We Are Stoked to Serve You! NC Cooperative Extension, Stokes County

Help us welcome our new Commercial Horticultural and Field Crops Agent, Taylor Darnell.

Taylor is a recent graduate of the University of Florida with a Master of Science degree in Agronomy with specializations in row crop weed science and aquatic weed management. Prior to attending UF, Taylor received his Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from Ferrum College. Taylor has worked extensively with several state and federal agencies (Army Corps of Engineers) to develop research plans and projects that address hard-to-control and noxious weed species across the southeast. Taylor has also worked with members of industry to address real-world issues and develop strategies to mitigate barriers to successful harvests while formulating practical solutions. Taylor grew up in northern Forsyth County (Rural Hall) where he has worked with his nursery operation and parent's plant breeding and collection programs to establish new daylily breeding lines for commercial production. Along with working in specialty ornamentals, he has also worked extensively with commercial Fraser fir (Abies fraseri) production across Southwest Virginia and North Carolina.

Taylor’s time will be split serving both Stokes and Forsyth Counties. Taylor can be reached at 336-593-8179.

Breeding Season Management for Small Ruminants

Profitability for many small ruminant operations is reliant on successfully weaning lambs and kids. Decisions made during the breeding season can contribute to the number of lambs and kids born and weaned. Generally, small ruminants are seasonal breeders meaning breeding occurs with the onset of increasing daylength. Breeding season and breeding management practices can vary from farm to farm; however, there are a few common practices that can be easily implemented on every operation.

Body Condition Scoring - Body condition scoring (BCS) is a subjective measure of assessing the fleshiness, or fat and muscle covering of an animal. On a 5-point scale (1=emaciated, 5=obese, over-conditioned), an ideal target BCS for most ewes and does is between 2.5 - 3. Condition is evaluated by feeling the level of muscling and fat over the vertebrate, loin area, spinal and transverse processes. Some dams may have lost a considerable amount of weight/condition during lactation and require additional nutrition to achieve a BCS of 3. Typically, dams with higher BCS tend to have higher ovulation rates, which therefore may lead to increased lambing percentage. However, there is a threshold for conditioning. Over-conditioned females, BCS >4 are generally less productive with reduced fertility.

Rams and bucks should be body condition scored as well. Ideally, BCS 3-4 at the time of breeding works well for most males. During breeding season, males may lose up to 15% of their body weight.

Flushing - Providing increased nutrition to ewes/does prior to and during breeding to increase weight and condition is referred to as flushing. Flushing is typically done two weeks prior to breeding and continued two to three weeks during the breeding season. Ovulation rates are often increased for dams when flushed properly. Dams respond to flushing best when increased nutrients are provided early and are below a BCS 3. Breed and age can also influence a dam’s response to flushing. Flushing is achieved by feeding supplemental grain concentrates (or high-quality pastures). Flushing rations are typically provided as an increase in energy by 20% above maintenance requirements. Ovulation rates and lambing percentages are not typically affected if a flock/herd is already on a high-plane of nutrition or above a BCS 3.

Breeding Soundness Exams - We often associate breeding soundness exams (BSE) with male livestock; however, BSEs can be done on females as well. With regards to males, a veterinarian can perform a BSE to evaluate the potential breeding ability of a ram/buck. During a BSE, males are evaluated on physical examination (good health, hooves, eyes, legs, etc.) and semen evaluation (motility and morphology). Producers can typically perform BSEs on females themselves. Evaluating females for the following:

• Teeth - broken or open mouths (missing teeth) will inhibit her ability to eat
• Udder - udder conformation will be important for nursing offspring
• Hooves - good, sound feet will aid in her ability to be serviced by the male and forage
• Mothering ability - did she successfully raise last years’ offspring? Obviously you cannot evaluate a female that hasn’t lambed/kidded before, but use this metric for females that have.

The recommendations above are not meant to be an exhaustive list of production practices to evaluate prior to breeding season, but provide a starting point to assess breeding season management. Evaluate current practices, review records from last year, and make changes accordingly. Remember, decisions made during the breeding season can affect lambing/kidding season.