This presentation was given at the 2015 KHSI Expo in Indiana, PA.

1. EFFICIENT EWE
MANAGEMENT
SUSAN SCHOENIAN
SHEEP & GOAT SPECIALIST
UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND EXTENSION
SSCHOEN@UMD.EDU
WWW.SHEEPANDGOAT.COM
WWW.WORMX.INFO
2015 KHSI EXPO, INDIANA, PA

2. EWE EFFICIENCY
 What is efficiency?
 Why is it important?
 What determines
efficiency?
 How do you improve
efficiency?

3. WHAT IS EWE EFFICIENCY?
 Number lambs born per ewe exposed
 Number of lambs weaned per ewe exposed
 Number of lambs produced (marketed or retained) per ewe exposed

4. WHAT IS EWE EFFICIENCY?
 Pounds lamb weaned per ewe exposed
 Pounds lamb produced (marketed or retained) per ewe exposed
 Pounds of lamb produced per ewe body weight
 Pounds of lamb produced per acre

5. WHAT IS EWE EFFICIENCY?
 Profit per ewe
 Profit per acre

6. WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?
 Ewe efficiency is the driver of profitable sheep production
systems.

7. WHAT DETERMINES EWE EFFICIENCY?
 Size
 Longevity
 Lambing percentage
 Lamb weights
 Feed efficiency
 Other factors (?)

8. SIZE
WEIGHT & BODY CONDITION
Bigger ewes
 Have more lambs
 Have bigger lambs that reach target weights
sooner
 But … they eat more
 And . . . heavier weights may decrease efficiency.
Heavier, better conditioned ewes
 Start cycling earlier in the breeding season
 Have higher ovulation rates
 Have higher conception rates
 Give birth to heavier lambs
 Produce more milk
 Wean heavier lambs with higher survival rates

9. LONGEVITY
STAYABILITY, PRODUCTIVE LIFE SPAN
 An underrated trait
 Increased longevity . . .
 Decreases culling rates
 Reduces female replacement costs
 More market lambs to sell
 Puts more selection pressure on
replacement females.
 Results in higher age-related
performance
 Longer generation interval.

10. HOW TO INCREASE LONGEVITY
 Longevity is a moderately heritable
trait
33% Iran study
27% UK study
 No early life trait that facilitates
indirect selection
 Correlation with body weight
 Future - develop EBVs for longevity

11. HOW TO INCREASE LONGEVITY
 Determine primary reasons for death and
culling in your flock
 Don’t cull based on age
 Maintain high performing ewes in flock for
longer
 Select replacements from long-lived
parents
 Crossbreed to increase longevity

12. LAMBING PERCENTAGE
NUMBER OF LAMBS PRODUCED ÷ NUMBER OF EWES EXPOSED (21 DAYS)
 Primary factor determining profitability in sheep enterprise.

13. LAMBING PERCENTAGE
Composite trait
 Fertility
 Litter size (number lambs born)
 Ovulation rate
 Embryo survival
 Lamb survival
 Direct and maternal affects
 Perinatal, pre- and post weaning
Affected by many different
factors
 Genetics
 Nutrition
 Management
 Season
 Age

14. IMPROVING LAMBING PERCENTAGE:
FERTILITY (PREGNANCY RATE)
 Maintain healthy flock
 Proper ram management
 Use fertile rams with high libido
breeding soundness exam (BSE)
 Adequate ram power:
35 to 50 (mature ram) 15-25 (ram lamb)
 Monitor breeding activity
 Have ewes in good body condition at time of joining:
2.5 to 3.5
 Flush ewes with body condition scores < 2
 Provide good nutrition to ensure embryo survival
 Select replacements from ewes that lamb in early
part of lambing season
 Cull ewes that fail to breed in first heat cycle

15. IMPROVING LAMBING PERCENTAGE:
LITTER SIZE (NUMBER BORN) = OVULATION RATE + EMBRYO SURVIVAL
 Maintain healthy flock
 Have ewes in good body condition at time of
joining: 2.5 to 3.5
 Flush ewes with body condition scores < 2
 Proper nutrition to ensure embryo survival,
placental development, and birth of moderate-size
healthy lambs.
 Breed in fall and lamb in spring
 Maintain high-performing ewes in flock for longer
 Reduce lambing interval: accelerated lambing
 Select for litter size (H2=~10%)
Use ram with family history of multiple births
Select replacements from most productive ewes
EBVs for number born, number weaned

16. IMPROVING LAMBING PERCENTAGE: LAMB SURVIVAL
Timing
 At birth
 0-3 days
 3-10 days
 10 days until weaning
 Post weaning
Causes
 Abortion
 Dystocia
 Starvation
 Hypothermia
 Disease: scours, pneumonia, clostridial
 Digestive problems
 Internal parasites
 Predators
When and why do lambs die?

17. IMPROVING LAMBING PERCENTAGE
LAMB SURVIVAL (0-10 DAYS)
 Prevent losses due to abortion
biosecurity, vaccination, antibiotic therapy
 Have ewes in good body condition at time of
lambing: 2.5 to 3.5
 Proper late-gestation nutrition
 Proper lambing environment: dry, draft free,
clean
 Short lambing season
 Attended lambing, jugging
 Appropriate vaccination program
 Select for lambing ease, mothering ability,
lamb vigor, milk production.
 EBVs for number weaned.

18. IMPROVING LAMBING PERCENTAGE
LAMB SURVIVAL (10 DAYS UNTIL MARKET)
Pre-weaning
 Short lambing season
 Ewes in good body condition
 Adequate colostrum intake
 Strategic use of coccidiostats
 Good nutrition: supplement forage diet, as necessary to
meet nutritional needs for optimal performance.
 Creep feeding, if pasture or milk production are limiting
factors
 Appropriate vaccination program, usually CDT
 Select for number weaned.
 EBVs for number weaned.
Post-weaning
 Short lambing season
 Appropriate vaccination program, usually CDT
 Good nutrition to support optimal growth rates
 Strategic use of coccidiostats
 Integrated parasite management, including
targeted selective treatment using FAMACHA©
system, Five Point Check©, and Happy Factor
(performance).
 Predator control

19. LAMBS WEIGHTS AND FEED EFFICIENCY
Lamb weights
 Pre-weaning
 Pounds weaned
 Post-weaning
 Pounds marketed
 Days to market
 Market weights
 Carcass weights
 Market grade (?)
Feed efficiency
 Lbs. feed per lb. of gain
 Stocking rates
 Cost of gain

20. IMPROVING LAMB WEIGHTS AND FEED EFFICIENCY
Lamb weights
 Measure growth rates and calculate adjusted
weights and ratios.
 Select for pre- and post-weaning growth in your
own flock.
 Use rams documented to have superior growth
performance
On-farm performance testing
Central ram performance tests (PA, WV, VA)
 Use EBVs for weaning, post-weaning, and yearling
weights.
 Supplement forage diet for optimal performance.
 Crossbreed to improve post-weaning growth.
Feed efficiency
 Determine feed efficiency and cost of gain.
 Use rams documented to have superior feed
efficiency
West Virginia Ram Performance Test
 Hand-feed instead of self-feed
 Whole grains instead of processed grains.
 Improve pasture and grazing management
 Supplement forage diet for better forage utilization
and optimal performance
 Determine optimal ewe size for your production
environment.

21. OTHER FACTORS AFFECTING EFFICIENCY
 Parasite resistance
need for deworming/monitoring
 Hoof health
need for hoof trimming
 Hair coat
need for shearing
 Overall health and need for
treatment
 Behavior

22. KEEP/CULL TO IMPROVE EFFICIENCY
 Use parasite resistant rams
 Cull ewes that require (frequent) deworming or are
heavy egg shedders.
 Cull animals that require frequent hoof trimming
 Cull animals with re-occurring hoof problems.
 Cull animals that don’t respond to treatment for
hoof diseases.
 Favor animals with dark-colored hooves (?)
 Cull animals that require shearing
 Cull ewes that require assistance at lambing.
 Cull any animal that fails to thrive.
 Cull animals with behavior problems.

23. BREED EWE LAMBS TO INCREASE EFFICIENCY
 Ewes that are bred as lambs have a higher lifetime production that ewes bred for the first time as
yearlings.
 Breeding ewe lambs speeds up genetic gain.
 Evidence suggests that ewes that lamb at 1 year of age are better mothers at 2 years of age.

24. FACTS ABOUT EWE LAMBS
 Ewe lambs have higher nutritional requirements than mature
ewes, because they are still growing.
 Ewes lambs do not compete well with mature ewes.
 Ewe lambs cycle later in the breeding season than mature ewes
– and stop cycling sooner.
 Ewe lambs are less likely to seek out a ram
 Ewe lambs are in estrus (standing heat) for a shorter period of
time
 Ewe lambs have lower conception and pregnancy rates
 Ewe lambs have lower ovulation rates
 Ewe lambs produce less milk

25. TIPS FOR BREEDING EWE LAMBS SUCCESSFULLY
 Feed replacement ewe lambs for moderate growth so
they reach their target breeding weights (60-70% of
mature weight).
 Manage and feed ewe lambs separately from mature
ewes.
 Mate ewe lambs separately and after mature ewes
 Mate ewe lambs in confinement or small pastures
 Mate ewe lambs to ram of same breed or breed with
smaller mature size
 Jug ewes and lambs
 Creep feed lambs
 Wean lambs early

26. ESTABLISH BENCHMARKS FOR YOUR FARM
Trait Definition Goal
Fertility No. ewes lambing ÷ no. ewes exposed (21 days) 100%
Lambing percent No. lambs weaned ÷ no. ewes exposed > 200%
Percent triplet births Percent ewes giving birth to triplets > 33%
Birth weight Avg. birth weigh 8-10 lbs.
Lamb death loss Percent lamb deaths < 5 %
Pre-weaning ADG (Weaning weight - birth weight) ÷ age > 0.75
Pre-weaning ADG (Weaning weight - birth weight) ÷ age > 0.50
Lbs. lamb weaned Lbs. lamb weaned per ewe exposed > 150 lbs.
Efficiency Pounds of lamb weaned ÷ # ewes exposed >100%
Profit per ewe Income - expenses ÷ no. ewes >$150
Hoof growth Need for hoof trimming < 20%
Parasite resistance Need for deworming 0

27. THANK YOUR FOR YOUR ATTENTION.
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?
SUSAN S CHOENIAN
Sheep & Goat Specialist
sschoen@umd.edu
www.sheepandgoat.