Mulesing

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Mulesing
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Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Tue Apr 26, 05 8:20 pm Post subject: Mulesing

I saw this term on the Google ads in Judyofthewoods' wool for birds thread...one ad from PETA and the other saying "the truth about PETA"...so, a nice bit of balance from Google there.

H'anyway a brief glance at both sites suggests that mulesing is a practice of cutting away skin at the sheep's rear end to prevent flystrike - the skin heals up again but wool never grows back..Treacodactyl has only ever heard of the wool being regularly trimmed away, and to be honest so have I. I just wondered if anyone had heard of this practise and what you know about it.

sean
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 42219
Location: North Devon

Posted: Tue Apr 26, 05 8:37 pm Post subject:
It seems unlikely and unconvincing. I've known a fair number of sheep farmers, I can't see any of them doing that. I also can't see why the fleece wouldn't grow back once everything had healed.

Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Tue Apr 26, 05 8:43 pm Post subject:
That's what I thought, but one of the sites appeared to be by/on behalf of Australian farmers saying what a nice thing it was and how it saves suffering etc. It sounds highly improbable...but then so do quite a lot of things I don't know much about.

sean
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 42219
Location: North Devon

Posted: Tue Apr 26, 05 8:46 pm Post subject:
Maybe Australians do it? Most of my dealings with sheep farmers have been in the Lake District, which is fairly cold and wet much of the time. Where's Rob R when you need him?

hardworkinghippy

Joined: 01 Jan 2005
Posts: 1110
Location: Bourrou South West France

Posted: Tue Apr 26, 05 9:33 pm Post subject:
Unfortunately, this practice is still rife in Australia: https://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/video.asp?video=wool&Player=rp&speed=_med HWH

nettie

Joined: 02 Dec 2004
Posts: 5888
Location: Suffolk

Posted: Tue Apr 26, 05 11:06 pm Post subject:
It sounds pretty horrible to me.

Gervase

Joined: 17 Nov 2004
Posts: 8655

Posted: Wed Apr 27, 05 7:53 am Post subject:
It's illegal here. By law, when you dock you have to leave enough tail to cover the anus, and the two flaps of skin on the underside of the tail do just that. The common practice in the UK is to dock to the point where the flaps merge into the tail - that gives enough to cover its arse (literally) but prevents excessive dagging. Though, when a sheep is scouring, the stuff gets everywhere!

Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Wed Apr 27, 05 7:56 am Post subject:
Thanks Gervase, that's really helpful, and interesting too.

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Wed Apr 27, 05 9:19 am Post subject:
I can't add anything to the sheep side of the argument, but I presume the wool wouldn't grow back over the scar tissue? It doesn't seem to in people, anyway. Sounds pretty horrible, and a very good reason to buy british lamb, anyway. Plus the sheep gets a cold bum (although I don't suppose that matters so much in Oz)

Gertie

Joined: 08 Jan 2005
Posts: 1638
Location: Yorkshire

Posted: Wed Apr 27, 05 3:47 pm Post subject:

I didn't realise this practise existed.

The only thing I have done is to tidy up my sheep's bum when put out on lush grazing, they go from having firmed up droppings to quite horrible stuff that sticks round the wool. I once went to turn a sheep over when it was on it's back and the whole of the fleece around the bum just came away in my hands and the back end of the sheep was covered in maggots - it was the worst thing I've ever seen.

Rang the farmer the sheep belonged to and he came and took it into one of his sheds. It was treat with something which killed all of the maggots and the sheep survived.

Gervase

Joined: 17 Nov 2004
Posts: 8655

Posted: Wed Apr 27, 05 4:46 pm Post subject:

Aye, that's a nasty case of fly-strike. Sounds like it had gone a bit far, as well - poor show by the farmer for not taking action sooner, particularly if the weather has been hot and humid for a while.
If they're a bit 'loose' on new pasture a good dagging and crutching will stop the stuff sticking like sh*t to the proverbial blanket (though I went a bit overboard on ours preparatory to lambing, and gave 'em a Brazilian!).

Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Wed Apr 27, 05 7:41 pm Post subject:
What is crutching? (I had to tell Treacodactyl not to read this thread at work because of some of the words in it )

Gervase

Joined: 17 Nov 2004
Posts: 8655

Posted: Wed Apr 27, 05 7:52 pm Post subject:

Dagging is where you cut off the crap-covered locks around the rear end; crutching is nearer the true bald front bottom business, where the sheep has nearly all the wool trimmed back on the rear, from the flaps under the tail down to the fetlocks. It's often done in the autumn prior to tupping so you can see if the ram's doing what he's supposed to (and so that he can, too, I supose!).
If you're turning the sheep out onto fresh, lush pasture it's a good idea, as they usually get the galloping trots as soon as they hit fresh grass, and less wool means less crappy clumps around the rear end. It's also handy close to lambing, as the vulval swelling is more easily seen, giving you prior warning if you want to get ready.
At the same tme, it's usually a good idea to trim around the udder so that the lamb has a clear shot at the teats. Nothing more frustrating (and unpleasant) than watching a lamb trying frantically to suck the goodness out of a thick, sh*tty dag! Hence the 'full Brazilian' on our ewes...

Gertie

Joined: 08 Jan 2005
Posts: 1638
Location: Yorkshire

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 05 6:32 am Post subject:
Wel, Gervase, at least you have fashionable sheep!!!! Another thing about sheep and lush grazing - laminitis. It's amazing how many sheep I have come across who have been taken from the farms and put onto summer grazing only to develop laminitis.

Mat S

Joined: 07 Nov 2004
Posts: 282
Location: Leicester

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 05 11:50 am Post subject:
Folks - before you give any support to Peta, remember that they campaign to make shooting and fishing illegal.

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