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Counting sheep
Working together as a family has allowed the Moser family of Garden Grove, Iowa, to expand what started out as a bottle lamb project to a well-respected flock of nearly 750 ewes producing many champions and great experiences for junior exhibitors across the country. The beginning A neighbor got the Moser kids hooked on the sheep industry. In 1998, they started feeding bottle lambs, and in 2000 they had purchased their first 13 ewes. The flock has continually grown for the past 10 years, and now they have about 750 ewes to lamb next spring. Tom and Dawn Moser wanted their children to grow up on a farm and gain important lessons in responsibility and leadership. While Dawn didn't grow up on a farm, she always enjoyed agriculture and even had an agriculture major during college. Tom did grow up on a farm in Illinois, but after the two were married, they decided their Elgin, Ill., farm was going to be surrounded by urbanization and they moved to south central Iowa. It was great bacause at the time we could sell our five acres there and buy 400 acres right here in Decatur County," said Dawn. The two have raised their children--Brittany, 23; Clint, 21; Alecia, 19 and Andrea, 17--on the farm and have expanded their operation throughout the years. Brittany and her husband, Kris, live in the Denver area and run a landscaping business. While Tom and Dawn are the primary owners of their business--Moser Club Lambs--all of the kids have their own flock of sheep they have built through the years. They raised cattle until 1995 when the cattle started causing Tom problems with his asthma and they were sold. They also farm about 2,000 acres of row crops. Flock management "Our flock was able to expand quickly, since most all the ewes have twins at birth," said Alecia. "What started out with 13, expanded to 40, then 80, then 120, then 300 and now we are up to 750 ewes." With expansion, they had to make room for all the sheep. This also required more help and they hired a local farm girl--Allison Brown--to work full time on the farm. Ewes are bred to lamb between January and May, but they always have a few that are lambing on into June and July. With all natural breeding used, the Mosers generally have an idea when the ewes will be lambing, and since they do not pregnancy check, the sort is usually made by Tom as he feels their udder to determine how far along in pregnancy they are. "He might miss one now and then, but for the most part, the ewes that are lambing have been sorted into the gestation pen and are within one to three weeks of having babies," said Dawn. Once the ewes have lambed, they are moved to the maternity ward, where they will stay in individual pens for one to 12 days, depending on the general strength and health of the babies. Most of their ewes give birth to twins, but they will have single births and triplet births as well. In the case of triplet births, often one of the lambs will be fostered on to another ewe who has a single lamb. "Fostering gives each of the babies a chance to grow equally," said Alecia. At birth, lambs' tails are docked and they are given medication to prevent infection along with vitamins to help ensure their strength. Each lamb is tagged according to who owns it, with each child having their own color tag. Information on the tag also includes sire and dam identification; therefore anyone in the family can identify what the lineage is of the animal. The majority of their flock is crossbred, with a strong Hampshire base, which has been converted from a more Suffolk base. They also have 70 purebred Hampshire ewes and recently purchased 40 purebred Dorset ewes. "There are obvious trends in the sheep industry toward a more Hampshire base because of their bigger frame, heavier bone structure and more muscling, as well as more marbling in the meat, giving the consumer a good eating experience," said Alecia. They have been selective on their ram purchases and try to find rams that will complement their ewes and produce excellent offspring. They hope to eventually keep rams that they have raised, but for now have sought out sires with excellent genetics to fit the show lamb industry. "Our main trait to look for is confirmation. It is the most important in the show lamb industry, but we also have to have consistency," said Alecia. "One ram might work better on a certain type of ewes than the next. So we have to keep good records and know what to expect out of our mommas when making breeding decisions." After lambs are in the maternity ward, they are then put in bigger pens with other ewes and lambs and kept in those pens until weaning time, at about 60 to 80 days. The weaning process is about 12 days long, where they are day weaned and lambs are put back with their mothers at night. During this time ewes are put on a roughage-only diet of wheat straw or corn stalks, and this helps dry up their milk production to help with longevity in the herd. Ewes are bred in groups by using a CIDR program to better control the timing of breeding. The CIDR contains naturally occurring progesterone, to take control of the oestrous cycle by mimicking normal physiological events. Vaccinations are also given pre-breeding. This also allows them to pen breed using a buck they own half interest in and have breeding possession of for 60 days. Once the lambs are weaned, the ewes are taken to pasture. They are on a pasture rotation system, with paddocks being about five acres in size. Llamas run with the sheep on pasture to ward off any predators. While on pasture, the sheep are fed a total mixed ration of hay, distiller's grain, corn and bean pellets as well as other minerals. Using a TMR has made feeding time all year round much quicker and has improved their efficiencies. Shearing is done in mid-November. Finding the optimum time is important to prevent health problems and at times abortions. Marketing After weaning, lambs are sorted by size and then sorted by quality. The lambs are also sorted by sex, as they will generally keep nearly 200 replacement ewe lambs each year. Another 150 or more lambs are sold as show lambs to junior exhibitors around the country. "We have a great customer base in the Oklahoma and Texas show circuit with usually about 100 wethers being shown there. Ag teachers will purchase a group of lambs for their students to show," explained Alecia. "We will also sell about 60 show lambs in Iowa and have had many champions at county fairs as well as bigger shows." Those lambs that are not kept for replacements or sold as show lambs are sold on special lamb sales or fed out in their own feedlot. "Selling lambs at the Easter time sale allows us to meet an ethnic market. We also feed some of the lambs out to market weight, but it seems that the end result is about the same as far as profit," said Tom. Show ring success Moser lambs have been successful in the show ring not only for the Moser kids, but also many other junior exhibitors. They have not purchased any of the lambs they have shown since 2006. At the 2009 Iowa State Fair, they had six class winners out of the 12 head of lambs they exhibited. A large goal was met at this year's Iowa State Fair when Alecia exhibited the Reserve Grand Champion FFA Market Lamb, which was bred and raised on their farm. "Its amazing the feeling you get from a simple handshake," she said. While winning is fun, Alecia admits, it's not everything. "The experiences we have gained through our projects will stay with us for a lifetime," she said. They all enjoy helping their customers learn more about their animals and how to exhibit sheep. Alecia has held several clinics on sheep care and showmanship. "Learning how to be responsible for your project because they depend on you, as well as gaining leadership skills is what we want our customers to get out of their projects," she added. Future plans Currently there are no major plans to increase the flock numbers, but Tom said it is not something they would be opposed to as long as they have the labor to take care of everything. He does hope to expand the farming operation in the future, and with Clint being home and having his own farm ground, that will likely be possible. Besides farming, Clint also hauls grain with his own semi and has a custom hay and harvesting business. Alecia is a junior at Iowa State University majoring in agriculture business and is a member of the ISU Meats Team. Her future plans include the possibility of medical school, but no matter what her final career is, she said she is sure to be involved in agriculture and the sheep industry. Her love for her industry was awarded at the American Royal last fall when she was named champion sheep showman. Andrea is a senior in high school and enjoys helping around the farm as well as being involved in the local FFA chapter and 4-H club. Dawn is a 4-H leader and enjoys helping out the juniors with their many projects and Tom is kept busy at the farm. The whole family is involved with their local church also. "Our kids have been fortunate to be involved in such a great industry that has given them so many opportunities, including paying for their schooling. We are very thankful for that," said Dawn. Jennifer Bremer can be reached by phone at 515-833-2120, or by e-mail at jbremer@hpj.com.
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