong message

Lamb consumption
 US.
has never been a large lamb consuming
population
Production constraints - Range
Predators
 Environmental concerns
 Labor
 Grazing fees
 PP wool prices
 Tradition

Production constraints - Farm




Feed costs
Labor intensive
Facilities
Resource competition
examples:
meat goats
contract swine finisher
Iowa Operations

Commercial
 Winter
lambers
 Low input forage based
 Hand spinners
 Direct marketers
 Accelerated lambers
Purebred/Frame/Show sheep
 Club lamb
 Lamb Feeders

Infrastructure

Limited lamb processors
7

harvest plants
Wool processors
4
main companies
Research and extension
 National organization

 check
off
Future of U. S. Sheep
Loss of wool act adjustment
 Environmentally friendly production
 Forage based production systems

 250-350
pounds weaned per acre
High market prices with low supplies
 Genetics for 200% plus lamb crop
 Low cost production
 Direct marketing
