thinking about buying some sheep

[Florinda2016]

Hello. We are thinking of buying some sheep to keep with our horses here at home. We have plenty of land and good fencing and the plan is to move the sheep from field to field after the horses have vacated. Does anyone have any advice or tips please?

[froubylou]

We have 2 pet sheep.

They are a lot of fun. You will need stock fencing though.

You also need to register them with defra and get a holding number and you have to track any movement off your holding land. It's quite a lot of paperwork!

They will need worming and foot care and also Sheering once a year.

And they are more demanding than ponies at dinner time!

[Florinda2016]

Thank you! We have post and rail which is Shetland proof and has an electric tape about 8 inches from the ground. Will that be ok do you think?

[HildurOdegard]

I would just say consider liver fluke and getting droppings (horse) tested for these eggs - they sink not float so make sure the company is looking for them.

It's on the rise (especially in Scotland) and unfortunately doesn't attach to just the liver in horses. You'll spot the signs very quickly - horse will lose condition in just weeks and even start falling (!), quick blood/liver test by the vet and you can use sheep drench.