Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (March 12, 1986)
T ile H e p p n e r I . « le t t e - T im e , H eppner O re g o n W e d n e .d a v . M a re k l ì . I* » * M M Sheep business good last 10 years, says rancher O ie of Rill's sheep her lomb The last 10 years, the sheep business has been as kink ) as it has ever been, says William K ill, area sheep rancher The Oregon Sheep Growers Auxiliary has been promot mg sheep and the use of more wool blends in clothing should continue to increase the demand for wool Some problems do remain, he says The cost of labor is high, and finding the right people who know how to handle sheep can be a problem because not many people especially younger people know much about caring for sheep It is necessary to have somebody with the sheep 24 hours a day. a kind of work not many find attractive Fuel costs are a problem because it is more convenient to load sheep on a truck and haul them to a different location than it is to tra il them as many early growers did The result is higher fuel costs Additionally, he says, the sheep business has become so specialized that farmers need a certain setup to handle them He has been in the sheep business for the last five years, a move which occurred large ly because his wife's fam ily had sheep and he became interested from association with her "bum m er" lambs, he says lim b in g time requires extra help, she says, because the ewes must be vaccinated before they lamb and the lambs need vaccinations after they are born Ewes and lambs are then kept in the same pen for two to three days until the ewe becomes accus tomed to the lamb and then they are moved to larger pens to accustom the ewe to finding her lamb among others the same age Early on. the lambs have to be checked often, he says to insure that they are sucking properly and that the ewe has adequate m ilk, he continues A lot of hand labor is involved and the person watching the sheep must know when to take the lamb off a ewe or to put another one with her “ Scooter'' and "Bear" have been a big help, he says in protecting the sheep from predators after they are turned out into the field Scooter and Bear are guarding dogs, a new tool available to sheep growers through the Extension Service Although the dogs are not the total answer, he has had great success with these two dogs and recommends them to other growers As with any piece of machinery, he continues, the dogs are not foolproof and success can depend on the blood lines of the dog as well as how much time is spent working with them Generally. September when the sheep were brought into the stubble field was a good time to lose sheep he says But since he acquired Bear in December 1984 and since govern men! trapper Ken Mitchell has been on the job. he has not lost any sheep to coyotes He is not in favor of getting rid of coyotes, he goes on, but thinks that they need to be kept in balance and not allowed to eat every thing in sight He has more than made up the cost for renting the guarding dogs from Hampshire Col lege in Amherst. Massachusetts, in what he has saved by not losing the sheep Bear and Scooter worked well together because the sheep loved Bear and follow ed him e v e ry where " The herder sometimes had problems because Bear would lead the sheep of ( w here the herder didn't want them to go Bear would generally work around the outside of the herd and Scooter would stay IP closer with the sheep Scooter has been alone with the sheep since Bear died last winter except for a brief time w hen K ill had another dog which did not work out well at all. he says, but he still has nothing but good' to say about the dogs He is expecting another dog. an eight week old pup in mid March which he says is a good time to gel a dog so that it can be put in the pens with the sheep from an early age and grow up with the lambs then go out to the field with them The dog is hardly ever handled because the idea is for it not to associate with people The dog is treated as a sheep Scooter is loaded in trucks with the sheep and hauled to where they will tie They're a tough dog, continues K ill, they bounce right back if a sheep pushes them aside and yet they never offer to bite sheep "It's difficult to get one of these dogs to come to you.'' he says because they jiay no attention to voice commands The dogs work by forming an attachment to the sheep They either think "They're a sheep or that the sheep is another dog and they 're protecting their own kind '* * flie y 're a different type of dog and you have to be careful with them You can't just turn them loose anywhere Jr. Bowlers to provide babysitting The Heppner Junior Bowling Lea gue w ill provide a babysitting ser vice for parents who wish to leave children at All Saints Episcopal parish hall between 2 and 6 p m Saturday. March 15 They ask a $5 donation per child if they remain the entire four hours The babysitters w ill have adult supervision, says spokesperson Sam Worley The money that the league raises w ill help tu pay for their trip to the state bowling championship tournament at Grants I ’ass April 2fr27 The 24 6 14 year olds have already held can and bottle drives, bake sales, and will sweep sidewalks for merchants before the St I ’at rick's Day celebration us well as help clean up afterwards by sweep mg sidewalks and washing windows They are trying to raise 11,200 for the trip and are now at the Moo mark, says Worley "They have worked hard and are excited about the championship tournament “ The junior league program started just this year Eor more information about the babysitting service call Worley 676 0208 Skate Sat. at fair pavilion If you enjoy roller skating you w ill have your chance this Saturday during St Patrick's Day weekend The Morrow County Fair pavilion w ill be open for skating on Saturday from 2 4 p m and from 68 p m Enjoy lamb BBQ Sunday After a days activities during St Patrick's Day. you and your fam ily can build up quite an appetite Mario Zubirri has just the thing for you on Sunday A genuine Basque lamb Barbecue at the Morrow County Fair Grounds in Heppner starting at 12 noon to 2 p m The Morrow County Creative Arts id Crafts Club w ill sponsor an art low and sale from 10 a m to 4 p rn sturday, March 15 at the la** i hwah show riami on Main Street in leppner l tub i n c i i i l jr r s will k e e p th e i o l l e e io» alni |ri'ilhiM- l o h a v e a v a r i e ty of »'tiei r e l r e s l i l n e l i l s a v a l l a t i l e lor l.iu w lio s h ip .1 ' l * l fc * I . a ' IO t.- ft hv *•» View I* m a l Help Us with our Spring Cleaning: <j Assorted Odds ,o<° 'n Ends Reduced 10 to 50% Saturday, March 15 Only Total H ardw are Sale Continues Thru March 15 We’re here to help you. Coast to Coast % . TOTAL HARDWARE ' 106 E May Ave. 676-Wbl 'm COMES TO HEPPNER Boarder collie Petey (front) and guard dog Scooter at the ranch Parade entries line up Saturday at I 15. the grand Irish parade will start on its way up Mam Street in Heppner A number of entries from throughout nor the a stern Oregon have already regis lered to follow grand marshal Sue Castle ruins highlight slide presentation Each year on SI Patrick's Day. Irish and those who would like to lie Irish gather upstairs at the Elks 1/odge to view a slide presentation of Ireland by and Irish descendant who made the journey back to the Emerald Isle This year at 2 30 S aturday. Martha Doherty w ill show slides of a trip during May and June of 1985 which included the first week of the Doherty international reunion in County Donegal, the homeland of the Dohertys The Irish countryside is very different from that of Morrow County. Martha says, an average farm there is about 20 acres and that usually serves as home lor two generations She says there are a lot of ruined castles in Ireland, and many are included in her slides Come see and hear a bit of Doherty fam ily and Irish county Donegal history Wranglers sell rummage-baked goods If you find a few extra minutes between events St Patrick's week end. you might want to stop by the old Hutch's Printing Co building and see what Wranglers' Hiding Club members have for sale From 10 a m to 5 p m both Saturday and Sunday, Wranglers will have a variety of baked goods and odds n ends collected for a baked goods and rummage sale Those wishing to donate Items for the sale may call 676 5820 or 676-5288 and they w ill be picked up Any Necklace, Earrings or Pin Which contain» u Green 0 ooo&oaoooo !.. i Imitation, Synthetic or Genuine Stone. Art show slated sheep in a crouched position Sheep react by moving away from this predatory twhavior The guarding dogs are ' docile and inquisitive when approaching live stock." continues the OSU circular "They react to changes in routine, alternately rushing out with threat emng barks and then retreating to the flock Only rarely dues a protecting dog fight with a predator The two kinds of dogs work well together, though, he says Each has a job to do Bear would grab a new trail dog and pin him for a few seconds and then leave him alone, as if to say You can w ork here and do what you need to. but I'm boss don't fool with me or my sheep " Scooter has a different disposition and does n't take the attitude Bear had with the trail dogs, but gets along with them Kill may not be an Irish name, but just as some of the methods of sheep raising have changed, some of the names have also West. Ashbeck. Krebs, (.'unha. Thompson. Palmer and Wright are non Irish names among the Md-aughlms and Doh ertys iPilot Hack area' that con linuc to grow the wools animal in Morrow County 1 ..T T I 40 % OFF Coin hunt set for presch(X)lers Following the grand Irish parade. Kin/ua Corp w ill sponsor a coin hunt for preschoolers in the lot next to the post office on lleppner's Main Street When the last entry had made its v ay up Main Street, the parade announcer w ill call all children under six years old to the event designed 'just for them " Although Scooter has a gentle nature he keeps an eye on him all the time and never really trusts him around people although Scooter has never caused any problems Scooter is a mixture of Mareena and Anatolian, both large dogs bred mainly in Europe Other breeds commonly used a guarding dogs include Castro Laboreiro from Portugal, Great Pyrenees from Spain. Komondor and Kuvasz from Hungary . Shar Planmeti from Yu goslavia and Tibetan Mastiff from Tibet A dog can handle from Juu to 2.uuo sheep depending on the area they are running More dogs are needed in a rougher area because one dog obviously cannot be everywhere at the samr lime The idea says K ill, is not to replace a herder with a dog. but to use the dug an additional tool They are not of any use in driving sheep as the traditional border collie type herding dogs Both types of dogs are useful The herding type dog has a differ ent jog. to keep the sheep together and get them to follow the herder to a particular place "Herding dogs say* an Oregon Slate I'niversity Extension Service circular, “ stalk *0 * *0 « * 0 O «1 Doherty along Main Street A Shrine entry, the Main St Cowboys, a draft horse team from the Pendleton Diesel Service, antique cars, the Weston McEwen hagpqM- and drum marvhinip band the lone School band and d rill team, stale of East ern Oregon officers, and family groups have entered so far Those who would like to partici p ile but haven’t entered yet are invited to get an ollicial entry blank from parade chairman Hob Kohl 676 9111 or from Jim Farley at Farley Motor Co Those who haven't l»re registered can still be in the pirade if they arrive at the Green Feed parking lot by noon Saturday Kibbons w ill tie awarded first second, and third place entries in each of the five categories For the 5th Annual ST. PATRICKS DAY IN HEPPNER Listen to Led Smith and his Irish guests from Heppner - broadmat live from the Heppner Elks. .Starting at 10 a.m. Look For Our Entry Boxes Around Town and Enter to Win Many Prizes! •v?i i&A
