Caraga State University- Main Campus

Ampayon, Butuan City

College of Agriculture and Agro-Industries
Ansci-100

Name: Kenneth M. Boyles Date Performed: 12/04/2019

Course & Year: BS-ABE/ 2nd Year Rating:

Basic Care for Sheep and Goat

Sheep and goats are cloven-footed animals which are called small ruminants.
They are domesticated 8000 years ago in Africa and Asia. They are raised mainly for four
functions, namely: meat, milk, skin, and wool. They are widely distributed and are of great
importance as a major source of livelihood of the small farmer and the land less in rural
communities. They are considered to be among the first animals domesticated by
humans. They are social animals that like to graze and eat grass, but farmers may also
give them hay and grain to eat.
During the said activity we were tasked to do three things, namely: wool trimming
or sheep shearing, hoof trimming, and bloodless castration. The activity was held in on
the two animal programs in Caraga State University- Main Campus, the sheep and Goat
program respectively.
Wool trimming or sheep shearing is a process by which woolen fleece of a sheep
is cut off. This is done to harvest the fiber at an appropriate length, prevent manure and
urine buildup that can cause parasitic infection, allow adequate wool regrowth to improve
the ability to control its temperature, and create a clean environment to newborn lambs.
During the activity we were tasked to trim the wool carefully because sheep skin is very
sensitive.
Hoof trimming is a process of cutting overgrown hooves so that sheep and goats
may walk normally, and does not feel pain when walking and does not have foot and leg
problems like infections and arthritis. During the activity we used sharp scissors to trim
the overgrown hooves. We first remove the dirt in the hooves then carefully trim the sides
of the first and second toe. We trimmed the toe until we see a straight line parallel to the
pastern.
 Bloodless castration is a process of castration where the spermatic cord is crushed
using emasculator (burdizzo) or heavy elastic band. In the activity we used an
emasculator (burdizzo). We first prevented the sheep from moving positioning it upside-
down then carefully putting the spermatic cord at the jaws of the tool, crushing it. The
resulting damage causes the loss of blood flow to the testes and eventual testicular
atrophy within the scrotum. Castration is done to manage the population of animals and
prevent the passing of inferior genetic traits.

The following are the three procedures done in the activity.

Wool Trimming or Sheep Shearing (Sheep)

Bloodless Castration (Sheep)

Hoof Trimming (Goat)