Everyone is talking about how hot it is, but imagine spending all day in this heat outdoors with a fur coat on. Yup, it’s hard out there for a sheep.
So far, this summer has been pretty mild compared to the last two years. It really only just got hot last week, and so far, the evenings have been cool enough to give the flock time to recover.
But if and when it does become unbearable, we are prepared with all the ingredients we need to make a heat tonic.
This concoction was recommended to us by our friends at Eight Pond Farm a couple of years ago and I believe wholeheartedly in it’s efficacy. Obviously I would prefer a cold front, but heat tonic will do in a pinch.
1/4 cup liquid 100% concentrate Garlic Barrier
1/4 cup liquid vitamin E
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup molasses
1 cup Red Cell 
Mix all ingredients together in a large jar. Give via drench at 30-60cc for adult sheep and 10-30cc for lambs, depending on size. We give it to our goats too, and this year we will probably be dosing the cows with it as well.
Refrigerate leftovers for later use for up to a month.
For the non-shepherds, a drench is sort of a big, needless syringe that is used to give liquid medicine to livestock. It’s inserted in the animals mouth and the liquid is dispensed as far back in the mouth as possible. A drench gun looks like this:
We administer this in the early morning or late evening when the day is at it’s coolest, since chasing them down in the heat of the day would be counter productive.
On hot days we also add electrolytes directly to the stock tanks and change the water in the tanks frequently. Even when they are thirsty sheep and goats will avoid drinking hot water, just like we do.
We also make sure our hay bales are located in the shade in the summer so that the sheep won’t spend the hottest hours of the day grazing.
When we have an animal showing signs of heat stress we get them into the barn and in front of a fan immediately, administer ice packs under their legs and chest right away and keep them hydrated. Getting them cooled down as quickly as possible is the only way to save them.
If you’re a shepherd I’d love for you to share your summer tips with us. We will thank you and Feenat will thank you.
*If you have any questions about using Red Cell, talk to your vet.
