Help with plans for sheep

Hi neighbors, please help me with my plans to get into dairy sheep. Here is what I have so far.

I need a small project for next year, to learn how to care for sheep in general, and to teach my dog, who is an LGD, but who is also a dufus, how to be with sheep. We will need to add another dog when he figures out what is going on. So I'm thinking three wether sheep or lambs to start. Maybe Icelandics because they do well in cold, don't need shearing, and are somewhat small. Eventually I would like a dairy breed to make and sell cheese.

We have a very small fenced area planned for a pen by the shop, which is near the house, 40 x 40, next to the lean-to which will serve as a barn. The low temperature in the five years we've lived here has been in the -30s, so we'll have a fully enclosed area for winter that opens onto the pen for nicer weather. They will be in from November through May, roughly, due to snow and wet soils in the pasture.

For pasture, we have about 5 acres of wet areas for paddocks, where a lot of alder, cottonwood, and hardhack (pink spirea) grow. Cattle were ranged there previously (like 50 years ago) and there are still areas where really tall grass grows, like 8' tall, mixed in with tansy and some poisonous herbs like cow parsnip and wild angelica. I'm hoping that rotationally grazing sheep will encourage a better mix of pasture grass and forbs (after we pull the poisonous ones.) I'd like to fence a little more each year, and keep the sheep in their pen between rotations until enough pasture is established. Do you think they will eat the spirea? Maybe if we take a machete and brush hog and coppice it for them?

We have all the predators, but neighbors use dogs with their stock and it works well. We have so many mosquitoes that I don't even want to go down that way from May until August, but I'm hoping that taking down the brush and tall grass will decrease the amount of mosquitoes. The ground does dry out. The walk to the pastures is long, so that will make milking take a long time, but there is a hydrant down there, and one by the barn.

Anything else to think about? Should I think about a cow instead? We've considered goats but we're trying to keep our cedar trees alive, and may try to plant black walnuts in the pastures. Also my husband has kept goats before and doesn't care for the billies lol. Thank you neighbors!

I’m hoping someone with useful experience pops in with some answers, as I have some similar questions!

Hello Kris!


I have Finnsheep.   Sheep are very easy to keep when you have good fence, proper shelter, plenty of feed, water, salt and supplements.  

My forest has lots of shrubs and grass under the pines and oak.   They find a good amount of feed out there.  
When I do the paddock shift, the green growth comes back better each time I have them graze in down.    If I just let them run over the whole place they fill their bellies but I do not get the extreme land improvement that comes with paddock shift


Getting a cow vs. sheep...

I like to look at the land I am offering and see the work I want to have done there and what the land can tolerate.  That helps me pick my animal to work that land.

Cows will need a fair amount of grass.   They are heavy, they will compact your soil when the ground is wet.  

Sheep will gladly strip the leaves and bark off shrubs and small trees.  
Are you overgrown with shrubbery?  Sheep will be great to bring the land back to grass.

If your land is really wet, geese may be a nice addition to your system.  If you get muscovy ducks, they will bring down your mosquito population.  They will work the land when it is too wet for the bigger animals.  Geese will also work with the livestock guardian dogs to protect your place from predators.

Livestock guardian dogs are very interesting animals.  They can be quite different from other dogs.   I will try to help you more with the dog if you can tell more of what is going on.  

It is so great to have water and wet ground.  You can plant lots more forage plants out there.   Maybe stuff you can eat too.   Lots of perennials!  Sunchokes are great for their ability to spread, produce food and tolerate grazing.   Much of the feed you might buy your animals can be purchased as whole seed.   You plant it and water it for them and they can do the harvesting.