How to feed a sheep at home? Features, requirements and recommendations

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-07 20:55

Sheep are hardy farm animals with high productivity. Profitable farms for breeding this type of MRS are, among other things, because, with low feed costs, sheep can quickly gain significant weight. In addition, these animals are also considered very undemanding to the conditions of detention.

Of course, many novice farmers would like to know how to feed sheep when they are bred. When developing a diet for sheep, factors such as the age of the animals, their breed and performance group should be taken into account.

Types of feed used

The diet for sheep on the farm should be compiled in such a way that the animals receive all the necessary nutrients for their body, vitamins, trace elements, etc. The feed used in keeping sheep is classified into three large groups:

• juicy;
• concentrated;
• rough.

Also, such MRS on farms often receive compound feed. Mixtures of this varietyin addition to concentrated, they may contain roughage, as well as various kinds of mineral and vitamin supplements. In most cases, this type of sheep food is very high in protein and nutrients.

Juicy food

This type of food is also a great answer to the question of what to feed the sheep. The benefits of juicy food for sheep is primarily that when it is eaten, the digestive processes in animals improve. In addition, when using this variety of food for sheep, the farmer gets the opportunity to save on expensive concentrates.

The advantage of the feed of this variety is, first of all, a light degree of digestibility. Such food for sheep contains many vitamins, carbohydrates, nutrients. The following types of succulent feed are introduced into the diet of sheep on farms and household plots:

• silo;
• root crops and tubers;
• green grass.

The last variety in the summer is the main food of the sheep. These animals are kept in most cases, of course, by the grazing method. From root crops and tubers, rams in private farms are usually offered:

• fodder beets;
• potato;
• turnip;
• carrot.

It is also very useful to give these animals food waste - trimming and peeling root crops and vegetables.

Silo, which is a very good answer to the question of whatto feed the rams, is a fermented green mass of plants. The main advantage of this type of succulent food is its cheapness. Cultivated for silage can, for example, crops such as corn, lupine, sunflower. Another absolute advantage of silage is its long shelf life - 2-3 years.

Roughage

In summer, rams feed mainly on green grass. In winter, it is replaced with hay and straw. Such types of feed are called rough. The benefit of such food for sheep lies primarily in the fact that it contains a large amount of fiber, proteins and vitamins. For feeding sheep at home, it is also useful to use such food because, in terms of nutritional value, it is only slightly inferior to concentrates. At the same time, such food is much cheaper.

The most useful type of roughage for sheep is, of course, hay. Farms often harvest it on their own. The productivity of sheep in the winter period of the year depends primarily on how high-quality hay will be offered to animals. Grass for sheep should be harvested correctly. The hay offered to animals in winter should first of all be green. Also, do not give animals soaked or rotten food of this variety.

The most nutritious and biologically valuable type of hay is harvested from cereal crops. Various kinds of sedges, thorns, etc. can significantly impair the quality of this type of food. Of course, hay for sheep should not contain poisonous or harmful herbs.

Quite common of this speciesroughage make grass meal. Such a product is usually added to compound feed to improve their vitamin composition.

The answer to the question of what to feed the sheep if there is not enough hay is straw. It is used on farms in most cases only when there is a shortage of other types of roughage. The disadvantage of straw is primarily considered a low protein content. Vitamins in this type of food are completely absent. Sheep are allowed to feed only straw from spring crops.

How to feed sheep on a farm: concentrates

The advantage of this type of food for animals is, first of all, high energy value. Concentrates are superior in nutrition to any other feed used for sheep. The disadvantage of food of this variety is considered primarily high cost.

A good answer to the question of what to feed the sheep can be almost all types of cereals. The most energetically valuable type of concentrate is, of course, wheat. Of course, they give sheep and bran, which is a waste of flour milling. Grain is fed to sheep most often in the form of crushed grain.

Sometimes, in addition to wheat, sheep are offered cheaper types of cereals - oats or buckwheat. Also, in some cases, barley is purchased on farms for these animals. However, such feed is inferior to wheat in nutritional value. Barley, for example, is still considered the best answer to the question of what is the best way to feed rabbits of the French ram breed or any other. Oats onfarms are more often given to horses. Sheep are fed this type of grain in most cases only as part of mixtures with wheat or compound feed. Oats are also often included in the diet of little lambs.

A farmer who wonders how to feed a sheep for fattening should also think about purchasing a sufficient amount of bean concentrates. Protein in peas, lupine, etc. contains almost the same amount as in wheat.

Mixed feed

Any novice farmer should know how to properly feed sheep. It is very important, among other things, when breeding these animals to be able to choose high-quality feed for them. They are usually replaced on farms with pure concentrates.

This type of food for sheep, although very expensive, is high in energy value and balanced. Compound feed is prepared for sheep, as well as for any other farm animals, taking into account the requirements of GOST. When preparing such mixtures, for example:

• several types of cereals;
• a little bran;
• peas;
• meal;
• feed yeast;
• herbal flour;
• skimmed milk;
• s alt;
• crude protein;
• premixes.

Standard industrial formulations are best for feeding sheep, rams and lambs. But in homesteading suchmixtures are often made on their own. A recipe for homemade feed, for example, can be as follows (in a ratio by weight):

• wheat - 15 parts;
• feed barley - 10;
• oats - 12;
• cereal mix - 10;
• bran - 20;
• stalks and baskets of sunflower crushed - 5;
• cake and sunflower meal - 7 each;
• corn gluten and yeast - 5 each;
• chalk - 1.3;
• s alt - 0.7;
• tricalcium phosphate - 1.6.

Compound feed prepared in this way is perfect for sheep fed for meat. At the same time, it can be offered to animals of almost any age.

How to feed sheep for meat: consumption rates

The diet of sheep, therefore, should be as balanced as possible. Norms of feed consumption for these animals depend primarily on what breed is grown on the farm. Sheep gain weight faster when using a large amount of concentrates and hay. At the same time, succulent feeds have the greatest influence on the quality of wool.

The nutritional value of the food offered by sheep is currently determined in Russia mainly in oat feed units. Each type of food for animals contains a certain amount of valuable energy substances necessary for the body. Consumption rates for rams should be calculated taking into account the amount they need k. unit

Most of allfood in farms is usually obtained by male producers and queens. The answer to the question of how to feed sheep from this group at home should also be the highest quality food.

The percentage of feed for sires during the stall period, for example, is usually as follows:

• coarse - 35-40%;
• juicy - 20-25%;
• concentrated - 40-45%.

In kilograms, the daily ration of animals in this group is most often expressed as follows:

• hay - 1.5 kg;
• silo - 2-2.5 kg;
• concentrates - 0.6-0.8 kg.

Diet in the first days of life

So, the better to feed the sheep, we found out. But what should be the diet of these animals, depending on age?

In the first days of life, the main food for lambs is colostrum. This product not only contains the substances necessary for the body of a newborn in the required amount, but also helps to strengthen the immunity of babies.

Sometimes it happens that the uterus does not let the lamb near her or she does not have milk. In this case, the baby is placed on another recently lambing sheep. At first, newly born lambs suck milk every 2 hours. If the babies do not leave the mother and beg for the udder constantly, they should be fed. Sheep may be having lactation problems.

Used to feed small lambs, usually warm cow's milk. To increase nutritional value and optimize the composition, it is addeda small amount of eggs and fish oil.

Juicy food is given to lambs for the first time in the second week of life. Most often, babies are offered chopped beets and carrots. Dried apples and some other fruits can also be used as vitamin supplements.

At the same age, concentrates are gradually introduced into the diet of lambs. In most cases, at first, the lambs are offered rolled oats mixed with bran. One lamb under the age of one month usually consumes 50 g of concentrates per day.

Diet of young animals in summer

By two months, the stomach of lambs completes its formation. But the cubs are usually weaned from the uterus only at 2.5 months. In any case, young animals should live in the same pen with a sheep until the age of no more than 4 months.

What can you feed rams after weaning? At 2.5 months, young sheep are usually already transferred to an adult diet. During this period, lambs should receive both juicy and concentrated, and roughage. In summer, such young animals, like adult sheep, are driven out to pastures. Such lambs should receive up to 3-4 kg of fresh grass per day. They are also supposed to give 0.2-0.4 kg of a mixture of concentrates. With age, the norms of grass eaten by lambs gradually increase to 6-7 kg. However, fresh greens in the diet of such sheep should include no more than 85%.

In order for lambs to gain weight faster, pastures for them should be chosen with the highest quality and nutritious grass. In summer, animals are supposed to be given a small amount of concentrates, andalso succulent feed.

Diet during the stall period

Of course, many farmers are also interested in how to feed sheep in winter. By the time the young animals reach the age of 8 months, the stall period usually begins. At this time, the sheep begin to gradually transfer from grass to hay.

In the stall period, it is actually very important to decide what to feed the sheep. The detailed diet of these animals in winter is something like this:

• silo - 1-2 kg;
• hay - 2 kg;
• root crops - 2-4 kg;
• concentrates - 200-500g

The schedule for feeding sheep during the stall period, farmers choose in most cases is this:

• morning - hay;
• at lunch - concentrates/compound feed;
• daytime - silage/root crops;
• hay in the evening.

It is mandatory to put pieces of s alt in the stalls of animals in winter. Its norm is 10-15 g per day.

Best food

All types of food offered to sheep should be selected as carefully as possible. The best type of hay for sheep, as already mentioned, is considered cereal. However, good varieties of this food are also:

• alfalfa hay;
• clover;
• sainfoin.

The best straw for these animals is legume. Also, sheep are often given spring oatmeal, barley and millet.

From concentrates, in addition to compound feed,for lambs, a mixture of legumes and grains is often used in a ratio of 40x60. Silage for these animals is best suited corn. From root crops, in most cases, sheep are fed carrots, beets and pumpkins.

What not to give

Thus, we figured out in detail what sheep eat. Feeding these animals involves the use of only quality products. In terms of nutrition, sheep are relatively unpretentious animals. However, it is still not recommended to give some types of feed to such MRS. You can not offer sheep, for example:

• hay of sour cereals - sedge, thin rush;
• dense-stemmed and forest hay - horsetail, reeds;
• sugar beets (to prevent diabetes).

It is also not recommended to give bread to little lambs. Vegetables for sheep are put in feeders only in cut form.

Of course, in no case should you feed sheep with rotten hay or root crops. It is not allowed to give these animals and compound feed that has changed color or smell.

Using premixes

Different kinds of additives for sheep are not used only when they are grown on industrial feed. The composition of such mixtures usually already initially includes all the substances necessary for the body of animals. Otherwise, premixes must be included in the diet of sheep. The use of such additives allows:

• reduce farm feed consumption by 15%;
• strengthen animal immunity;
• reducefattening period for 3-4 weeks.

Natural pasture selection

The green grass eaten by sheep, of course, must also be of the highest quality. Pastures are very good for these unpretentious animals:

• steppe;
• mountain;
• upland.

Sheep are practically not driven out to forest and swampy pastures. The most suitable grass for these animals grows on the steppe lands of this type. It is in such places that the most useful cereals and legumes for sheep grow. Steppe pastures can be in satisfactory condition from spring to late autumn. Their advantages also include a variety of herbs.

Sheep are also driven out to mountain pastures quite often. There are many cereals and legumes growing in such places. In addition, pastures of this variety are in most cases located near rivers and streams. Consequently, the sheep are also provided with water right next to the feeding area.

Dry pastures are located near rivers. Their main advantage is a large number of species of growing herbs, great for sheep.

Sometimes such cattle are also driven out to meadow pastures. However, this is usually done only in early spring. The disadvantage of pastures of this type is the presence of a large number of coarse-stalked grasses. Also in the meadows, sheep, unfortunately, are often infected with worms.

Artificial pasture for sheep

Sometimesit happens that the natural pastures located next to the farm are not enough to provide adequate nutrition for the sheep. In this case, it is not necessary to reduce the number of sheep. In such cases, artificial pastures are usually established near the farm.

Such sites can be sown with both annual and perennial grasses. In Russia, clover is most often planted on artificial pastures mixed with cereals. In the northern regions, alfalfa can also be used for sowing.

Drive sheep to artificial pastures is allowed only in good weather. Do not do this immediately after rain or if there is dew on the grass. Otherwise, sheep may become infected with tympanitis.