Sheep don't understand the concept of shade

I like this just because we think it is hot doesn't mean that it is hot to our animals. My dogs love to sleep out in the snow I think it's cold they like it. Then again my horses like to stand in the sun on a 90 degree day. Just some examples keep water and shade available they will go if they really want to.

My information came from a knowledgeable bod at the Royal Welsh Show. Now that doesn't mean to say it's true, and it seems counter-intuitive (I wouldn't wear a thick woollen sweater on a hot day!), but what bits of info. I have found on the internet seem to largely bear this out

This comes from Michigan State University "Wool protects sheep from extreme heat as well as extreme cold. Research shows that sheep with a one-inch fleece are more comfortable than sheep with less wool, as wool fibers dissipate heat more rapidly. Woolly and hairy animals should be sheared prior to the onset of hot weather. Spring shearing allows sheep to have adequate wool growth to keep them cool in the summer (and avoid sun burning) and a full wool coat in the winter to keep them warm. Sheep and goats should not be sheared in extreme heat."

"Characteristics of Wool Fact Sheet-cloudfront.net" (from the American Sheep Industry Association Incorporated) says much the same.

T





There again, here are my sheep this morning

I need your sheep to teach mine lol

Oh alright that makes more sense, fleece but not full growth. Here i was picturing the Suffolk with all their winter growth still on thinking to myself that can not possibly be cooler then being sheared lol.

Public FB video about shorn vs cooled heat.
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10155571171033825&id=214771183824

That is an interesting video. Thanks

Nice video, good find.

These figured it out!
While my ewes....wait until sunset to use the shade structures....lol

secuono said:

These figured it out!

Click to expand...

Smart animals with brains configured similarly to ours.

I put some water under the shade for them now too. Now they have grain, water, shade, cool breeze, nice grass and a LGD under there. It was so nice yesterday that I stayed under the shade while they panted in the sun. Give me a couple of weeks and I might just try out their feed too lol.

I was going to put hay out for them as well but thought against it since I didn't want to take any chances on it getting most of it did happen to rain.