ID—Lancaster Farming. Saturdoy, March 7.1970 H Penn State Specialist Warns Sheep Producers Must Overcome Problems Dramatic changes are needed in Pennsylvania sheep produc tion, or the state will be out of the sheep business, Frank Cruz berger. Penn State specialist, told Lancaster County Sheepmen Thursday. Cruzberger was relaying senti ments of top state sheep produc ers who met recently to discuss problem? in the industry. The ■umber of sheep in Pennsylvania in 1969 was 124,00 n head, down 9,000 from a vear earlier and 4,- COO from 1967 A major problem, he said, is that U S sheep growers just are not selling their product. In the 1930’s the individual consump tion of lamb averaged 7.5 pounds per person By the early 19695, be said, that figure dropped to five pounds, and is expected to dip even lower in 1970, to 3 4 pounds per person Parasite Control low the farmer to keep tiack of Dr Sam Guss, extension veter- S°°d producers also is a pait of inaiian, also spoke on the pio- management. gram on conti oiling parasites He particularly emphasized averaging about 20 head, creates that any Lancaster County sheep problems Sheep i aising is most producers whose flocks were not ly a sideline since only 20 head yet inspected during the winter can’t provide a laving, and those for sheep scabies should contact few don’t receive the attention the Extension office here. they should have. “Pennsylvania had more cases Along these same lines, Cruz- Of sheep scabies last year than berger said that theie has been the rest of the nation,” he said, too much attention focused on Some flocks in the county had puiebreds and not enough on ecabies last year he said. commercial production. QUALITY MAKES THE DIFFERENCE IN THIS SPREADER'S PERFORMANCE An Avco New Idea PTO spreader has more of the quality features you want! You can choose the type you want flail, single beater or cylmder/paddle —- in popular sizes up to 206 bushels big. Structural steel frame and rugged hitch. Long lasting Penta treated wood box. Beefed-up conveyor. Big wheels and high flotation tires. Written full year warranty. Low maintenance costs, plus high trade-in value based on the best reputation in the spreader business. Optional hydraulic endgate (right), mechanical end gate or manure pan give positive, economical con trol over sloppy manure. idea FJkPM EQUIPMENT Longenecker Farm Supply Rheems Graybill Machines, Inc. A. L. Herr & Bro. Lititz, R. D. 2 Quarryville A. B. C. Groff, Inc, New Holland Einzer Equip. Co. Kinzer Major problems facing veteran sheep raisers Cruzberger stfid, included: AGE—Vounger people appear to be entering other fields or raising other animals such as steers. Getting young men and women interested in raising sheep would be an important step in increasing sheep produc tion. MANAGEMENT Despite a general opinion of farmers who raise both sheep and steers that the sheep make them greater pro fit per animal, fewer sheep and more steers are being raised. Management may be the rea son, Cruzberger said, because sheep will require more attention than cattle. More information from Penn State on sheep rais ing and management also was cited. Record keeping which will al- FLOCKS—The size of the flock, Chas. J. McComsey St Sons Hickory Hill, Pa. Roy H. Buch, Inc. Ephrata, R.D. #2 Landis Bros., Inc. Lancaster He stated that lamb producers have to be able to provide the type of meaty carcass packers want and in a steady supply. It doesn’t do any good to have lamb on the market one week, but off the next, he said. Lamb customers turn somewhere else when they can’t find lamb and the packer loses when he has no lamb to sell. Cruzberger urged careful con sideration when choosing ewes for breeding stock, emphasizing the importance of selecting mea ty qualities, length and strength and soundness. The speaker also urged produc ers not skimp when buying rams, stating that the ram should have good meaty qualities and scale He said a good ram should requne a good price. Ram To Ewe Ratio A good ram to ewe ratio also is important, he said, with 30 to 35 ewes per ram. Production will not be as good with a higher ratio, he said. Cruzberger also listed the 12 per cent protein feed i ation used by Penn State which has provid ed the best results. The ration should include 250 pounds of soy bean oil meal; 200 pounds of alfalfa meal; 1,400 pounds of finely ground ear corn and cob, which provides both nutrients and roughage; 150 s|||iil\ "LET'S GET ACQUAINTED" Lancaster \ \ MR> FAR MER: Co. Recom- \ \ mendations Full Season (800 Maturity) 85X 82X PA 8703 Medium (600-700 Maturity) 750-3 729 74X 66X Early (600 Maturity) 64X —60 X YES, we have the new high protein HvLycine Corn!! YES, we have a special on seed for the J.D. Plateless planters!! YES, we pack the OLD-FASHIONED 56# bushels - no “LITTLE” Bags here!! LANCASTER COUNTY DEALERS Daniel Brubaker . Daniel Esh Nelson Habecker . Ron Herr Richard Leminger . T. A. DOEBLER & SON R. D. #l. pounds of molasses: 20 poundsof ground limestone; and two of salt per ton of feed; 20 poundpounds of Aurofac 40. We’re the Doeblers and our only business is gi owing, processing and disti ibuting' DOEBLER’S PENNSYLVANIA HYBRIDS over most of Pennsylvania (245 dealers) Hybrid corn pioduetion started here in the late 30’s and last year reached 800 acres Theie are many things going for us but one of the most important is that we breed our hybrids here in Pennsylvania where they will be farmer planted Also since we grow our own corn, we are in a position to grow the “tough to pioduce” crosses that involve mbreds, split planting, old-fashioned detasselmg and selective fertilization Even with all this extia caie and effort, we can’t guarantee our h\ bi ids will alwrvs be better than the competition, but our Scues have doubled since 1965, so let’s just say they are usually better 1 ! T. A. Doebler, Jr. and Sr. Ephrata Ira Nissley Paradise Monroe Wasser Lancaster Lester M Weaver Holtwood Thomas Weidman Elizabethtown Roy Zimmeiman 1 i \ Morgantown Marietta New Holland Manheim Ephiata, Pa. - Jersey Shore; Pa.