Dairy sheep aren’t as commonplace as dairy cows or goats. But Carrie and Brent Wasser have made a living at Willow Pond Sheep Farm in Gardiner, NY. They shared their best tips for success in a webinar hosted by Food Animals Concerns Trust.
The Wassers farm 35 acres of pasture. Currently, their flock is comprised of 40 dairy ewes and 80 youngstock. About 60 of the youngstock are raised for meat, leaving about 20 ewes to be future milkers. The Wassers also keep two dairy rams and a teaser ram. They feed a grain supplement and feed New York-grown hay in winter.
They sell sheep’s milk yogurt, bottled and pasteurized sheep’s milk and whole milk ricotta. Glass bottled yogurt is their primary product, shelved in 50 stores. They also sell at farmers markets. This past season, Brent started making fresh sheep’s milk ricotta.
The couple utilizes a mix of sales outlets: stores, three farmers markets and a small farm store on the property.
Some sheep dairymen make other products; butter is less common.
“If you take the cream to make butter, you are left with skim sheep’s milk,” Carrie said. “It’s not economically smart.”
Sheep’s milk is noted for its creaminess, so skimming it results in a subpar product, in her opinion. Sheep’s milk is higher in fat and protein than cow or goat milk.
“For yogurt, we get an exceptional set,” Brent said. “It’s firm and scoopable. For people used to cow’s milk but can’t tolerate it, many find they can drink sheep’s milk. We’ve had a lot of success with our bottled milk. We’re the only sheep dairy in our area. You’d have that advantage in that sheep dairying is not that common.”
Adding to this “exclusivity” angle, sheep’s milk is a seasonal product, unless a farm wants to kid multiple times a year. The Wassers’ flock kids in late April and they milk 220 days.
“The milk quantity and quality changes as the season progresses,” Brent said. “You may need two or three flocks to milk year-round.”
Carrie noted the sheep breeds common in the U.S.: East Friesian, Lacaune and Assaf (a cross of East Friesian and Awasski).
East Friesian wool is very nice, Carrie said. The Lacaune is not known for its wool.
Carrie added that milking a dairy breed is important – but noted that East Friesian sheep provide a good hanging weight for meat.
“High-quality dairy rams can be hard to find in the U.S.,” she said. “There are very few commercial sheep dairies in the U.S. – only maybe 75 to 100. We’re very spread out. Brent and I have to go very far to find a good quality dairy ram.” (They drove to Kansas City to find theirs.)
The couple regularly measures milk production so they can make informed breeding decisions. They also look for udder conformation, temperament, susceptibility to parasites and mothering qualities.
Udder health matters. Of course, good sanitation goes a long way in preventing mastitis. They also test ewes for staph A, the most common cause for sub-clinical mastitis, and monitor ewes individually for somatic cell count, another indicator of infection. They look for 200,000/mL or less.
“The udder shape is so important,” Brent said. “It may be a disadvantage to milk a very wooly sheep that’s close to the ground. Udder health begins with an udder that has a healthy shape and function. It has good attachment and teat placement at the 5 and 7 positions.”
The Wassers also focus on ewe nutrition. Their pastures include a mix of timothy, white clover, bird’s-foot trefoil and perennial ryegrass.
“We are seeking to improve our pastures through regular addition of lime and compost and overseeding with meadow fescue, as we have somewhat wet areas where grasses don’t tolerate well,” Brent said.
They supplement their forage with a high-protein grain mix and change their ewes’ nutrition based upon stage of gestation and lactation. Otherwise, the ewes can lose condition. They mix whole corn, roasted soybeans, alfalfa pellets and soybean meal, all organic and grown locally.
“Grass-fed milk is possible, but you have to breed for the feed you’re going to offer,” Brent said. “It’s a balance between production and nutrition.”
The Wassers allow the lambs to nurse on the ewes for 30 days. They wean once they’ve surpassed 30 lbs.
“On that day, we start milking the ewes and the lambs go off to pasture to be raised separately,” Carrie said. “Another system that others like to do is the 12-hour system. You allow the lambs to nurse on the ewes during the day and separate them at night. In the morning when you bring them into the parlor, you have more milk. We use the natural nursing system for a variety of reasons, but the others are acceptable as well.”
The Wassers use a low line vacuum milking system that collects the milk into a pipe and receiving jar that’s pumped into the bulk tank where it is kept cold.
“For 12 to 15 animals, the portable system works,” Brent said. “Hand milking will be more scrutinized by your inspector. The milk is exposed to anything that might fall in, like insects.”
He advised people new to sheep milking invest only in equipment that meets state and federal regulations.
“Make sure your layout and utilities and how you build your building … are in line with state and federal regulations,” he added.
To market their sheep milk products, Carrie focuses on its strong points: mild, creamy flavor; high digestibility; and a nutritional profile that’s high in protein and calcium.
The cultural connection with sheep’s milk also attracts some customers.
“Many of our customers are immigrants, where sheep dairy is a big part of their culture,” Carrie said. “France, Spain, Turkey, Greece, Iran – there’s a great history of consuming sheep milk products. These can be your dependable customers.”
Sheep’s milk isn’t for customers looking for a bargain. “Don’t be reluctant to charge a ‘high’ price,” Carrie said. “Educate consumers on the seasonality.”
Most customers who try it understand it’s special, she added. “We communicate through the pretty glass jar. Our margins are pretty slim. We work on improving that every year. We do the same amount of work as a cow or goat dairy farmer but we get much less milk so we have to charge more per unit.”
The seasonality can affect some retailers, as most want products they can carry year-round.
The Wassers also sell other value-added products, including packaged lamb cuts, sheepskins, wool blankets and tallow candles. They offer public lamb tours each spring.
“We want to value every part to respect the animal and boost farm sustainability,” Carrie said.
They send the hides to Vermont Natural Tannery – they sell very well at farmers markets. A professional weaver make their wool blankets. They make their own tallow candles and soaps.
“We’re very committed to offering a wide array of products,” Carrie said. “Offering more than sheep dairy cements our relationship with our farmers market customers.”
