Are Meat Sheep Profitable? Small Scale Sheep Planning
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- Опубликовано: 20 июн 2024
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Many of you will have different opinions on what you can sell sheep for. There's a wide margin of error when it comes to meat sheep sales and profits. This video wasn't created to be the sole source to plan your financial ROI with sheep. The best source is going to be to talk to local folks raising similar breeds, in similar circumstances, and selling the same way as you.
If you're interested in small-scale sheep-keeping but want to make sure you're not just sinking money into this hobby, then this video can show you how much money you can make. If you're making any money off of a hobby then that's a pretty good hobby!
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better soil | better plants | better animals
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ABOUT THE HIGH MOUNTAIN HOMESTEAD
Hi! I'm PJ, and my family loves the homesteading life! It's something my wife and I have always wanted to do, but we grew up with ZERO HOMESTEADING EXPERIENCE!!!!!
We grew up in beautiful southern California, 15 minutes away from the beach. As amazing as that was, we both dreamed of a life closer to land and animals. After getting married and moving to Utah, our family slowly grew. We had become a family of four living in a townhome with a small backyard filled with potted plants.
In 2019 we dipped out feet into homesteading on 1 ¼ acre lot in Utah. In 18 months we were ready to do this for real. So in 2021 we packed everything up (including our sheep) and moved to North Carolina to 12 acres and we love every inch of our homestead!
We raise Dorper sheep and have big plans for:
• grass-fed lamb
• fullblood Dorper breeding stock
• meat chickens
• laying chickens and ducks
• heritage breed pork
• honey
• row crops
• perennial food forest
• and more
I hope you join us on our journey, subscribe and ring the bell if you haven't yet.
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DISCLAIMER: This video and description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I'll receive a small commission. But don't worry, it doesn't cost you anything extra!
#meatsheep #farming #raisingsheep 
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After watching this - I'm convinced Greg Judy is the answer to a more efficient sheep profit. He eliminates feed and misc. costs which is more than 50% of your expenses. Thank you for putting this together - I'm sure this takes a lot of your time and as a 1st generation farmer - I'm hoping to master this for my daughter.
Greg Judy has so much down the right way, I love everything he's doing.
@Scott Butler here in my part of Texas, Ag leases can go for as low as $10/acre per year, so 20 acres for $200/year
That's only true if you have or lease hundreds of acres
I have 160 acres
I do Greg Judy style on my land .
I added chicken rotation in it as well
No barns for my cows ,sheep, goats
No hay , no chemicals etc
@@coziii.1829 are you making decent profit?
I am 13 and this has helped me so much! Thank you! Thank you! Thank YOU! I have a relatively good idea already of how my profit was going to turn out and my family runs a small family homestead that doesn't really generate money, but more on meat for us. I want to turn our small flock of 6 ewes, 8 lambs, and 2 rams, into a profit running source of income for me and my family. We aren't farmers before and have only been figuring things out as we go, but I have so many thoughts and ideas of how I can turn my unorganized situation to a great way to make money and spend my time. Even though I am young, I sometimes forget that I still have so much more to go, I am so focused on being successful now that I crowd my head with all these ideas that I just don't know what to do with myself sometimes. After watching this video, you have simply givin me a goal and newfound hope. My dad says sometimes when he really gets to thinking, that work when you can, make your profits when young, so you can do what you want to do when you aren't able to work as you once we and can enjoy those good old golden years.
My setup is 160 acres
Solar/ hybrid. Net metering.
Well water and rain catch system with 30,000 tank
I rotate all my animals
Cows, sheep, goats , chickens.
Haven’t bought any hay yet
Have a stream/ small river running through my property.
My winters only snows bad about every 4 years but it does get cold but then it’s 70 or 80 next day
Good old Oklahoma
Your doing great ! My wife loves every single one of them , and they eat better than I do. When I talk about selling a few they all become pets. I went from Jack and Jill to 16 sheep over the years. Yeah buddy, it's a hobby ! I guess we just love sheep. Our sheep are all non registered. I change the male out after every breeding. I do really well with that. I pay top dollar for the ram and gift the other male most of the time. We butchered two of them but it was like eating the family pet. I was the only one eating him. I found him delicious
Oh man! We name all of our young rams Shaun so as to not get too attached. When we have lamb for dinner the whole family (including the young kids) gives thanks to Shaun for helping us to stay healthy.
Great walkthrough on the profit potential. Keep up the content 👍
Thank you so much
Enjoyed watching your honest assessment. Thanks!
Thanks. I liked hearing your numbers below. Certainly cheaper in Texas than anything I've ever heard off.
Great video.....I am planning to get some sheep pretty soon, sheep used to be the lawnmowers for golf courses....maybe you can make your own golf course now
Love it! They also used to mow the lawn at the White House!
Thank you 😊
I can make a small profit with my small-ish 20 flock operation...worm drench annually, cider vinegar in the water and baking soda in the minerals and only one bloat case in 3 years that resolved in 4 hours.
You have a real sense of humor! Thanks Excellent Presentation
Thanks!
Awesome job, PJ! Keep it up!
Thanks Mark!
I watch all ads to support ur endeavors and to thank u for these helpful infos abt sheep. Loving your channel. I have a trio of sheep and hoping to have more someday.
You are too kind! Thank you so much. We started with a trio as well!
Best grade registered ram in Texas $1500. Ewes $750., $500. $250. From a very good established breeder.
You’re probably not going to answer, but what are your favorite trusted breeders in Texas??
Wow you get a lot better price for your sheep than we do in New Zealand! A whole lamb fully butchered is about $300 here, and you can buy purebred dorper ewes for $200 unregistered and $400 registered. I guess that is what we get for living in a country populated by so many sheep farms!
You know, on nights when the kids are asleep and my wife and I stay up late dreaming big dreams, we think about moving to New Zealand for the sheep scene (and because it's a beautiful country filled with amazing people and policies). Seems like in the brief research I've done, the white Dorpers are more prominent than the black heads, is that true?
@@homesteadingwithPJ It is a BEAUTIFUL country for sure. Policies wise - politicians are terrible worldwide, we have slipped into an over controlled, over regulated system where you can't do anything without paying to register or asking for a consent for something. But we try and keep to ourselves here and ignore as much bureaucracy as we can haha. If you ever come to NZ let us know, we would happily host ya'll. Dorpers that I have found here seem to mostly be black headed, which is what we would like. The closest registered breeder is a 5 hour drive away though I think!
Thanks for the offer, super kind! I hope to take you up on it sometime!
Excellent.
Thank you for this video... it puts in perspective the potential... I'm sure the numbers are different now, but your videos may have convinced me to try sheep
Sheep are lots of fun! Sometimes I want to pull my hair out when I'm trying to move them to a new paddock. But in most every other setting, they are very fun and rewarding animals to care for.
Just curious given your situation, how many acres do you have? If your land starts producing better grass could you expand your flock? Thanks for sharing.
When I was recording this I had a very small lot, just 1.25 acre. But we're expanding to a larger wet up across the country. Not enough land to do it full time, but enough to have around 10-15 ewes and achieve the numbers referenced in this video.
Do you do any function stacking with trees that produce a crop like chestnuts or hazelnuts (etc)?
Not yet, maybe some day.
Do you have any for sale right now? We are in the Piedmont triad area in NC. We just started with 3 sheep (not dorper) but want to move in that direction. Not sure how to get my contact info to you without sharing with everyone. Thanks, Greg
We sure do, I actually have a ewe and a ram, both registered and have excellent genetics! And sounds like we're pretty close geographically.
Hit me up on Instagram: instagram.com/highmountain_homestead/
Or find my info here:
dorpersheep.org/northcarolina-members/
I think another angle to add would be how large the operation could be scaled before it becomes unrealistic for someone to have a full time job AND raise sheep. I think that's the situation I'd end up being in if I started.
You're right, heck I'd like to know that myself. I think I'll need to interview some other sheep people to get the best take on that.
Then again, seeing how bright this guy is, I'm pretty sure he'd suggest you send the sheep out to work instead, wouldn't he?
In Texas a registered ram gets $100.00 per ewe bred and approximate time 1 month.
Grab a copy of Jim Gerish's book; Kicking the Hay Habit. Also, we co-pasture Kunekune pigs w/ sheep and what one doesn't eat the other does, so no need to re-seed as long as you don't over graze (always leave at least half as a broad guide). Checkout sprouting seeds for fodder. Cheap (although it does add another chore) way to provide a kind of high quality pasture extenser/replacement of sorts through the dormant grass season. The carotene helps increase the milk fat percentage, which is great for dairy as well as fecundity, gut biome and general good health - for all animal species.
Wow, this is brilliant! I'll add that book to my Amazon wishlist too! Very interesting stuff with the Kunekune and sheep mix, we've thought about doing that, but never pulled the trigger. Sounds like you've been able to make it work though!
bales in the california valley now depending on the type is 20$-30$ per bale. I think 26 or 28 for alph
Whoa! That's crazy!
It is definitely profitable for me. The sheep kept me company through some cold, lonely winter nights.
I should probably not comment here lol 😆
Big Afghanistan energy 😂
How do you find sheep shows that don't involve ffa or 4-h? I just got out of high school and still want to show sheep I just cannot show through ffa or 4-h anymore. Its hard to find shows that don't involve ffa or 4-h.
I need Dorpers, so I'm a member of a national group for Dorpers. I find out about shows that way. Best of luck! Love to hear you're interested in sheep!
How many acres would you need to scale to 100 sales? Thanks Darrel
Ah, that's so hard to say. Not all acres are created equal. Terrible pasture, you'll need hundreds of acres. Excellent pasture, mob grazing, ideal conditions, could be less than 30 acres. Just depends on the land, the grass, the sheep, the Shepard, luck, haha.
I have googled what single track is with many variations and haven't found anything that makes sense given the context. What is single track lambing?
Lambing once a year, I would guess.
How many sheep would fit on 13 acres of straight pasture. We have 39 acres we are gonna rotate each year between crops and pasture land.
Not all pasture is created equal and it depends on how often you rotate it, what the grass grows there, how long you let. it rest. Etc. But a good rule of thumb is start out with 2 ewes an acres and move up from there.
Where do you sell the sheep?
Im looking to start my own flock in the spring. I heard its best not to start with a breeding stock and instead start with lambs you plan to harvest in the fall. I don't see how that would be better but I wanted to have another opinion on it.
I wish I would have done that my first year, just to learn more about it. But I jumped right in to breeding stock.
Breeding sheep and raising feeders are two separate games. If you want to breed sheep, and you have the facilities for it (i.e. fences, places to separate ewes and rams, etc.) I'd say start with a few ewes that come to you pregnant and then worry about getting a ram later.
And good luck! Let me know if I can help you in any way, I'm always happy to hear when more people want to get into sheep.
@@homesteadingwithPJ I appreciate the response! Is there major differences in breeding stock compared to feeders? I’m leaning towards getting 3 ewes I could breed in the future. Get them in the spring and rent a ram or get one in the fall to breed and lamb in the following spring. That way I have a year or season with just getting used to them before they lamb and harvest the following year. Not sure if that would seem like a possibility. I do have a place to keep them separate. I have a barn with stalls and an attached paddock. Also have premier 1 fence for rotational grazing the ewes.
@@Kylejohn33 If I was doing this whole thing over again, I would do exactly that. I think it's a great plan to learn and take it slow before "breeding" the sheep.
Breeding stock are essentially the best quality you can get your hands on. Feeders are everything else.
This is so helpful. I saw another comment that you planned on updating this video. Ever get a chance to? Thanks.
I did! Sorry for the late reply. Here it is!
ruclips.net/video/3blaaZ0I4lc/видео.html
He said basing some factual numbers on hypothetical advice. 😁
Do you really average 18 with dorper sheep 🐑 if you do that's amazing
What about the sheep processing costs to butcher and your time doing this?
Butcher costs are passed on to my customers. I sell live animals, and do my customers the curtesy of dropping it off at the butcher, where my customers pick up their cuts and pay the butcher.
I didn't say that super well in this video, but I talk about it around minute 17.
I find the video informative but it seemed to be more focused on raising sheep to go to shows and sell them. It might work for a hobby farm but it doesn’t sound like it would scale up to a larger one? Nevertheless, your numbers provided a good research basis for further study. Thanks
Yes, this definitely emphasizes the small farm.
@@homesteadingwithPJ I’d be interested in a video on how the show market works. I have no idea how viable it would be for me….and I haven’t bought any sheep yet so it might be worthwhile. Thanks!
@@fortwoods I'll keep that in mind. I do mostly small farm related stuff, but I have many connections that do it at scale for meat purposes.
So I didnt see where the 10 sheep equaled 18 lamb? I know some will have twins but that seems like a high % I feel like I am missing something.
Also, this adds in the cost of the original 10 sheep, right? Wouldnt year 2 provide more income since those 10 ews are paid off? And you could keep any lambs you have that first year and rent a different Ram the second year to further increase your costs. That would mean ALL of the Ews that you produce would be equal to $750 since you wont be spending that on buying more ews to increase your flock? Just trying to look at how much this system would growneach year after the initial costs are taken out from the 1st year.
180% lambing ratio is a pretty standard one for most hair sheep breeds.
@@homesteadingwithPJ ah, ok. I never know it was that high!
What about the price of the 10 ewes?
Totally depends on the quality, locations, and what their papers look like. If you're paying under $500 per sheep, it's probably not great quality. I'd say average fullblood ewe is $800 or more. So by that math $8,000 for 10 ewes.
We need more White Sheep Friday episodes!
I agree. I've just gotten lazy!
What do you mean by Single Track lambing?
Lambing once a year. Whereas hair sheep have the "option" to lamb three times every two years.
Thanks! @@homesteadingwithPJ
Looks good. If I can profit $5K per enterprise I condsider it good.
Were those expense numbers PER sheep?
No, total.
Sheep eating grass and getting worms is a big problem that Greg Judy doesn’t address, maybe a large bag lawn mover then steam the grass to kill parasites then rinse.
Just finished the video. Great breakdown on the white board, but you're missing one of the most important variables - land cost. To help the viewer really understand your "PROFIT" please include land costs.
I plan to redo this video in 2022, I'll factor that in. This video assumes that you know your land cost and can factor that in.
How could you factor that in. Land prices very drastically within local areas never mind to a worldwide audience
Can we just say 1) on average starting every one ewe can net approx. $586 per year, and 2) if you start with 100 ewes, that year you can expect to make about $58K? (not a bad annual salary)
Especially in the First year, reinvest everything possible.
Ok I need the contact for your hay guy. My hay was way more than that :). Seriously please send me his contact I’ll go down to Utah County for hay!
Well I've been sort of grandfathered in by my neighbor. I just tag into his order. I don't even have any contact info to give! Sorry. Next time I'll talk with my neighbor I'll see if I can learn more.
How many acres are you making that profit? Much better a metric is profit per acre.
That's a great question, and I suppose it would vary. Not all acres are equal. Someone once told me to start with 2 ewes per acre and work your way up from there.
Golf is a profitable hobby, a lot of great connections are made on the greens. 🙂
You got me there!
This convinced me to not get sheep...
Registration is no guarantee of quality, just a way of better assuring that the pedigree is legit. Inbreeding/line breeding is incredibly common in N.A., and as such lots of animals are being produced that shouldn't, and many or most can still be registered. Unless the breed registry has a threshold COI it's generally just a scam to help its members fleece the unknowing. All part of that US exceptionalism that isn't...
Yes, and I've learned that the hard way. Registered is just paperwork, you still need to know what quality sheep look like.
also bare in minjd that sheep have a 5 month gestation period, meaning u can get twice the lambing/yr!
You can, but I find for the sake of the ewes, it's better to give more rest. Also twice a year for more than one year in a row is not realistic under any circumstances.
Better factor in the cost of replacement ewes. Otherwise your out of business in a few years. I prefer a closed flock and to integrate new ewe lambs every year. Even if I cull need to cull healthy mature ewes. This spreads their ages and depending on how you manage the ram their genetics.
That's true, I'm sure I'll make this video again next year with the new knowledge I've gained doing it myself along with great comments like yours!
Wait a second…
Your going to end up with some dinks (wormy, failure to thrive, sick) lambs. Roughly 1 dink is guaranteed for a flock this size. For you to say you will sell it for meat (an inferior product) for $350 seems questionable. Your going to be taking one to the stock yard or putting down a year. Where is that factored in. You give people very false hope of no “death loss” or parasites or any of that.
Also if it’s costing $500 to go to a show (and let’s be honest that’s a low ball when you factor in owning a trailer with insurance and gas and all the things) but your only gaining $600 from the sale of the 3 ewes over commercial price does it make sense to do that? Just some thoughts.
HAHA...Not realistic numbers but if your getting this type of net profit than that's awesome for you!
I'm realizing that my numbers are higher than others, but last month we had a yearling ewe sell at a show for $1,600.
These numbers might not be fore everyone, but they seem to hold true on our little hobby farm.
I'm looking forward to your next revelatory podcast: How I made ten million dollars breeding from one old hen and a rubber rooster named Bud.
how about turning your golf course into a sheep pasture. MORE SHEEP LESS GOLF haha
I'm all for that. I think it would be hilarious to watch sheep tear up a putting green in an afternoon!
It says meat sheep but it should say registered/show sheep not meat sheep profits
Good point. Most people do it differently than I do.
Wow, can’t believe every American isn’t running 100 Ewes. Pays better than being a Doctor!
Your margins go down the more you get, but assuming you can find 100 people to buy directly from you, you'll have excellent margins!
These margins are pretty high like top of the market if you’re animals can bring it charge it. But, this is no way near the norm my friend.
Medical expenses?
That's true. I missed that. But no joke, I had zero medical expenses when I was raising sheep in Utah. Didn't deworm, didn't call the vet once.
Now I'm in North Carolina, and boy oh boy is it a different story out here.
Does youtube profits count as sheep profits? :P Could you buy hay with meat? I would try to bargain a sheep or two instead of money.
I don't make as much as you think from RUclips, hopefully one day though! The price of one sheep is about double what I need for a season of hay, it makes more sense to pay for it.
So to make a living.....you need 100+ sheep?
Sad but true. I have net some that have over 400 head and still have a "city job"
@@homesteadingwithPJ well dang.
I really do think trying to make a living the best answer is chickens. Because of how little acerage you need
can sheep eat and drink by them selves ? what i ment to say can you have 1 milion sheep but not lifting a finger ?
do you think this is possible at least selling only the meat of the sheep?
I'm not sure what you're asking. But yes, sheep take care of themselves if they have what they need to do it.
@@homesteadingwithPJ what i really ment to say is that in real estate i can have unlimited amoints of rental homes and its all passive , and im sure the same is possible with sheep if i provide unlimited amount of water and grass i : 1. Own them in unlimided quantities
2. They eat and drink water and grass by them selves - passively
3. And i have a whole bunch of meat which i can take to the bucher and generate profit
Registered ewes, so you can take them somewhere - do you mean a picnic? To see the relatives? A day at the beach?
Love your breeding philosophy. Buy a sheep for $15000, pure stud perfection as an animal, in order to breed two hundred dollars of meat a year. Such sound business decision making. You should go into the turtle breeding business.
Too much disclaimer
These numbers are whacked. 0 chance of hitting those margins 0000000 chance
Weird, because I did that this year, just with 4 ewes, not 10. 😜
Your revenue numbers are unrealistically high!
I'm speaking from experience. With fullbloods, people pay that much and more.
You worked all year for 6k dollars 😢
Or you could have a hobby that you deeply enjoy that made you $6k!
But you make a good point, sheep alone, isn't great money. But regenerative farming practices usually denote that there are many enterprises, all of which producing something. Sheep is just one of them.
@@homesteadingwithPJ I enjoy cutting grass and it makes me a shit ton
@@homesteadingwithPJ you could have 12 laying hen chickens your sheep 6 flo hives and a micro greens grocery and be makes like 60k a year. Sell your eggs at the farmers market on the weekend fresh eggs don’t need to be refrigerated just harvest them and store on shelf in cool closet for the weekend the honey depending on where you live with only one super could harvest every other month or so once the hives get rolling and micro greens go to the farmers market or local juice bars and restaurants. Then take all the sheeps poop and micro green failings put them in a bio bin and farm super red wigglers to feed to the chickens and have beautiful soil for your greens. After a few years of this you could be well over 100k a year all on the same foot print or buy the lots adjacent to yours and expand the dorpers to a nice size flock
Great video, I really like the use of a white board it's a good to keep your audience engaged!