The Cornell Cooperative Extension Learning Farm is located in Canton, NY. We are part of our local county extension office and we are a long ways from Ithaca where Cornell University is located. However, like them, our mission is education. Livestock and crop demonstrations, ag awareness activities for schools and the public, maple production, 4-H activities, and an FFA aquaculture program are our main operations.

We have volunteer groups like the BOCES Community Connections Program and Work-study students from SUNY Canton that help with the sheep operation. Several local young people volunteer to help during the summer because of their interest in animals or becoming a veterinarian someday. Many groups such as the Maple Producers, North Country Shepherds, Farm Bureau, etc, meet at the farm. There is a steady stream of busses, vans and cars coming and going.

Sheep Program

The sheep operation has been part of our livestock demonstration for quite awhile. The sheep flock has had as few as 35 and as many as 150 sheep but we are currently running around 70 ewes (including ewe lambs) for quite awhile now. Seventy is a comfortable number to run in our converted dairy facilities and a small open front barn.

Our sheep are primarily Dorset based but our base was Finn-Dorset 10 years ago. In the past we have run a Polypay ram, many Dorset rams and are now trying an Ile de France ram. We basically want a short, chunky, white-face ewe with lots of milk and good mothering abilities. We have selected on weaning weights and out of season breeding for many years. For years we operated on the Cornell STAR system lambing five times per year. Labor became an issue and we went to lambing twice a year. The first lambing is in March and helps provide lambs for the breeding stock market and also avoids lambing in the 20 below zero weather in January and February. The second lambing is in the fall to have lambs for the Christmas market. Fall lambs are vigorous and the ewes are always in good condition after a summer of rotational grazing. The ewes that are not lambing until spring stay out on the pasture until mid-December (with round bale hay as supplement when needed).

Our lambs never leave the barn (at least not on purpose). They are born, nurse their mothers and start on creep and then are weaned onto a full grain diet. The grain is high in digestible fiber so they can eat as much as they want. Our gains are between 0.5 and 1 pound/day, which allows us to move lambs to market quickly. Our lambing percentage runs about 1.8 to 2.0 lambs born. Most lambs are born on their own without staff being present.

Pasture

We use a five strand high tensile fence as a perimeter for the pasture and electro-net or tension-net for dividers. The pasture is divided into about 6 paddocks and the back three are hayed before we graze them. There is a rotation but it is not super intensive. The coyotes have been a problem in the past, even killing sheep in the middle of the day. Our Great Pyrenees guardian dog, llamas and beef cattle stationed in the pasture next to the sheep pasture have kept the coyotes at bay so far this season. We also made an effort to get the charge up on the perimeter fence and mow around the outsides of the fence to eliminate cover.

Marketing

Our lambs are marketed to the eastern market. Some go as hothouse and some at 70 to 80 pounds. A few are sold as freezer lambs, usually at about 110 pounds. About half of our lambs are sold for breeding stock. Our marketing options include a local graded sale at Easter and Christmas, coordinated truckloads to New Holland, PA, and working with a co-op in Vermont that markets to New York city Restaurants.

Scrapie Program

Our flock is enrolled in the voluntary scrapie program and is certified scrapie free. We try hard to provide good, easy care breeding stock for local (and not so local) farms.

Summary

Most of all our sheep provide a good educational demonstration for 4-H sheep camp, hands-on training for beginning farmers and Vet Tech students, are willing victims for the shearing school and herding dog training (maybe not so willing) and entertain many school kids with their antics.