Arabi

عربي

Draft: needs vet reviewGulf breed

Type: Sheep
Region: Kuwait, eastern Saudi Arabia, southern Iraq
Main use: Meat, wool
Known for: Hardy fat-tailed local sheep of the northern Gulf

This information is general. For doses and treatment, always ask your vet.

About

Hardy fat-tailed local sheep of the northern Gulf

Real photos are coming, each with the photographer's name and license.

Benefits & uses

Meat, wool

MeatWool & hair

Food

Roughage base (hay, straw, berseem) plus concentrate for fattening and late pregnancy. Clean water, sheep mineral lick with no added copper.

Common vaccines

FMD, PPR, sheep pox, clostridial (enterotoxemia), brucellosis, Rift Valley fever where advised.

Draft: needs vet review

Water and general notes: Water: 4-8 liters per day, and more in heat and lactation. Sheep are sensitive to copper: do not use goat or cattle mineral salts.

Feeding by stage and goal

Stage	Weight / goal (kg)	Intake (% of weight)	Ration protein (%)	Energy TDN (%)	Daily ration example
Nursing lamb (0-2 months)	3-15		18-20	75-78	Colostrum first 6 hours, mother's milk, and from the second week starter feed and good hay ad libitum.
Weaning (2-4 months)	15-25	4-4.5	16-18	72-75	0.5-0.8 kg concentrate + hay or berseem.
Fattening	25-45	3.5-4	14-16	70-75	1-1.3 kg concentrate + 0.3-0.5 kg straw or hay. Expected gain 150-300 g/day depending on breed.
Dry ewe (maintenance)	50	2-2.5	9-10	55	Straw or hay + 0.2-0.3 kg concentrate, or 4-5 kg green berseem.
Flushing (3 weeks before)	50	2.5-3	10-12	60	Maintenance ration + 0.25-0.5 kg extra concentrate (increases twinning rate).
Gestation: first 3 months	50	2-2.5	9-10	55	Same as maintenance.
Gestation: last 6 weeks	50-60	2.5-3	11-13	60-65	0.4-0.7 kg concentrate + good hay (ewes with twins get the higher amount).
Lactation (first 6-8 weeks)	50	3-4	13-15	65	0.8-1.2 kg concentrate + berseem or hay.
Breeding ram	70-100	2.5-3	10-12	60	Hay + 0.5-1 kg concentrate in breeding season.

Concentrate mixtures (parts per 100 kg)

Mixture	Yellow corn	Barley	Bran	Soybean meal 44	Limestone	Salt	Minerals & Vitamins	Approx. protein
Lamb starter	50	0	25	20	2	1	1 + 1 مولاس	18%
Fattening	55	—	25٫5	15	3	1	1 + 0٫5 كلوريد أمونيوم	15%
Pregnant and lactating ewes	20	40	25	12	1٫5	1	1	15%

Ammonium chloride in the fattening mixture reduces urinary calculi in males. Part of the soybean can be replaced with cottonseed or sunflower meal if cheaper, increasing the amount because their protein is lower.

Vaccine and care calendar, from birth to sale

Age / timing	Action
Day of birth	Colostrum within 6 hours, disinfect umbilical cord with iodine, tag the newborn.
1 week	Vitamin E and Selenium in deficient areas, as per veterinarian.
6-8 weeks	Clostridials (enterotoxemia) first dose.
3 weeks later	Clostridials booster dose.
3 months	Foot and Mouth Disease (and a booster after a month), Sheep Pox, first deworming.
3-4 months	Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) (immunity approx. 3 years), and Rift Valley Fever where recommended.
3-6 months (breeding females)	Brucella as part of the governmental veterinary program.
Every 6 months	Foot and Mouth Disease.
Annually	Clostridials, Sheep Pox.
Every 3-4 months	Deworming based on fecal test, spraying for ticks and mange after shearing.
Before breeding	Deworming, check body condition and hooves.
4-6 weeks before birth	Clostridial booster dose for the ewe so colostrum protects the lambs.
Before sale or slaughter	Ensure withdrawal period for the last medication has passed.

Common diseases

Disease	Signs	What to do	Prevention
Enterotoxemia	Sudden death or convulsions, especially in fast-growing lambs.	Veterinarian immediately, and vaccinate the rest of the flock.	Clostridial vaccination, gradual feed changes.
Foot and Mouth Disease	Fever, salivation, sores in the mouth and on hooves, lameness.	Isolate, veterinarian, and report to veterinary authorities.	Vaccinate every 6 months, isolate new animals for 21 days.
Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR)	Fever, nasal and ocular discharge, mouth sores, diarrhea, cough.	Isolate and veterinarian immediately, it's a notifiable disease.	Vaccination.
Sheep Pox	Fever and pustules on wool-free skin.	Isolate and veterinarian.	Annual vaccination.
Pneumonia	Cough, panting, fever, associated with cold and poor ventilation.	Veterinarian to determine the antibiotic.	Ventilation without drafts.
Internal Parasites	Weakness, pale eyelid, diarrhea, swelling under the jaw (bottle jaw).	Veterinarian chooses drug after fecal examination.	Regular deworming, pasture rotation.
Urinary Calculi	Fattening male in pain and dribbling urine.	Emergency: veterinarian immediately.	Calcium:Phosphorus 2:1, ammonium chloride, plenty of water.
Bloat	Distension of the left flank, shortness of breath after wet clover or a lot of grain.	Veterinarian immediately.	Do not offer wet clover, introduce grain gradually.
Pregnancy Toxemia	Ewe in late pregnancy (usually with twins) is lethargic, off-feed, and trembling.	Veterinarian immediately.	Adequate nutrition in the last 6 weeks.
Mastitis	Hot and swollen udder, abnormal milk.	Veterinarian.	Clean bedding.