paddock size, plant variety, figuring how many animals

SheepGirl said:

I would skip the wether and just use the ewes for wool. That way you get more lambs that you can sell and use to pay for their feed and such. So instead of 3 to 4 lambs from 2 ewes, you could have 9 to 12 lambs from 6 ewes.

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well the reason I was going with the wethers is because my main interest with the sheep is good wool for spinning. wethers generally have finer wool and for longer (wool gets coarser with age) plus I can buy wethers cheaper which is also a plus.
I am not against growing the amount of ewes I would keep but I think it would be better to start out with several wethers and a couple ewes at first. i know several amish farms near me have sheep but i really do not know how well they keep them or if they have stock i would want to buy from. the amish in this area are mainly the weird redneck do things all stupid type. i know some very nice families but in the immediate area here is a lot of icky not well kept families unfortunately. so i am watching for local people and the ads. but definitely some good wool wethers from one guy i know (bought wool from him before so i know he has good fiber herd). and one woman that i would like to see her herd mostly icelandics and random breed and crosses, but i have bought some wool from her now as well and very happy with it.
i think the very least i will get a couple Icelandic ewes and breed em for spring lambs for the family here.
it would be great to breed several ewes and sell meat lambs or young stock but i am doubting the market. that's something i need to remember to ask the local sheep people.

I like all the room you have! With your proposed fencelines, keep in mind those may change, especially the interior fences. Mine did, in places where I took the 'path of least resistance' and ran fencelines where there was less brush to cut through.

And remember every time you move the sheep, you'll need to move their water and minerals with them, too. Plan where those will go, and where gates will go.

I am plotting a kickstarter. let me know what yall think!

I would like to start a sheep business. If funded I would make daily vlog videos.
If you donate $5 you get a weekly email of my adventures.
If you donate $10 you get your name will be in my vlog videos as supporters.
If you donate $20 you get to be 'director' of one video, with name and credits in the vlog video and ask me a question to be answered in the video.
If you donate $50 you get to be 'director' of three videos and ask me a question to be answered in the videos or a topic for the video.
If you donate $100 you get to be 'associate producer' of first 100 videos and be 'director' of ten videos.
If you donate $200 you get to be 'producer' of first 250 videos and be 'director' of ten videos.
If you donate $400 you get to be 'supreme executive producer with bacon, cheese, and sparkles' of the first 365 videos and be 'director' of fifteen videos.
In the vlogs directors, associate producer, producer, and supreme executive producer will all be credited at the opening credits. Supporters names will be listed in the closing credits.


working script for the kickstarter video:
I'm Katie. I have alot of farm experience and I want to start a small business with sheep. I would sell raw fleeces, prepared rovings and batts, wether stock, and eventually meat. Not only that, but I want to see more videos about it. Not just one or two videos. I want to see hundreds of videos of the things I am hearing about and want to learn. And I know I'm not the only one. So I have an idea. I will make these videos myself. I propose to share a video per day for 365 days. The only thing stopping me is some initial startup costs. So kickstarter is the perfect route to trying this. If I get funded, I will be able to buy materials and stock and get started. I will then produce one video a day for a year. Topics will include: sheep care, fencing, daily management, hoof trimming, breeds of sheep, pasture management, shearing, wool, spinning, felting, washing fleeces, wool prep, and more. I also want to give you the power to determine the topics that I put into the videos, so I've created rewards where you are the director, and you choose what the topic is, or what question I might put to somebody. Now is the time to present the critical question: are there a few hundred people like me that would like to see these videos? I'm willing to do the legwork - are you willing to support my kickstarter?

and I am plotting out costs of everything. that seems huge. really it is a crapload of money to me.
fence: 900
posts: 800
tpost slammer: ~60? I cant find a listing on TSC website??
gates: ~500? trying to find less expensive gates! /:
sheep stock: 1000
shears: ~20 hand shears, elec shears??
feed bins, feed stock, mineral: 200
water hose, water buckets, spigots: ~350
hoof clippers: 25
materials for paddock shelters: 250

what am I forgetting?
I found a shearing class finally and waiting on a return email for the sign up. my main goal is fleece production and local meat sales (live animal and to meat shop).

How much space are you planning on fencing in? We fenced in two acres for roughly $2000 (includes wood posts spaced every 8' and 4' woven wire fencing as well as renting a post pounder). Gates are roughly $10/foot where we are. 6' gates are $60, 10' gates are $100, etc. What kind of sheep are you going to buy and how many? Good breeding ewes will be $200 to $400 each and rams will be $300+. Good hand shears will be $40 to $60 plus you will have to get them sharpened or buy a hand sharpener. Electric shears (which are much faster and do not result in hand fatigue) will be $300 to $400 or more. Feed bins (trashcans) about $20 each. Mineral $20 for 50 lbs, will last a flock a sheep a few months.

I think $250 for a shelter is on the cheap side. $500 would get you a nice 8x8 or larger shed.

If I were you, I would write up a business plan and get a loan instead of having people buy into your enterprise. IMO it will be hard to come up with 365 different topics pertaining to sheep on a daily basis. Maybe once a week or every other week or once a month is sufficient.

I would hire someone to bush hog the mess out of there, cut and toss the dangerous trees and then fence it in and either intensely graze to keep the weeds away or mow it regularly.

Tree of heaven, I believe livestock can eat the leaves, so can rabbits. Walnut has to go and that hogweed. But the rest the sheep should eat up, especially if you put a bunch of sheep/goats in a small pasture and rotate.

Wethers don't get wool break like ewes, so you could shear them any ol time. Ewes you'd have to do it before they lamb to avoid wool break. And yes, wethers are much cheaper. I'd go with your plan on some wethers to start the majority of the wool harvest, add ewes to breed for meat and then breed and keep the best lambs to eventually phase out the wethers.

Have you done the math for the amount of hay you will need for the sheep and possible grain/pellet for the pregnant ewes?

Make sure to take a course in how to shear sheep and practice just holding and moving around the electric shears. They are heavy, sharp and the vibrations are super annoying, though, some people don't mind it much, I can't hold them for very long.

If you go with purebreds, making sure they are registered may end up being worth it, unless you're sure you'll only sell them as meat.