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December 2003 - Vol. 2 Issue 6

Inside this issue . . . Newsletter Renewal Scrapie Surveillance VA-NC Shepherd's Symposium Holiday Marketing of Lambs/Kids Slaugther Poster Sustainable Ag Conferences MPWV Update Focus on Research: Tail Dock Length Reducing Worm Burdens in Goats Supplementing Goats on Pasture Delaware Meat Goat Conference Sheep and Goats in Brazil Ewe Management Tips Featured Web Site Calendar Events Download PDF file (672 K) of newsletter

Susan, Samantha, and George at the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival

 

Newsletter Renewal

This will be the last FREE mailing of the Maryland Sheep & Goat Producer newsletter. Due to budget constraints, we are going to have to start charging for mailed copies of the newsletter. After this issue, the cost of receiving six issues per year in the mail will be $10. The newsletter will still be available on the Internet (HTML or PDF format) for FREE. You can have your name added to the e-mail list so that you receive an e-mail message when a new issue of the newsletter has been posted to the web at http://www.sheep andgoat.com/news/.

If you wish to receive the newsletter via the mail or an e-mail reminder, please fill out and returned the enclosed form. Checks should be made payable to the MPWV Meat Goat Producers Association and sent to Sheep and Goat Newsletter, Western Maryland Research & Education Center, 18330 Keedysville Road, Keedysville, MD 21756, (301) 432-4089 (fax), sschoen@umd.edu (e-mail). Thanks to those of you who have already responded.

Download Newsletter Subscription/Renewal Form in PDF format.

Maryland Sheep & Goat Directory

So far, we have received over 100 entries for the new Maryland Sheep & Goat Directory. We have put the names into a computer database and are in the process of putting the database on the web. Once the database is on the web, you will be able to conduct searches of the information and add and edit information about your farm online.

http://www.smallfarmsuccess.info/sheepandgoat.cfm

1 in 500 Sheep Has Scrapie

¹Included all states east of the Mississippi River.
2For sheep that could not be traced to a specific region.

While the slaughter surveillance study did not include trace back of scrapie-positive animals, the goal of the new Regulatory Scrapie Slaughter Surveillance (RSSS) program, which began when the surveillance study ended, is to detect as many scrapie-positive sheep as possible and to identify infected flocks. Since April 1, 2003, 3,210 sheep have been tested and 12 sheep have been determined to be scrapie-positive or suspect. In FY 2004, the goal is to test 45,000 animal samples.

The goal of the U.S. sheep industry is to eradicate scrapie by 2010. Continued research and surveillance will be necessary to achieve this final disease-free status.

Source: ASI Sheep Industry News. Nov 2003.

VA-NC Shepherd’s Symposium

The 2004 Virginia-North Carolina Shepherd’s Symposium will be held on January 9-10 at the Sheraton Four Points Hotel and Rockingham County Fairgrounds in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Topics and speakers include:

• Obstetrics and newborn lamb management (Dr. Kevin Pelzer)
• Genetic lessons from the UK (Dr. Ron Lewis)
• ASI update (David Greene)
• National Animal ID Program
• National Wool Program and value-added wool marketing (Bob Padula)
• Hair sheep research update (Drs. Scott Greiner and David Notter)
• Internal parasite strategies (Dr. Anne Zajac)
• Producer Panel (Keys to a successful sheep enterprise)
• Lamb grading and evaluation (Mike Carpenter, VA Dept. of Ag)

A commercial bred ewe lamb sale will be held on Saturday in conjunction with the Symposium at the Rockingham County Fairgrounds. The ewe lambs being sold are part of Virginia Tech’s Commercial Ewe Lamb Development Program.

The registration deadline for the symposium is December 30. Full registration includes meals and proceedings and is $60. For registration information or a copy of the program, call (540) 231-9163 or send an e-mail to Dr. Scott Greiner at sgreiner@vt.edu.

Holiday Marketing of Lambs/Kids

Wrong date given for Muslim holiday

In the last newsletter, the date for Eid-al-Adha, the Muslim “Festival of Sacrifice” was given as February 12. This is incorrect. The correct date is February 1 (or 2), 2004. The Festival of Sacrifice occurs in the 12th month of the Islamic calendar and is when Muslims observe activities associated with the annual “Hajj” or pilgrimage to Mecca (Islamic Holy city). A lamb or other animal is sacrificed to commemorate the Prophet Abraham’s readiness to sacrifice his son at God’s request.

For the Festival of Sacrifice, the preference is usually for a lamb or kid between 60 and 80 pounds, though bigger lambs and kids may also be in demand. Old crop lambs may be sought by some buyers. Sometimes, yearlings are preferred. Some customers may seek “unblemished” male lambs or kids that have not been docked, castrated, or ear-tagged. The Muslim market generally discriminates against overly fat lambs and kids.

Easter falls on same day

2004 is unusual in that both Greek (Eastern Orthodox) and Roman (Western) Easter will occur on the same day – April 11. Usually they occur on different dates since different calendars are used to determine the dates of the holiday (Gregorian vs. Julian). Lamb is one of the most important symbols of Easter. To Christians, lamb represents Jesus and relates His death to that of the lamb sacrificed on the first Passover. As such, many Christians serve lamb as part of the Easter feast.

The demand at Easter is usually for light weight carcasses from young (new crop), fleshy, milk-fed lambs and kids (live weight: 30-45 lbs., lambs; 30 lbs., kids). Different ethnic groups may have a preference for different weight lambs and kids. For example: people of Italian descent generally prefer lighter weight animals than Greeks.

Source: www.sheepgoatmarketing.org

On-Farm Humane (Halal) Slaughter Poster Available

The Northeast Sheep & Goat Marketing Program now has available a poster outlining the techniques for humane (Halal) on-farm slaughter. Non-laminated posters are available for $10; laminated versions are $20. To order, contact Susan Schoenian at sschoen@umd.edu or (301) 432-2767 x343 (Mid-Atlantic states) or tatiana Stanton at tls7@cornell.edu (Northern states). Currently the poster is available only in English. The poster can be previewed on the web at http://www.sheepgoatmarketing.org /sgm/news/HumaneSlaughter.pdf.

Sustainable Ag Conferences

Pennsylvania

The PASA¹ 13th Annual “Farming for the Future” Conference will be held February 5-7, 2004 at the Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel in State College, PA. This year’s conference will include a Small Ruminant Tract (on Thursday). Topics and speakers include:

• Basic Nutrition Introduction, Robert van Saun, Penn State University, PA
• Meat Marketing and Production, Tatiana Stanton, Cornell University, NY
• Small Scale Dairy Processing and Marketing, Vicki Dunaway, Creamline Newsletter and Small Dairy News
• Advanced Ruminant Nutrition, Robern van Saun, Penn State University, PA
• Rare Breeds, Improving Genetics, Colleen Kozlowski, Barking Rock Farm, PA
• Parasite Control and Health Care, Joe McCahon, Holistic and Homeopathic Vet, PA

For information, contact PASA at (814) 349-9856 or e-mail at www.pasafarming.org.

¹ Pennsylvania Association of Sustainable Agriculture.

www.pasafarming.org

Maryland

The Future Harvest CASA¹ 5th Annual “Farming for Profit and Stewardship” Conference will be held January 16-17 at the Sheraton Four Points Hotel in Hagerstown. In addition to speakers and topics covering a wide range of sustainable agriculture topics, the Future Harvest Conference will feature a session on “New Opportunities for Wool Producers.” There will also be workshops on Livestock Behavior and Handling and Value-Added Dairy.

Conference registration is $25 for Future Harvest members, $65 for non-members, and $15 for students. Future Harvest membership is $25 per year. For information, contact Future Harvest at (410) 604-2681 or fhcasa@friend.ly.net.

¹ Future Harvest-Chesapeake Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture.

www.futureharvestcasa.org

MPWV¹ Association Update

The MPWV Meat Goat Producers Association held its fall meeting on November 8 at Garrett College in McHenry, MD. Prior to the business meeting, Tom Rohanna from Nutrena (Feeds) in Waynesburg, PA gave a general presentation on goat nutrition. Mr. Rohanna will be working with the MPWV Association to develop and distribute two meat goat rations: a 12% maintenance diet for does and a 16% lactation/creep diet for does and kids.

The business meeting was conducted by newly elected president Dick Dixon from West Virginia. During the meeting, the membership approved several changes for 2004. The annual Meat Goat Conference, held at Garrett College, will be held in the spring on Saturday, March 20 instead of following the Meat Goat Show and Mt. Top Boer Goat Sale, which will be held June 5 at the Garrett County Fairgrounds. The annual meeting of the Association will be held at the fall meeting, at which time new officers will be elected. Pam Adams agreed to serve as web master for the Association’s web site, meatgoat.biz. It was also announced that Greene County, PA will be hosting a regional IGBA2 Show on May 22, 2004. An IBGA judging school will be held in conjunction with the show.

¹ Maryland-Pennsylvania-West Virginia
2 International Boer Goat Association.

Web site: meatgoat.biz

Focus on Research

Tail Length and Incidence of Rectal Prolapse in Lambs

A multi-state cooperative study was undertaken to study the current issue of tail docking length and its relationship to the incidence of rectal prolapses. 1,227 lambs (of different breeds) at six locations (Wisconsin, Iowa, Texas, Ohio, and Oregon) were randomly allocated to two or three tail dock treatments:

1) Short - tail was removed as close to the body as possible.
2) Medium – tail was removed at a location midway between the attachment of the tail to the body and the attachment of the caudal tail folds to the tail.
3) Long - tail was removed at the attachment of the caudal tail folds.

All lambs were docked using elastrator bands at 1 to 7 days of age. After weaning, most lambs were fed high-concentrate diets in confinement. However, at two stations, lambs were finished in either a feedlot on a high-concentrate diet or on pasture with no grain supplementation.

Results. Sixty (60) rectal prolapses occurred among the 1,227 lambs in the study, for an overall incidence of 4.9%. At the station with a very low incidence of rectal prolapse, there was no difference in incidence between lambs in the feedlot or on pasture. At the station with a relatively high incidence of prolapse, lambs in the feedlot had a higher incidence than lambs on pasture.

Discussion. In this study, the half-sib estimate for heritability for the incidence of rectal prolapse was found to be low (0.14). The results strongly implicate short dock length as a cause of rectal prolapse in lambs finished on high concentrate diets. They strongly suggest that docking lambs at the sight of the attachment of the caudal folds to the tail will result in a negligible incidence of rectal prolapse.

The United States appears to be the only country where ultra-short docks are common. Some major sheep producing countries have national codes of practice or laws that set minimum dock lengths in sheep. In the United Kingdom, the law states that sufficient tail (dock) must be left on males to fully cover the anus and in females to fully cover the vulva to protect the anus and vulva from flies and adverse weather conditions.

Source: Journal of Animal Science 2003.

NE-SARE¹ Project Results

Reducing Worm Burdens in Goats

This year was a better year for goat parasites than for goats. However, with a NE-SARE1 grant for an on-farm study, Harry and Karen Taylor of Princess Anne (Somerset County) dewormed less often and did not lose any kids to worms, as compared to last year when they lost 5 out of 20 (continuously grazed) kids, despite deworming every four weeks.

The Taylors’ grant project focused on alternatives to deworming. They applied for and were awarded a NE-SARE on-farm research grant that provided funds to plant sericea lespedeza, a warm season perennial legume (like alfalfa) that is high in tannin, and to set up their farm pastures for rotational grazing.

The tannin in sericea lespedeza has been shown to reduce the fertility of adult worms to decrease the worm loads on the pasture and thus in the animals. Researchers at Langston University in Oklahoma were able to reduce worm loads in goats by switching them to sericea lespedeza pastures for two weeks. Worm loads went back up after goats were switched back to traditional grass pastures for 2 to 3 weeks.

Multi-species rotational grazing is also known to decrease worm counts in goats. For example, grazing cattle or horses in a pasture before goats and sheep will decrease worm loads in goats and sheep. This is because the cows eat the worm larva that affects the goats and sheep and the goat/sheep worms cannot grow in a cow. This works the other way too – goats grazing with horses can keep them from getting worms or decrease how often they need deworming.

The Taylors combined multi-species rotational grazing (with beef cattle) with sericea lespedeza. Goats were dewormed at weaning and allowed to graze on grass pasture until they had fecal egg counts of over 500 eggs per gram average, while the heifers grazed sericea. Then, the heifers and goats switched pastures (i.e. goats on sericea, heifers on grass). A month after grazing the sericea, goat fecal egg counts went down to approximately 300 eggs per gram.

The goats were moved back to grass (and heifers to sericea). A month after grazing grass, the goats had high fecal egg counts again, so they were moved back to the sericea (and heifers to grass). A few goats had fecal egg counts so high that they were checked again. After 2 weeks of grazing the sericea, fecal egg counts were low again.

Because the worm counts went up when the goats were grazing grass pastures and down when they were grazing sericea lespedeza, the Taylors believe that the sericea is beneficial for decreasing worm counts in goats. But because this was also their first year rotating pastures, they felt that the rotational grazing could have been helpful, too. Based on the results of this study, the Taylors are planning to submit another NE-SARE Farmer Grower grant application that will incorporate the FAMACHA© eye color chart system and “symptom checks” (do they “look” wormy) compared to fecal egg counts for determining when to deworm.

This year, the Taylors did not lose any animals to worms, despite not deworming much. The only treatment given was at weaning to make sure all goats started at the “same” fecal egg counts and again after the study, so they could be moved to a clean pasture and not contaminate it. Overall, results from this farm study seem to indicate that sericea lespedeza could be beneficial to goat producers, decreasing chemical dewormer use and increasing profits.

For more information contact Harry or Karen Taylor at (410) 651-4486.

Supplementing Goats on Pasture

Kurt Schuster of Salisbury (Wicomico County) received a NE-SARE farmer-grower grant to compare the economics of raising meat goats on pasture alone or with supplemental grain.

Two groups of animals were used. Ten (10) were housed on one farm and nine (9) on another. The animals were all Boer crosses. Thirteen (13) were raised by Kurt. Seven (7) were purchased at auction. For the study, the animals were randomized between purchased or farm-raised, sex (wether or doe), and weight. All animals were dewormed (with Safeguard drench) and vaccinated for CD-T prior to the start of the trial. Each group was placed on 1 acre of recently planted (endophyte-friendly) tall fescue-ladino clover pasture. The supplemented goats received 2% of their body weight daily in supplemental grain. The animals receiving no grain were also given access to three acres of woods which had been grazed by goats for the past 15 years, but did not have much browse available.

The goats were weighed every 4 to 6 weeks and fecal samples were collected to determine the number of worm eggs per gram of feces. If the fecal egg counts were above 1,000 eggs per gram (and then later, even if they were above 500 eggs per gram), the goats were dewormed with Safeguard© drench. However, after losing several animals, Kurt switched to Cydectin. After that, only goats showing signs of worms were dewormed.

Results. Due to above average rainfall, mortality from worms was high. Three animals from each group died from worms.

The goats were marketed at New Holland Sales Stables on November 17, but marketing data for the different groups was not obtained. However, the goats did not appear to look different in their conformation or observable health. The overall weight gain was not different and averaged 16 pounds per goat. There was no difference in fecal egg counts, which averaged 634 eggs per gram. The supplemented group had a higher cost of gain, but required less deworming than the pasture only group, 0.7 times vs. 1.9 times.

Conclusion. Economically, it does not appear to make sense to supplement meat goats on pasture with grain at 2% of their body weight, although grain-feeding does allow closer observation and makes the goats calmer and more acclimated to people.

Kurt plans to submit another SARE grant proposal to explore parasite control strategies for small farms. For more information, you can contact Kurt at (410) 546-4768 or at Kurt_Schuster@intervet.com.

web site: http://www.uvm.edu/~nesare/

Delaware Meat Goat Workshop

The Small Farms Program at Delaware State University will be presenting a meat goat workshop, “Getting Into a Meat Goat Enterprise” on Saturday, January 24, 2004, 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Delaware State University in Dover, DE. Topics will include: ethnic markets; basic and advanced health care; meat goat nutrition; housing, facilities, and management of meat goats; and maximizing efficiency of reproduction and breeding. There will be speakers from Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York.

For reservations, call (302) 857-6462 or send an e-mail to jclendan@desu.edu. The $10 pre-registration fee is due January 19. The feel includes lunch and snacks.

Sheep and Goats in Brazil

Savannah Buck

Santa Inês ram

by Susan Schoenian

Recently, I traveled to João Pessoa, Brazil, to speak at Brazil’s 2nd International Symposium on Meat Goat and Sheep Production, sponsored by the Paraíba State Agricultural Research Company. There were speakers from throughout South America, South Africa, Australia, and the United States. All aspects of sheep and goat production were covered. I was asked to speak about “Hair Sheep Production in the Caribbean,” as a result of my travels with the Maryland Department of Agriculture.

I found Brazil, at least the coast, to have many similarities to the Caribbean, in terms of people, culture, climate, and agriculture. While Brazil is best known for soybean production, we were told that the country aims to be the largest producer and exporter of meat in the world. Brazil already leads the world in beef production and ranks high in pork and poultry meat production. They are gearing up to produce more sheep and goat meat. Current estimates for the sheep (and goat) population in Brazil are about 30 million head, compared to less than 10 million sheep in the United States and 2.5 million goats.

The Boer Goat is gaining in popularity in Brazil. The Savannah goat, another meaty South African breed, has entered the country. Brazil’s most well-known breed of sheep is the Santa Inês, a handsome sheep with slick red or black hair and a large frame. The breed is believed to have been developed from the Morada Nova, another Brazilian hair sheep; the Somalia, an African fat-rumped desert sheep; and the Bergamacia, an Italian wooled breed that is milked. While the exact origins of the Santa Inês are unknown, there is some speculation that the Suffolk breed may have contributed to its development, as producers have noted the increased size and dominance of the black color in recent years. The Dorper, recently imported to Brazil, is considered to be a good breed to cross with the Santa Inês, to add growth and carcass muscling to lambs.

With the growing popularity of hair sheep, many people would like to see the Santa Inês imported into the United States, though our borders are currently closed to Brazilian sheep, due to hoof and mouth disease and other animal health considerations. Like other hair sheep, the Santa Inês does not require shearing, crutching, or tail docking, though colder climates are likely to stimulate some wool growth. Due to its tropical ancestry, the breed is considered to be resistant to internal parasites and more tolerant of heat and humidity. Hair sheep, like the Santa Inês, also produce superior leather, an aspect of hair sheep that needs to be exploited in the United States. In fact, the Brazilians believe that skins (leather) will become the primary product from the Santa Inês, with meat being a secondary product.

While in Brazil, we had the opportunity to attend an auction of Santa Inês sheep. Most of the animals sold for more than 500 U.S. dollars, as excitement in the breed runs high. Santa Inês rams have sold for as much as 60,000 U.S. dollars. The auction was conducted in a night club type atmosphere, with videos of the sale sheep being shown on a large screen and music blaring in the background.

Brazil represents an excellent export market for U.S. sheep. Unfortunately the market is currently closed due to animal health constraints (scrapie). If and when Brazil opens its borders to U.S. sheep genetics, it could represent an excellent marketing opportunity for U.S. producers. In particular, I think the Katahdin, Dorper, and Royal White, all improved hair sheep breeds, and the Suffolk and Hampshire, with their outstanding growth rates and carcass quality, would find ready markets in Brazil.

Ewe Management Tips: Mid to Late Gestation

by Scott Greiner
Extension Animal Scientist, Sheep, Virginia Tech

Proper management and nutrition of the ewe flock during mid and early lactation are critical for optimizing flock productivity and profitability. Balanced nutrition, coupled with proper management during gestation is important for fetal development, lamb vigor, and survival at birth. Additionally, proper nutrition during gestation is important to prevent nutritional disorders which may impact the health and performance of the ewe and her lambs and influences milk production of the ewe.

There are several factors that affect the nutritional needs of the ewe during gestation, with primary considerations for: 1) age, 2) weight, 3) body condition, 4) stage of gestation (early-mid vs. late), and 5) fetal number (single, twins, triplets). Nutrients of primary interest include energy (TDN), crude protein (CP), calcium, and selenium.

Following breeding, there is a relatively small increase in ewe nutrient requirements during the first 15 weeks of gestation. Requirements for a 175 pound ewe during early and mid-gestation are 55% TDN and 9.4% crude protein on a dry matter basis (at an intake of 3.3 pounds dry matter per day). Often, ewes are grazing during early gestation, and in most cases forage alone will meet or exceed their nutritional needs, and in many cases ewes will gain weight during this period while grazing fall pastures. For winter-lambing flocks, ewes will make the transition from pasture to a diet of harvested feedstuffs during mid-gestation. When feeding hay becomes necessary, it is important that the quality and quantity of hay fed be closely considered. To properly balance rations and control costs, an accurate forage analysis should be conducted on all hays (cost of $10-15). There can be significant variation in hay harvested from the same field at the same time and certainly from one cutting to another. Average quality grass or grass-legume hays typically will meet the ewe's requirements during mid gestation, and if ewes are allowed to consume all the hay they will eat, many hays will supply considerably more nutrition than required. This emphasizes the importance of saving high quality hays for feeding during lactation, when ewe nutrient requirements are much higher compared to gestation. If high quality hays, such as alfalfa, are fed during mid-gestation it is important to limit intakes. Overfeeding during this period is costly and may also result in over-conditioned ewes leading to complications later in the production cycle (ketosis, lambing problems).

Approximately two-thirds of the birth weight of a developing fetus is gained during the last six weeks of gestation. As a result, the nutritional requirement of the ewe for both energy and protein increases during this time. For a 175 pound mature ewe, TDN requirements increase to 57-66%, compared to 55% during early gestation. Similarly, crude protein requirement increases to around 11%. The most critical difference is the increase in energy requirement, particularly during the two weeks prior to lambing. Inadequate nutrition during late gestation may result in pregnancy ketosis, light birth weights, weak lambs, and lower milk production.
Energy and protein requirements are also influenced by expected lambing rate, with increased requirements for ewe carrying multiple births. In larger flocks, ultrasound diagnosis of fetal numbers can be an excellent management tool by creating an opportunity to feed ewes carrying singles vs. twins vs. triplets separately.

Total energy intake requirements in late gestation increase 16% for twin and 31% for triplet-carrying ewes compared to ewes carrying singles. Similarly, total crude protein requirements increase 23% and 45% for twin and triplet carrying ewes, respectively, compared to singles. These increased requirements can be supplied by providing additional hay and grain for multiple birth ewes, and/or providing a more nutrient dense diet. Grain supplementation should begin earlier for multiple birth ewes (3-6 weeks pre-lambing) than ewes carrying singles (2 weeks pre-lambing). Many shepherds utilize the rule of thumb that ewes should receive one pound of grain supplement for each lamb they are carrying.

Selenium and Vitamin E are critical nutrients during gestation. Selenium is passed from the placenta to the fetus during late gestation, and proper selenium supplementation to ewes will assist in preventing white muscle disease in lambs. Selenium is often provided in complete mineral mixes offered free-choice (provide mineral specifically formulated for sheep). For flocks with a history of selenium deficiency, selenium should be added to the grain mix fed to ewes to insure intake. FDA regulates that selenium concentration in free-choice mineral mixes not exceed 90 PPM and limits total ration concentration of selenium to 0.3 PPM (intake of 0.7 mg/hd/day). While selenium is a very important trace mineral that is required in small quantities, care should be exercised in formulation as higher intakes can be toxic.

Late gestation ewes with inadequate calcium intakes are prone to milk fever. The calcium content of grains is low, whereas forages such as alfalfa hay are generally higher in calcium. Calcium intake should be monitored closely, particularly when feeding corn grain and hay diets. Supplemental calcium may be provided through a complete grain mix.

Ewes should be vaccinated for clostridium perfringens types C & D and tetanus three weeks prior to lambing. Vaccination of ewes will provide protection to their lambs at birth. Deworming of ewes pre-lambing is also an important management tool to control parasites.

Finally, inventory lambing supplies and prepare facilities well in advance of the lambing season. Early preparation for the lambing season will result in more live lambs saved and enhance potential profitability of the sheep enterprise.

Source: Virginia Livestock Update Oct 2003.

Featured Web Site: Information for Small Farmers

Point your web browser to http://www. smallfarmsuccess.info (or .com) and you’ll find the web site of the Mid-Atlantic Small Farm Success Project, a USDA-IFAFS1 funded initiative to help small and emerging farmers improve their financial success. The project is being carried out by a coalition of land grant universities, USDA, and non-profit organizations in the Mid-Atlantic region. The web site was created to showcase the accomplishments of the project and to serve as a timeless resource for small farmers. The web site includes:

• Free online classified advertising
• Farmer web sites
• Online presentations
• Fact sheets
• Small farm links
• Hot topics
• Profiles of successful small farmers
• Marketing innovations of small farmers

1 Initiative for Future Agricultural Food Systems

www.smallfarmsuccess.info


Calendar of Events

January 9-10 (see article)
Virginia-North Carolina Shepherd’s Symposium and Commercial Bred Ewe Lamb Sale
Harrisonburg, VA. Info: Scott Greiner at (540) 231-9159 or sgreiner@vt.edu.

January 16-17 (see article)
Future Harvest-CASA Farming for Profit and Stewardship Conference
Four Points Hotel, Hagerstown, MD.
Info: (410) 604-2681, fhcasa@ friend.ly.net or www.futureharvestcasa.org

January 21-24
American Sheep Industry Association Convention
Hyatt Regency, Sacramento, California
Info: (303) 771-3500 or info@sheepusa.org.

January 24 (see article)
Delaware Meat Goat Conference
Delaware State University, Dover, DE.
Info: (302) 857-6462 or jclendan@desu.edu.

February 5-7 (see article)
PASA Farming for the Future Conference
Penn Stater Conference Center, State College, PA.
Info: (814) 349-9856 or www.pasafarming.org

March 20 (details in next issue)
Annual Meat Goat Conference, Garrett College,
McHenry, MD. Info: Willie Lantz at (301) 387-3331 or wlantz@garrettcollege.edu.

March 26-27 (details in next issue)
MD-DE Beginners’ Sheep Shearing School
Ridgely Thompson Farm, Westminster, MD.
Info: David Greene at (410) 329-6241 or greelamb@bcpl.net.

April 17 (details in next issue)
Sheep and Goat “Genetic Focus” Conference
Western Maryland Research & Education Center Keedysville, MD.
Contact Susan Schoenian at (301) 432-2767 ext. 343 or sschoen@umd.edu.

May 1-2
Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival
Howard County Fairgrounds, West Friendship, MD
Info: www.sheepandwoolfestival.org or info@sheepandwool.org or (410) 531-3647

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Links are provided as an information service. They do not constitute an endorsement of any non-affiliated organizations, businesses, products or content of these pages by Maryland Cooperative Extension or the University of Maryland. Mention of product names is for information purposes only. It is the policy of Maryland Cooperative Extension that no person shall be subjected to discrimination on the grounds of race, color, sex, disability, age, religion or national origin.

The Maryland Sheep & Goat Producer is published bi-monthly by University of Maryland Cooperative Extension. It is written and edited by Susan Schoenian, Area Agent for Sheep and Goats at the Western Maryland Research & Education Center. Dr. Niki Whitley (UMES/(410) 651-6194, nwhitley@mail .umes.edu) and Willie Lantz (Garrett College/(301) 387-3331, wlantz@garrettcollege.edu) are regular contributors to the newsletter. To receive the newsletter, contact Susan at the Western Maryland Research & Education Center, 18330 Keedysville Road, Keedysville, MD 21756, (301) 432-2767 ext. 343, fax (301) 432-4089; e-mail: sschoen @umd.edu. The cost of receiving the newsletter by mail is $10 per year, payable to the MPWV Meat Goat Producers Association. Internet access is FREE. You can be added to the list to receive an e-mail message when the latest newsletter has been posted to the web at http://www.sheepandgoat.com/news/. Comments and suggestions regarding the newsletter are always welcome and appreciated.

 

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