Making money with sheep and goats
-
Upload
university-of-maryland-extension-small-ruminant-program -
Category
Education
-
view
17.436 -
download
1
description
Transcript of Making money with sheep and goats
Susan SchoenianSheep & Goat Specialist
Western Maryland Research & Education CenterUniversity of Maryland Extension
www.sheepandgoat.com
Making money
with sheep and goats
Making money raising sheep and goats
1) Plan to be profitable.
2) Develop a production system based on your resources.
3) Start with (and keep) the right animals.
Making money raising sheep and goats
4) Maintain strict biosecurity.
5) Manage the key factors affecting profitability
6) Apply business and scientific principles to your enterprise.
1) Plan to be profitable: Have a business plan.
A “roadmap” for your business.
A written document that outlines how you plan to run your business.
Anecdotal evidence indicates than those who prepare a business plan are 10 to 20 times more profitable than those who don’t. (Virginia Tech)
Business planning
Allows you to create a business on paper and manipulate and evaluate different scenarios before risking any of your own resources.
Is usually required when you apply for a loan or grant.
Online business planning software: http://agplan.umn.edu
Components of a business plan
Mission statement.Goals and
objectivesDescription of
your business
Mission statement or visionGoals and objectives
Why do you (want to) raise sheep or goats?
Define success. Profitability
Return on investment Tax write-off Quality of life Landscape management 4-H project
Components of a business plan
Resource inventory
Production planMarketing planFinancial plan
Resource inventory
LandFencingBuildingsFeed resources
LaborUnpaid family
Capitalhow will you finance your operation?
Marketing plan
What are you going to sell?
Who are you going to sell it to?
How are you going to sell it?
Will it be profitable?
Identify your target market.
Financial plan
Balance sheetIncome statementCash flow
statementEnterprise budget
http://www.sheepandgoat.com/spreadsheets.html
Production plan: predator control
Proper fencingManagement
51.7%
22.7%
Predators were responsible for 37% of sheep and lamb deaths in 2005.
Livestock guardians Lethal control
Perimeter fencingA good fence is your first line of defense against predators.
Woven/net wire Barbed wire at ground
level Electric offset wires
High-tensile, electric 5 to 7 wires Close together near
ground Keep fence lines clean
Livestock guardians
Guardian dogs Great Pyrenees Akbash Maremma Anatolian Shepherd Komondor Tibetan Mastiff Polish Tatra
Llamas Female or neutered
male
Donkeys Gelding or jenny
45% of U.S. sheep farms use livestock guardians.
2) Develop a production system based on your resources.
Land and feedBuildingsLabor and skills
3) Start (and keep) with the RIGHT animals for your production system.
Select healthy, sound animals from reputable breeders.
Select appropriate breeds for your enterprise.
Don’t buy good females and skimp on the males.
Start small and grow the size of your operation gradually.
Healthy, sound animals from reputable breeders
From disease-free herds Abscesses (CL) Foot rot Soremouth Pinkeye
Sound reproductive organs. Teats and Udders Testicles, epididymis, penis
Sound and solid mouthsModerate body condition.
Healthy, sound animals from reputable breeders
Ideally from scrapie-certified or monitored flocks.
Ideally from CAE-free herds and OPP-free flocks.
Find out history of flock/herd Disease history Vaccination program Deworming program
Favor performance-tested livestock
EPD’s (NSIP or DHIA)Ram and buck testsOn-farm records
Adjusted weaning and litter weights
Post-weaning gain Carcass or ultrasound
data Milk records Fiber records
You can’t tell much by looking at an animal.
Select appropriate breeds: ewes and does
Purpose: meat, milk, dairy, wethers, show
AdaptabilityType of coat or
woolReproductive
abilityMaintenance
levelIt’s the females that make you money!
The “Holy grail” pounds of quality lamb/goat weaned
Early pubertyProlificacyMaternal abilityLamb/kid
survivalMilk productionOut-of-season
breeding
It’s the females that make you money!
Select appropriate breeds: rams and bucks
What’s the ram of buck’s purpose?
Sire market lambsWhat weight, condition?
Sire replacement ewe lambs
Sire both
Select appropriate breeds: rams and bucks
Growth rateCarcass meritSurvival
Fiber and dairy
Merits of crossbreeding
Hybrid vigor [heterosis]: the superiority of crossbred offspring to the average performance of their parents.
Breed complementarity: all breeds have strengths and weaknesses.
Crossbreeding principles
Mating rams and ewes of different breed compositions.
Does not denote indiscriminate mixing of breeds.
Utilizes breeds in their appropriate role. Suffolk as a ram. Polypay as a ewe.
Sizing sheep for the market A lamb is ready for market when it weighs
approximately 2/3 of its mature size.
Optimal slaughter weight for lambs
Average mature ewe weight of sire breed
95 120 140 160 200
Average mature ewe
weight of dam breed
95 64 76 83 90 103
120 80 91 98 112
140 94 105 120
160 107 127
200 134
4) Maintain strict biosecurity
Don’t buy animals at sale barns.
Isolate new livestock for at least 30 days.
Close flock (except males) as soon as you can
Don’t show.
Most diseases walk through the gate onto your farm.
4) Maintain strict biosecurity
Don’t spread diseases via shearing and sharing of equipment.
Control wildlife Limit visitors.Preventative health
management.Cull problem
animals.Most diseases walk through the gate onto your
farm.
5) Manage the factors affecting profitability
1) Percent quality lamb/kid crop marketed
2) Feed costs3) Market prices
Percent lamb/kid crop
FertilityLitter size
Ovulation rate
Embryo survival
Survival
Maximize litter size for your production environmentSeason
Highest fertility in fall (spring lambing/kidding)
Age Most productive age: 3-6
Nutrition Body condition Flushing
Genetics Within breed Between breeds
Control feed costsFeed accounts for ~70% of total costs.
Feed balanced rationsSeparate animals into production groups.
Limit feedFeed whole grainCompare nutrient
costsFeed least-cost rationsWeigh feed
http://www.sheepandgoat.com/articles/copinghighfeedcosts.html
Control feed costsFeed accounts for ~70% of total costs.
Consider alternative feeds.
Store feed properly: invest in feed storage.
Minimize feed wastage: invest in good feeders.
Maximize your pasture resource.
Cull unproductive animals .
Marketing
Keep ethnic holidays in mind when placing animals into marketing channels.
Direct, niche, and value-added marketing have the potential to increase profits.
Highest price does not always equate to the highest net price.
The science, art, and business of cultivating the soil, producing crops, and raising livestock.
6) Agriculture is . . .
Farming is a business.
Select sheep and goats for economically important traits.
Feed least cost rations. Use inputs to the point
that they provide an economic return.
Base management decisions on economics.
Keep financial records. File schedule F Calculate cost of
production. Determine profitability
per unit of production.
Science and technology
Use scientifically-proven methods of production to raise sheep and goats.
Disease treatment Preventative health Feeding Breeding and selection
Science and technology
Not all science is practical or economical.
Not all research is properly designed or conducted.
Apply your own logic and reasoning to research data and conclusions.
Science and technology
Listen to, but don’t rely on testimonials.
Test your own hypotheses.
Conduct on-farm research.
Share research needs with the university.
The art of farming
Some things you can’t learn in a book.
Science can’t explain everything.
Some things you can control.
You need to balance book knowledge with the real world.
The livestock don’t read the books.
Thank you for your attention
www.sheepangoat.com