OrlDen products, based in Warrenpoint, Co Down, launched OrlDen Fox Repellent Oil in 2014. Michael Lynch says the company is very pleased with sales of the product in Ireland and Scotland. “Our customers’ response has been very pleasing. Nobody reported that they lost lambs treated with OrlDen Fox Repellent Oil. Effectively, they had zero losses to foxes and there was no mismothering of lambs by ewes.” Michael advises to put the oily paste on the neck area only (back of the neck/throat area). He says that putting it all around the neck may be beneficial in preventing attacks from a mink or weasel, but the company cannot guarantee this protection. The recommended time of application depends on the location of lambs. “If lambs are born indoors, apply the oil just before they are let out. If lambs are born outside, then they risk predation immediately after being born or the following evening/night. The oil can be applied immediately or before that evening, at the latest, to provide protection. If applying to freshly-born lambs, still wet, it is important to apply the oil to the neck area only to avoid rejection.”
OrlDen products, based in Warrenpoint, Co Down, launched OrlDen Fox Repellent Oil in 2014. Michael Lynch says the company is very pleased with sales of the product in Ireland and Scotland. “Our customers’ response has been very pleasing. Nobody reported that they lost lambs treated with OrlDen Fox Repellent Oil. Effectively, they had zero losses to foxes and there was no mismothering of lambs by ewes.”
Michael advises to put the oily paste on the neck area only (back of the neck/throat area). He says that putting it all around the neck may be beneficial in preventing attacks from a mink or weasel, but the company cannot guarantee this protection. The recommended time of application depends on the location of lambs. “If lambs are born indoors, apply the oil just before they are let out. If lambs are born outside, then they risk predation immediately after being born or the following evening/night. The oil can be applied immediately or before that evening, at the latest, to provide protection. If applying to freshly-born lambs, still wet, it is important to apply the oil to the neck area only to avoid rejection.”
OrlDen Fox Repellent Oil is available through agri and veterinary outlets in 100ml and 500ml sizes, treating approximately 15 and 80 lambs, respectively. The 100ml container costs €7.40, while 500ml costs €28. A five-litre container, which treats over 800 lambs, is also available on request. The paste is non-irritant for human and ovine skin, with one application sufficient for cover. Further details can be found at http://www.OrlDenLivestockProducts.com, by email at orldenproducts@gmail.com or by phone at 048-41753157/07767 377500.
One of the products marketed by Wicklow-based company, Buffalo Steel Products, are the feed baskets in the photo. The baskets sit neatly on lambing gates and, as such, one basket will service two lambing pens.
The steel mesh baskets are strengthened on top with a heavier steel band. Each basket measures 790mm in length, 490mm in width and is 510mm deep. Brothers Mark and John O’Connor, who run the company, say baskets can be delivered anywhere in Ireland and Northern Ireland by next-day delivery.
The baskets cost €18.95, plus VAT. Further details can be found at buffalosteelproducts.com, by emailing buffalosteelproducts@gmail.com or by calling Mark on 087-3593068 or John on 087-2190945.
Farm Relief Services (FRS) in Boyle, Co Roscommon, is selling sheep hurdles constructed from recycled plastics. The standard hurdles measure 5ft x 5ft, with one set of four hurdles costing €125, including VAT.
Boyle FRS manager Richard O’Dowd says the greatest advantages of the hurdles are that they are easy to clean and maintain hygienic conditions at lambing, along with providing newborn lambs with a warm, sheltered environment. The hurdles are also lightweight and easy to store.
Richard says that an option selected by an increasing number of customers to prepare areas for lambing or other tasks is purchasing sheets of stockboard.
He says that some farmers have used the sheets of stockboard to construct their own pens and, in many cases, to prepare facilities for lambing. For example, he says the stockboard can quickly be applied to gates or at the bottom of sheds to exclude drafts.
The sheets measure 8ft x 4ft in size and are variable in thickness. A sheet of 6mm thick stockboard sells for €42, including VAT, 9mm sells for €55, including Vat, while the heavy gauge 12mm thick stockboard costs €75, including VAT.
Contact Richard on 086-2521699.
Performance Steel in Oldcastle, Co Meath, has a new ‘‘ewe and lamb transporter’’, which the company says can make it easier to transport ewes and young lambs from shed to shed or out to fields. The base of the transporter is made from chequer plate.
The mesh sides are lightweight and can be easily removed, which, along with a removable ramp, allows the transporter to be used to carry larger items on the flat body.
Dessie Donohoe explains that the ramp is built with chequer plate and longer than the sides to give a low gradient that will entice ewes to walk up the ramp easier.
The front axle can pivot around, which makes the transporter easier to manoeuvre around tight areas. Dessie says the large wheelbarrow wheels with internal bearings make it easier to pull, even when loaded. The front pulling bar is also lightweight and when not in use works as a handbrake on the front two wheels. The transporter costs €450, including VAT, which includes delivery to any part of the country.
Another product marketed by Performance Steel, which may be of benefit at lambing, are the hay and haylage nets shown in the photo below. The nets can be filled, fastened at the top and hung on lambing pens. Each net costs €7.99 including VAT.
Further information on the products listed here can be found at www.farmdirect.ie or by calling 049-8542907.
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