Begging awassi sheep to breed

[mystang89]

I was reading this https://www.backyardherds.com/threads/ewe-in-season.37513/
and it got me to thinking about my sheep. As most of you probably able know I own 3 awassi, 2 ewes and 1 ram with the ram being about 2 months younger than the ewes. They are all over a year by now though.

I don't know if awassi are seasonal breeders or what their cycle is. I do know this though. Around fall off last year we noticed our ram make the funniest face we've seen before around the ewes. Looking it up we find it to be exactly what @Sheepshape said. The ewes would be and the ram would sniff then make that face.

We were excited and hopeful that or first lambs would be soon. The ram would pester the ewes, always trying to mount them but they would always run away. The ram was always with the ewes throughout the day but not once did we see them allow him.

Hoping we just missed it we waited, looking for signs of pregnancy. After all this time I still see nothing. The ram still pesters the girls they still run off.

I'm starting to wander/worry the ram might be infertile.

Another weird things the ram did was pee, smell his pee, then made the face.....In over a year of being with these sheep every day, I have NEVER seen the ewes act like they wanted anything from that ram. I almost feel sorry for him.

What can I do? What do I not know? This may sound pathetic but these sheep aren't a hobby nor do they bring in money. I honestly bought them so I could provide my family with milk and food and right now I'm a bit worried that I just wasted over $2000.

 

[Sheepshape]

Most rams are fertile. If a ram has an illness leading to fever he may be rendered temporarily (up to 2 months )infertile, but his fertility will return.

Ewes are only receptive to the ram when they are in season.They definitely will not let him mount them when they are not. The ram is testing the urine for pheromones indicative of oestrus when he does the 'nose in the air' Flehmen response. However, rams and ewes sniff urine from other rams or ewes for other information....I wouldn't worry about him checking himself out.

Your vet can check him for fertility. A probe is stuck up his bum and an electric current (not a major one!) will cause him to ejaculate and his sperm can then be checked. I've seen it done and it doesn't seem to bother the ram too much!

Good luck.....to you and to him.

 

[Roving Jacobs]

In my experience some rams of some breeds just take longer to mature. They're the sensitive type! My cormos are awful about this but they all figure it out eventually. He may not have been mature enough to breed them in the fall before they stopped cycling for the winter if they are a seasonal breeder. A quick search says that in their country of origin awassi breed from April to September, and someone even wrote their dissertation on the seasonality of awassi reproduction if you like reading science. They seem to be summer breeders in their native lands and that could be your issue. He could also just be a shy boy. I rarely see ewes bred but they get marked with a marking harness and every spring I have lambs so the boys clearly get their job done. Do you see any udder growth at all? You can also draw blood and send it in for pregnancy tests to make sure.

If they aren't pregnant yet it doesn't mean the ram is infertile. There are a number of things you can try to induce breeding in your stock. You can use the ram effect to your advantage by taking the ram away for a while, preferably out of smelling distance, then reintroducing him. Absence really does make the heart fonder and this can induce cycling even out of season. Bringing in the scent of another ram can also get everyone all worked up and ready to breed as well. If you want to go for a more intensive approach you can use CIDRs to synchronize your ewes and bring them into heat. If you try all of that and the ewes still aren't bred then it might be time to have a talk to the person who sold them to you.

 

[mystang89]

Thanks for the responses! I had read that
site concerning when they were supposed to start cycling after I wrote the post but I'm still unsure of whether their seasonal months match up to ours. In other words, would they cycle in September here if the weather is different than in the originating country?

That question asked, I have been asking around here and people who have more experience with sheep than myself (not hard to do) have been saying that their sheep begin to cycle around September and then again around April or May.

I'm hoping your right in that he was just to young and it takes him a bit to mature. Maybe we'll see in April/may?

I've tried to take him away from the ewes but it was just on the other side of the fence, definitely not oro of smelling range lol.

Thanks again everyone.

 

[soarwitheagles]

We had a strange thing occur with our mating ram...

He was doing his job well for nearly an entire year, then suddenly, just stopped. Our AB and Dorper ewes are not seasonal breeders [they breed all year round]. But this little guy suddenly stopped doing his job...

After a couple of months I said the heck with this...and purchased a new breeding ram. Once introduced, this new breeder ram went to work immediately! As in repeatedly though out the day, ewe after ewe! Within just a day or two, the other ram seems to have woke up or had a fresh revelation regarding his job, and he was soon pounding away again.

I have no clue why this occurred, but it almost seems as if the ram forgot what he was suppose to do and once he had a role model, he went right back to work.

FWIW, our flock just doubled in size in the last 3 months...both rams are working overtime...

Hope this helps...

 

[mystang89]

Lol, glad to hear your Ram woke up. I seem to have the opposite problem. The ewes don't want to. Maybe I need to get a Dorper and let her teach my others too late!

I'm honestly just waiting till early June till I make a call on what to do since that is when I understand mine will have gone back into season again. That should give me enough time to see if anything changes since their cycle is from April through May.

A non seasonal sounds real good though.

 

[soarwitheagles]

Stang,

I like the American Blackbelly and the Dorper because they are non-seasonal and the AB is considered one of the lowest maintenance sheep on the planet! The AB behaves much more like a deer or antelope than a sheep and I like that. Put em' out in the back forest and let em' be. Most of them have twins every 6-8 months...

But, no milk! I did a little reading on your Awassi. "The Awassi evolved as a nomadic sheep breed through centuries of natural and selective breeding to become the highest milk producing breed in the Middle East."

Wow, now I can see why you would like to have them!

Hope it all works out for ya!

 

[babsbag]

If your seasonal breeding sheep are anything like seasonal breeder goats it is based on daylight hours. When the daylight hours get shorter they start cycling. But Awassi seem to be from areas neared the equator so it is anyone's guess since those areas have a more even number of daylight hours than N. America. Perhaps you could contact a breeder and ask them when the sheep cycle?

BTW, they sound like the perfect animal... milk, fiber, meat, polled, tolerate poor feed and hot temperatures, good mothers. Is there anything bad about them?

 

[Roving Jacobs]

I
BTW, they sound like the perfect animal... milk, fiber, meat, polled, tolerate poor feed and hot temperatures, good mothers. Is there anything bad about them?

Apparently getting them to actually breed

Good luck Mystang, hopefully they surprise you with some babies soon!

 

[mystang89]

Apparently getting them to actually breed

Good luck Mystang, hopefully they surprise you with some babies soon!

Lol, exactly! Thanks, I'm really hoping to see a change in them soon.

As for AG and dorpers not being milkers.......I could use meat to.=P