Ross said:
This thread isn't getting much use so I thought I'd give a short reveiw of a book I've often critisized. Thinking about it I've been very unfair and missed the obvious point about an very useful book. Paula Simmons authored a book called Raising Sheep The Modern Way. It is a little dated but I have to say as a first book it is very inspiring and coveres the basics very well. Most importantly it's an easy read. The author has a very relaxed style, a common touch perhaps? I wouldn't be surprised if most sheep farmers/keepers in North America hasn't had at least a quick read, and that says volumes about a book and author we all owe a great deal of respect and thanks to. Pick up a copy they're on eBay all the time!
This book has been revised by the author, and is now published by Storey's Publications, with a slightly different title. I like this book as well.
I just got "The Sheep Book: A Handbook for the Modern Shepherd", by Ron Parker, and I like this one also. The narrative style is pretty unique compared to the other sheep books.
There is another book we checked out from the library, but it really seemed focused on growing sheep for maximum meat efficiency (read: market lamb) output. Not so good for people raising wool or dual-purpose or small flocks, grass-fed/organic, etc.
There is a book of sheep veterinary medicine from Great Britain that we checked out recently also, that I think is very nice, esp. the color pictures. The Merck Vet. Manual is nice, but it covers all animals.
The only problem with most of the sheep books is that if you have a non-standard breed (Shetland, Wensleydale) that are off either end of the size spectrum, some of the recommendations, normalcy, etc. are probably off a bit... but that's part of the adventure, right?
I guess most of all which book/s you like or need depend on why you're raising sheep and what you ultimately want from them.