tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6109280025743411757.post4607538741370682602..comments2023-09-30T06:42:37.342-04:00Comments on Losing Our Shirts, Keeping The Farm: More WorriesNancy Chasehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06537838536319846967noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6109280025743411757.post-35019563588157117462007-09-30T22:39:00.000-04:002007-09-30T22:39:00.000-04:00To carry your corporate analogy a little further, ...To carry your corporate analogy a little further, it is like hiring foreign workers who don't speak English and you don't speak whatever they speak. How can they tell you what's wrong? You got guts Nancy. I can say that much. Hang in there.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6109280025743411757.post-31196894420080898562007-09-30T15:38:00.000-04:002007-09-30T15:38:00.000-04:00Thanks everybody. I really appreciate the words o...Thanks everybody. I really appreciate the words of support!<BR/><BR/>Raven... yes, sheep parasites can become resistant to chemical wormers, just like horse parasites can.<BR/><BR/>I don't think that has happened here so far. One way of helping to prevent it (which I practice) is to only worm the sheep who are showing signs of needing it.<BR/><BR/>A simplified explanation of why this method helps:<BR/><BR/>When you worm a sheep, all of the susceptible worms it carries die. A few resistant worms may be left. Do this enough times, and ONLY resistant worms are left. They breed and multiply, and then you're in trouble.<BR/><BR/>If you only worm each individual sheep when absolutely necessary, all the sheep that you don't worm continue to shed susceptible worms onto the pasture, which breed with the resistant ones, and dilute the resistant strains, so you don't have as much of a problem.<BR/><BR/>It's kind of counter-intuitive, but it does slow the development of resistant strains of parasites.<BR/><BR/>Anyway, here on my farm, the worms do still seem to be affected by the wormers I uses. I'm also experimenting with concentrated liquid garlic (shown to help limit the growth of certain worms) and supplementation of certain vitamins and minerals to help the sheep resist infestations as much as possible.<BR/><BR/>Other methods I plan to try next year include: copper oxide boluses, diatomaceous earth added to the mineral mix, and most importantly, pasture rotation.<BR/><BR/>If you raise sheep, learning about parasite control is even more crucial than with horses, so I'm constantly trying to learn more about it.Nancy Chasehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06537838536319846967noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6109280025743411757.post-32659267958653832442007-09-30T13:52:00.000-04:002007-09-30T13:52:00.000-04:00Hi Nancy,I 've been reading along for a while now ...Hi Nancy,<BR/>I 've been reading along for a while now and just wanted to say *HUG!* Hang in there!!! I know what it's like to feel like no matter what you do you can bearly keep your head above water! It DOES get better... Really! As tot he sheep issue, I know nothing about sheep (Other than what I've read on your site and that they are adorable and I want one! *G*) But I was wondering can sheep become wormer resistant/build up a tolerance or immunity to it like horses? (I know we have to rotate wormers with our horses so that doesn't happen, could it be the same with sheep?) Sorry if it sounds dumb but I just wondered if that could be part of it...<BR/>Hope things start looking up soon!!!<BR/>-RavenAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6109280025743411757.post-61773433034292998052007-09-28T14:35:00.000-04:002007-09-28T14:35:00.000-04:00Goodness! I'm away from your blog for a few days ...Goodness! I'm away from your blog for a few days and all hell breaks loose. You are the busiest woman I know! Wish I had some words of wisdom but everything I know about sheep, I learned from you! Hang in there...Meggiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06757567456934248035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6109280025743411757.post-84128407281347240002007-09-28T12:27:00.000-04:002007-09-28T12:27:00.000-04:00Hang in there Nancy! I understand all of your fru...Hang in there Nancy! I understand all of your frustrations and anxieties, and know that eventually it will all work out. Until then try to just enjoy all of the great things about your farm, especially the constant love and affection from your animals. <BR/><BR/>Keep up the good work! Hope things work out soon so you can relax a little bit!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6109280025743411757.post-43110464067890254992007-09-28T00:58:00.000-04:002007-09-28T00:58:00.000-04:00HI Nancy,As you note, bottle jaw (hypoproteinemia)...HI Nancy,<BR/><BR/>As you note, bottle jaw (hypoproteinemia) is usually associated with parasites (h. contortus especially), but not always. Anything that can cause low blood protein might be responsible: I wonder if their nutritional needs are being completely met while waiting in the ram pen? They could show the edema anywhere but it is usually associated with the jaw since that is down while they are grazing and shows the effects of gravity. Other possibilities could be copper (as you note) or other mineral deficiencies, stress (also possible in this case), smoke inhalation (??) and a couple more serious diseases. But I would go with the nutritional guess first. Some high protein supplements might help. It can take a while (couple weeks) to completely disappear since the sheep has to build up protein levels. FWIW, I have not seen wool break occur as a result of worming (unless you count damage I initiate when I grab one of them incorrectly!!). It is common after a fever even if they get over it themselves and we never notice. Good luck.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com