# Let's Look at our Different Feeding Practices *SHEEP*



## rockdoveranch (Jul 3, 2011)

_I have hijacked this thread from the goat forums as I have found it to be very interesting.  I replaced goats with sheep.    Thank you for an interesting thread elevan. _



> It seems that if you ask 100 different farmers you'll get a 100 different answers on just about every subject and this subject is really no different.
> 
> So let's run a thread about our different feeding programs so that we can learn from each other's methods.
> 
> ...


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## rockdoveranch (Jul 3, 2011)

We are in Southeast Texas, about 50 air miles from the Gulf Coast.  We are in what is called the Post Oak Savannah, and are in USDA Hardiness Zone 8b, although we are about 2 air miles from Zone 9a.  

We are on 32 acres of land that, if it was ever used for anything in the past, was for running cattle, but because there has been no clearing, my guess is that it was more likely used only for hunting.  

Our native grasses are Bahiagrass and Bluestem.  Our pastures have never been improved.  We have a sprinkling of Bermuda grass, and Nutsedge in areas that are prone to flooding.  Our primary undergrowth is Beauty Berry and Yaupon Holly.  We have wild blackberries and those teeny tiny wild strawberries.  We rarely have wildflowers anymore because our sheep have eaten them down before going to seed.  Our primary vines are wild Muscadine grapes and poison ivy.  There are a few more mixed grasses, undergrowth and vines, but I do not know their names.

We have had Texas Barbado since 2004, and added 3 White Dorper June 2010.

Unless we are in draught conditions our ewe herd free range during the day and have access to Purina sheep mineral blocks.  They are only given a tiny bit of Nutrena Sweet Stock and Stable when they are put up in overnight pastures of 3+ acres.  A month before lambing we step up the amount of Sweet feed and give it to them twice a day, but even then, it is not that much.  At times we have fed Purina Sheep and Goat, but we prefer the Nutrena sweet.

Our mature rams are kept on a pasture with a  acre pond, only free range and have access to a Purina sheep mineral block.

During drought conditions we bring in hay, something I hate to do since it is not from our pastures.  The hay we can get around here is Bahiagrass.  During these times both our ewe and ram herd are given whole corn and pellets.

When our garden is spent, the ewe herd is allowed in there to clean it up.

Not impressive, but this is what we do.


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## carolinagirl (Jul 3, 2011)

Well, I have not had sheep long...only a few months.  I have 4 Katahdin ewe lambs and a ram lamb, as well as registered Barbados Blackbelly sheeo (4 ewe lambs, 2 adult bred ewes and a ram).  When I had them all (except the rams) in a paddock while I finished their pasture, they were getting unlimited coastal bermuda hay and some goat feed twice a day.  The blackbellys didn't look that great...kind of bony.  They have been on pasture only now for maybe a month and the difference is remarkable!  They are no longer "ribby" looking and they are growing better.  The pasture the ewes are on is probably 3 to 4 acres, and it's divided so I can rotate them.  So far, they have not managed to eat the first section down much.  some of the coastal has grown pretty tall so I will probably mow that section.  They are managing the weeds quite well.  The pasture used to be a hay field but it has not been cultivated for hay in many years.  There are a lot of mixed weeds in it.  We are in a drought conditions right now so parts of the grass is beginning to brown up.  

anyway...the current plan is to rotate the pastures every 6 weeks and mow what they can't eat.  I give them alfalfa pellets if they aren't willing to come in from the pasture at night, just to get them to come.  Otherwise, they don't get fed.  

the rams are together in a dry paddock right now, eating (and thriving) on just hay.  These things sure do seem to be easier to keep than goats!


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## Beekissed (Jul 4, 2011)

I had a three ewes and a wether lamb, later got rid of one ewe, retained the other three.  One was Katahdin/St. Croix mix ewe, one was pure Katahdin and her lamb was Kat/SC mix.  I occasionally fed them a scoop of sweet feed to train them to come and so I could move them from paddock to paddock.  

I tried rotational grazing and it worked fairly well....my grass is now thicker and different species are thriving I didn't see before.  My apple trees have improved in production and health of crop since the sheep and chickens started grazing my orchard.  

My sheep were mainly grass fed and then confined to hay in the winter.  I tried to have second cut hay for the first part of winter and first cut, stemmier, and less nutritional hay for the last part and into early spring.  They seemed to prefer it this way and the added roughage of the low quality hay seemed to balance out their rumen when they were exposed to spring grass.  

I also supplemented with pumpkins, squash, corn stalks and other veggie remnants.  They cleaned up my garden each year, including all the tomato plants, squash vines, bean vines and other veggies.  There really wasn't anything they wouldn't eat.  They consumed an enormous number of apples each year and I stored these and fed them during the winter as well, along with squash and pumpkins.  

Mineral supplement was kelp meal and coarse salt.  Parasite control was multidirectional with the use of garlic, unpastuerized ACV (more to improve digestion and immune system), raw honey, Shaklee's soap ~rarely~, pumpkin seeds and charred stove wood.  

Vaccinations~none.  

The first winter they were confined to a sacrifice area and fed each day, twice a day, just what they would clean up.  I found there to be a lot of waste on their part and a lot of effort and time on my part.  The second winter I designed a continous, self-feeding situation and found it to be ideal....no waste, no effort on my part, cleaner feeding area.  I also built a temporary lounging shelter for them out of cattle panels and tarping that kept them from lounging in the shelter of the feeding area, which kept it more dry and clean.

All sheep stayed in great condition and health, no health problems except for nasal bots last August during our extreme drought.  A mix of garlic, UP/ACV and raw honey, bolused, took care of the problem with just the one dose.  I also cleaned out their nasal passages and applied Vicks after dosing with the garlic mix. 

The wether lamb was not weaned until he was 6 mo. old, at which time we butchered him here and had him for supper.


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## boothcreek (Jul 4, 2011)

Alrighty.

We live on a 163 acre farm in Cranbrook, British Columbia, Canada. Right in the Rocky Mountains about an hour from both the US(Montana and Idaho) and Alberta border.

About 60 of those acres are pasture the rest if forest made of Pine, Fir and Larch with the occasional Birch tree trying to survive inbetween. We got wild roses everywhere and mow them down with the lawn mower out on the pasture since they try to take over.

Being in the mountains the ground is rock and clay and drains so well we are only green during the rains in may and by july its dried out. This year it has been raining several days a week since May and we never had it this green for this long(but its not as hot as it usually is either).

Anyhow, my small flock(after fall butchering generally about 8 animals) is American Black bellies, European mouflon and a dorper/katX ewe and her lamb out of my black bellies. 

In the winter these guys are on hay that is 50%+ Alfalfa twice a day, with an extra couple flakes given when the temps dip below -30( more to keep them busy then anything). They also get a mix of rolled oats and barley with corn and molasses and soaked beetpulp(I feed 1 of those 4-5gallon buckets a day in the winter with 50%grain and 50%beetpulp). Sometimes I will mix in apple slices with their feed as a treat(altho only the moufs like those, everyone else turns their noses up at apples). They are also free range during the day and free choice feast on the horses hay, and the needles of the fir trees in our garden.
Once the Snow is gone(usually late march, this year late april!) and the grass starts to come in we go down to one feeding of hay a day but keep up the grain/pulp mix until the show no enthusiasm in the hayfeedings anymore. Then stop the hay and we cut down the grain until its an occasional treat or we need them to go in the barn or something.
Since they are on such high energy feed all winter for lambing I do not change anything.
They spend their summer Free ranging on all our pastures but they wont go very far from the buildings unless they are surrounded by the horses and cattle(safety in numbers?). All in all I would say they use less then 15 acres of the 60 thats pastureland.

Only supplement they get is free choice salt lick from the horses(they wont eat anything else the spoiled brats).

I do not vaccinate unless I bring a new animal in. Also don't deworm unless I see signs of parasite infestation or, again, when I bring in a new animal.

We prefer to butcher a couple weeks into hay feeding time in the fall, since the Alfalfa gives the meat a nice flavour and the just like in our beef I like the look of the carcass better when they have been on it for several weeks.


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## Julie_A (Jul 4, 2011)

I loved the sheep I had but was so afraid I'd give them copper poisoning with regular feed. Any of you had an issue with that?


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## aggieterpkatie (Jul 5, 2011)

Julie_A said:
			
		

> I loved the sheep I had but was so afraid I'd give them copper poisoning with regular feed. Any of you had an issue with that?


If you feed them something specifcally made for sheep you won't have those issues.


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## rockdoveranch (Jul 5, 2011)

Aggieterkatie, What are your feeding practices?


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## aggieterpkatie (Jul 5, 2011)

I live in MD and have a handful of sheep, right now Southdown andr Southdown/Romney crosses. It's cold in the summer and hot and dry in the summer.  

After weaning lambs the ewes get pasture or hay if there is no pasture.  No grain for the ewes until 2 weeks before breeding when I flush them.  I'll work up to around a pound per head per day and continue through breeding season or until I know they're bred.  The ram also gets grain since he's in with the gals.  I feed a 14% medicated (since they don't sell non medicated) textured grain from the local mill.  

After breeding season, everyone goes back on grass hay with some pasture (what's left) until the last month of pregnancy (or a little earlier if I happen to have a thin ewe, but usually I don't).  Then I'll start feeding grain and get up to at least a pound per day until lambing.  After lambing I up the grain again if needed, and add in alfalfa hay with the grass hay.  

Lambs start nibbling on their mom's food, and sometimes I may do a creep feeder but normally the lambs just eat right along with the ewes.  I wean lambs at 8 weeks and they will get grain and alfalfa hay.  

I have a small place, so I rotate pasture pretty regularly and I also graze some areas of the yard when I can.  I also cut Paper Mulberry branches every day, but the amount varies. It's more of a treat than a supplement.


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## rockdoveranch (Jul 5, 2011)

Thanks Aggieterkatie.

I looked up Paper Mulberry, and although the leaves look like my Mulberry trees, I do not think they are the same species.  The one I used to have when I lived in Houston had wonder smooth, sweet, seedless fruit.  I made pies with the fruit and our entire family and friends picked fruit from the tree and ate it.  We probably consumed 1,000s of tiny bugs.  I would bring my horse into town and leave her in my back yard for days and she would trim the branches us as high as she could.

I now have 4 wild Mulberry trees out here on nowhere Texas.  None have produced fruit as yet so it is hard to figure out what they are.  But my sheep eat the leaves and branches that they can eat.

Do you plant your trees or are they wild?

Thanks.


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## aggieterpkatie (Jul 5, 2011)

We have a few regular mulberry trees as well, but they're pretty small and young. They've got the shiny leaves. I'd love it if mine were the fruit bearing kind, but the Paper Mulberries have never fruited that I know of.  Ours are definitely not planted!  They're in a hedgerow between our property and hte neighboring farm.  They comprise most of the hedgerow, which we like because it gives us privacy....but we have to deal with the Mulberries.  Ack.  YOu cut them down and they'll send up 10 new shoots!  They seem to do better if you pull them out, but they'll still come back.  I think my animals could eat all the time from them and they'd still grow back just as fast.  If I was more disciplined I'd cut lots of branches every day and feed them, but it seems I never have enough time.


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## 77Herford (Oct 10, 2011)

My sheep are going through their mineral like a mad dog.


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## The Old Ram-Australia (Nov 24, 2011)

G'day ,I've been away for a while so I'm a bit late on this thread.........

Our breeding block is 300 acs,currently its 14 paddocks,we use a grazing rotation based on "need" when I decide that they need to go to the next paddock.My aim is to not "damage" the crowns of the perennial species,while maximizing the production from the paddock..This spring we were able to achieve a 34 day turnaround cycle on some of our paddocks this was with a stocking rate of 7 ewe's /lambs to the ac......Our whole flock (about 200 breeders plus replacements ) is grass fed,no hay ,no grain and no fert put out on the pastures.

Most of our grasses are Native species and naturalized exotics,we are working towards a 50% perennial based system with a 50/50 mix of warm /cool season species.We have started producing bulk "compost" this year after a small trial last year showed promise.

Boothcreek.Have you considered goats to "tame " the wild rose?What about some structures to control the runoff speed of the water down your "drainage" lines,the idea is to slow it down rather that capture the water with the added benifiets that you retain your "nutrient load" on your paddocks.

Our production system does not "fit" into any one box ,but is a composite of all the available systems.T.O.R...............


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## kstaven (Nov 25, 2011)

You are maintaining the pastures so they can naturally reseed then.


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## The Old Ram-Australia (Nov 25, 2011)

G'day, YES.Also we do not "slash" the residue after the stock is moved.As I stated before,the aim is to protect the perennial crowns,if you slash you expose the "cool season crowns to the "hot" sun and winds,if you slash in the Autumn /Winter you expose the Summer crowns to the frost and extreme cold...So you need the mix of Annuals/all other species to create the standing "dry matter" and encourage "seed set" for next year.....................In one 40 ac paddock we fenced a 3 ac paddock in the middle which "runs to seed" Summer and Winter,this seed is spread by wind and water to the 4 adjoining paddocks to encourage plant diversity over the whole 40 acs.
           .............................T.O.R..............................


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## BrownSheep (Jan 10, 2012)

We have 16 sheep . Our "farm" is 60 acres. The north portion of wich is mainly the cheat grass and in unirrogated. This makes it useable in the spring only for the most part. The sheep dont really utilize this. Out pastures  are all planted. With what? I haven't a clue. They where probably planted back in the 1910s. They haven't been reseeded in YEARS. Starting with the snow the sheep are generally moved into the pens next to the house and feed hay. Since we haven't had snow yet this year we only have a ewe/lamb pair and ewe close to lambing at the house eating hay.every one else is still in the pastures. Our show lambs/ market lambs eat a a show lamb grain mix. Between 11 lamb we averaged 50 lbs of grain a day.


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## secuono (Jan 12, 2012)

Trio of Babydoll Southdowns on 4.5 acres 24/7 along with a horse and large pony. None get fed anything but horse quality hay. Sometimes I may give them oats as a treat, but that's it. 
I tried a sheep block, but they thought it was candy and vanished over the weekend. I don't have money to keep giving it to them until they realize it's not going anywhere and becomes a more regular food and no longer a treat they must eat all at once.


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## kelsey2017 (Jan 12, 2012)

I have two Shetland ewes, mystery ages but probably one in her prime and one older.  They eat free choice hay cut from our pasture.  It is timothy, clover, _weeds_, brome, thistle, what ever grows without being planted.  One cup coarse ground grain - cracked wheat, corn, molasses and I know there is something else but I have to go look at the tag.  Plain white salt and clean fresh water, though they really don't drink much that I see.  They're in very good shape and I truthfully have never wormed them.  They are lawn mowers and pets.   They do not receive any hay in the summer and the grain (god help me if I stop) and water stay the same.  They are basically free range (they never leave the yard or surrounding few acres and usually can't keep up with the lawn until the end of July, after which they tend to browse the rose bushes around the property and wander the horse pasture.  They also eat as many fallen apples as they like when it is that time of year.   I do not plan on breeding them at this time so they get a very UNfussy diet.  I know they don't need the grain but they drive me nuts, so they get a little.  I believe they are adapted to way worse conditions! LOL


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## SheepGirl (Jan 16, 2012)

_Edited to reflect my current feeding practices._
My sheep used to live at my neighbor's farm, but now they're here at my house on pasture and in a dry lot. We have 2 acres of unimproved/native pasture.

Everybody has access to free choice loose minerals with zinpro and fresh water daily. Grain fed is a 16% textured sheep feed from Southern States.

This is my feeding program for my flock:
MAINTENANCE (mid April - late September)
*Flock has access to pasture.

BREEDING (late September - late October)
*Ewes get 1/2 lb of grain per head per day for 34 days (17 days pre-breeding and 17 days into breeding), starting with 1/4 lb of grain per head per day for the first two days and ending with 1/4 lb of grain per head per day for the last two days.
*Ram does not get grain.
*Flock has access to pasture.

EARLY/MID GESTATION (late October - early February)
*Flock has access to pasture.
*Flock is given 2.25% of their pre-breeding body weight in grass hay each day when penned up for the winter (roughly late December - mid January).

LATE GESTATION (mid January - early March)
*Ewes get 1/2 lb of grain per head per day for the last 30 days of gestation, starting with 1/4 lb of grain per head per day for the first two days and ending with 1/4 lb of grain per head per day for the last two days.
*Flock is given 2.25% of their pre-breeding body weight in grass hay.

LACTATION (mid February - mid May)
*Ewes get 1/2 - 1 lb of grain per lamb they are nursing (amount of grain is dependent upon the ewe's frame size, condition, and growth rate of lambs).
*Flock is given 2.25% of their pre-breeding body weight in grass hay.
*When grass returns (mid March - late April), flock has access to pasture.

GROWTH
*Lambs have access to hay or pasture depending on their dam's diet.
*Ewe lambs are raised on solely pasture.
*Ram lambs are removed from pasture at 3 - 4 months old and are moved into a dry lot and fed grass hay and a little bit of grain.
*Sometimes lambs are creep fed.

DRY LOTTED SHEEP
*Given 2.25% of their body weight in grass hay.
*Will be provided supplemental grain depending on body condition.


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## EllieMay (Feb 25, 2013)

That was very helpful, SheepGirl.


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## animalcrackeracres (Mar 2, 2013)

not sure if this is right so I am open to opinions. I have one weather barbados (sp?) sheep almost 1 yr old. He runs around my 3 acre farm with three goats to play with so he probaly doesn't even know he is a sheep. He grazes on weeds, bushes and regular grass all day and doesn't drink much even though I change the water twice a day, have it heated or cooled depending on the outside temp, and I've even changed the type of water bowl a few times, wondering if he didn't like the glass, plastic, or maybe the color. (he is spoiled  i

in the morning he gets two cups of tractor supply's dumor brand sheep pellets, and at night he gets two more cups along with all the hay he wants at night since he stays in a stall. In his stall he has free choice loose mineral which is an all stock labled safe for sheep.

The hay is lulane farms brand hi fiber, which is timothy, alfalfa and oat hay mixed with molasses. also during the day he sneaks in the goats stall to eat some of their hay which is the same type. I tried a bale of costal bermuda grass hay but they wouldn't eat it so even though the bag hay is expensive I keep them on that.

I've tried to give him a small ammount of vegies as a treat but he turns his nose up at everything from apples to brocoli. Gave him a pumpkin once but he ate too much of it and didn't have solid poops for a week so I havn't given him any more.

I bought a vial of the CDT sheep vacine but havn't given it to him. I trim his hooves once a month and brush him once a week. He looks not to fat but very happy, even wags his tail when eating his grain.

I know at some point I will have to buy an extra mineral to keep him from having a urinary blockage I just havn't ordered it yet (they don't sell it where I live so will have to get it from Jeffers)

Oh, and I am very careful to be sure the goats havefinished all of their goat sweet feed so he doesn't get any of it.

Please let me know if this all sounds OK for him . He is a pet and very sweet, dog halter trained and even wears dog cloths when I take him out for walks! And wears a special dog rain coat when it is raining since unlike the goats he doesn't have enough sence to come in from the rain!


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## n8ivetxn (Apr 22, 2013)

Your boy is rotten   (I want one just like him!)

I haven't got my sheep yet, just here to learn.


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## kuntrygirl (May 8, 2013)

What bagged feed do you all feed your sheep?  What minerals do you give?


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## SheepGirl (May 8, 2013)

I use Southern States brand Sheep Mineral (with ZinPro) and Southern States brand 16% Textured Sheep Feed.


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## kuntrygirl (May 8, 2013)

SheepGirl said:
			
		

> I use Southern States brand Sheep Mineral (with ZinPro) and Southern States brand 16% Textured Sheep Feed.


Have you ever heard of this feed?  What do you think?

http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/dumorreg;-sheep-mineral-50-lb



> DuMOR Sheep Mineral is designed to provide the needed minerals and vitamins, including salt, to sheep grazing pasture, rangeland, or drylot forages, but may also be used in a variety of feeding programs. Provides properly balanced amounts of critical vitamins and minerals needed to support optimal health, reproduction and growth, providing what is often lacking or unbalanced in native pastures, forages, or unfortified concentrates.
> 
> Contains no added copper and is appropriate for all classes and ages of sheep
> 
> ...


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## SheepGirl (May 8, 2013)

I have heard of the DuMOR sheep feed. I've bought a bag of it before to give to my sheep in a pinch. They thought it was tasty. But I still prefer my SS feed. I haven't fed the DuMOR minerals (which is what this is). However it doesn't look too good. It has low amounts of every mineral and vitamin.

Here are the tag labels for what I feed: http://www.backyardherds.com/web/viewblog.php?id=4485-tag-labels


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## kuntrygirl (May 8, 2013)

SheepGirl said:
			
		

> I have heard of the DuMOR sheep feed. I've bought a bag of it before to give to my sheep in a pinch. They thought it was tasty. But I still prefer my SS feed. I haven't fed the DuMOR minerals (which is what this is). However it doesn't look too good. It has low amounts of every mineral and vitamin.
> 
> Here are the tag labels for what I feed: http://www.backyardherds.com/web/viewblog.php?id=4485-tag-labels


Great!! I'm glad that I posted this.  Thank you for your expertise.  Much appreciated.

ETA:  I will have to find something in my area that is comparable to your tag labels.

ETA:  Looks like Southern States is not sold in my State of Louisiana.


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## BHOBCFarms (May 28, 2013)

Here in southern California, we have no pasture to speak of (it's a desert), so I feed baled grass hay.  Right now, no grains.  Grains for ewes in late pregnancy and during lactation.  I purchased a mineral block for sheep recently, and my four mini sheep ate the entire 33 pound block in 10 days.  According to the feeding instructions, that was a rate of consumption between 2 and four times the amount they were supposed to consume daily.  I am now desperately looking for a source of loose minerals (not block) so I can ration it out to them.  If anyone knows of any sources in So. Cal (no tractor supply here), let me know.


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## norseofcourse (Jun 8, 2013)

I'd been getting Buckeye 14% lamb and beef pellets, non-medicated.  Then my feed store had trouble getting them in. and after two weeks of unsuccessfully trying to find another non-medicated pelleted feed, I got a bag of Dumor from TSC.  I have to say I'm not impressed.   Here's the first few ingredients:

Buckeye:
Ground corn, wheat middlings, soy hulls, dehulled soybean meal, maize distillers dried grains, oat mill by-product, dehydrated alfalfa meal...

Dumor:
Processed grain by-products, roughage products, forage products, molassas products, plant protein products, grain products...

The Dumor is a lot less specific about what's in it.  And then they add molasses to (IMHO) make it more palatable.  My sheep liked the Buckeye just fine without molassas.  I'm trying to find a feed store that can get in ADM's 14% ewe breeder pellets.

I got Moorman's loose minerals, and I also have a separate plain salt block.  They lick the plain salt quite a bit, even the lambs just a few days old did.  In late pregnancy I added some soybean meal for protein, and a bit of corn for the one ewe who was underweight.  I'd backed off when they reached good weights, but am now increasing the feed a little and adding corn again, so the ewes don't get too thin now that the lambs are larger and nursing more.

As I fence in and improve more pasture, they should need less supplemental feed, except during winter and late gestation/nursing.


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## bcnewe2 (Jun 8, 2013)

Just an FYI
All I could get for a while was dumor brad from TS.  I was managing a 200+ commercial ewe operation.  The ewes and even the 2 horses we had would fight each other to get to the mineral feeder.  I was going through over 50#'s per week.  I finally found a different brand and they all backed off to a more normal amount and the horses quit fighting for it at all.  

I think the dumor brand adds a ton of molasses to encourage more consumption. That's why they keep the minerals at minimal levels.  Doesn't hurt anything to eat so much.  

Good for wasting your money! 

I don't know what brand I presently have but they consume minimal amounts and everyone looks great.  

Same with dumor feeds,  high sweetners for high consumption. 

Right now, in June my sheep are on pasture with the lambs getting 14% nonsweet feed, top dressed with 44% soybean meal.  Lambs are growing and ewes look great.


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## soarwitheagles (Jan 31, 2016)

I am a sheep newbie and not so sure what and  how to feed the sheep.  In fact, I will write a new post in this section, asking for help.

Right now, we are daily feeding unlimited hay [dried grass I believe], 3-4 times a week we feed the sheep grain from our local mill, then I have been cutting the newly planted pasture and feeding the sheep a daily combo of fresh cut mixture of clover, brom, rye, chicory, turnip tops, birdsfoot trefoil, etc.

It's a lot of work!

I would like to turn them out to pasture and let them do all the hard work.  So next week, I will begin the wonderful task of installing 2,000 feet of woven wire and T-posts to make these so called paddocks.

Sure hope it works!

Soar


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## L J (Mar 10, 2016)

question...does anyone supplement any amount of alfalfa with grass hay or pasture?

I have Barbados Katahdin cross ewes and ram.  They get timothy hay pellets along with timothy hay. but They just seem to need more and sometimes just don't appear to even like the grass hay.  I feel  like we waste more that ends up on the ground instead of in their "bellies"


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## Mini Horses (Mar 10, 2016)

I find that almost every load of hay is different.  The richness & palatability changes with age of the cut bale you buy, what the farmer sprayed on it -- from fertilizer to herbicide to drying agents -- and the time of day it is cut, time of year, how dried, maturity of grass when cut, and even the variety of the grass planted, etc.   Yes, they often waste more than they eat.

Generally fresh graze is their preference and a mix like you have is preferred.   Your own pastures can vary from week to week due to weather (hot, cold, rain, or not), maturity and what is still growing well in that mix.   A large outer fenced pasture divided with hot wire may work well for you.

When I'm ready to buy a large supply of winter hay, I like to get 2-3 bales and let them eat it that day, to see reaction.  Then I buy or not.   Even what feels, smells, looks great, can have something they don't like.   I generally chew a few pieces myself to test for taste, bitterness, etc.

Having fun yet?   YES farming is hard work!


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## soarwitheagles (Mar 10, 2016)

L J said:


> question...does anyone supplement any amount of alfalfa with grass hay or pasture?
> 
> I have Barbados Katahdin cross ewes and ram.  They get timothy hay pellets along with timothy hay. but They just seem to need more and sometimes just don't appear to even like the grass hay.  I feel  like we waste more that ends up on the ground instead of in their "bellies"



LJ,

Mini Horses shared some excellent info and I keep learning a lot from people like him/her!

For what it is worth, I was told by several local ranchers that during the coldest part of the season, feeding alfalfa was absolutely crucial to help the sheep generate more body heat.  Hence, I purchased a couple of bales of the alfalfa for the Dec.-Jan. portion of the year and I did feed them alfalfa during the coldest of the days in the winter [in the high 20's Fahrenheit].  At the time, my American Blackbellies did not have an overhead structure to keep them from the cold, nor was there a suitable pasture for them to browse/graze, so I was feeding them exclusively with hay.  They did quite well, so I am happy that I used the alfalfa.

You mentioned Timothy Hay.  May I ask where do you live?  We live in the central valley part of California.  A lot of the grass that grows well here is the annual rye grass.

Barbados Katahdin cross ewes and ram?  Wow, I am all ears and I am also very interested!  Could you post some pics of these sheep please, and may I ask why you cross bred with these specific breeds?


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## Bossroo (Mar 16, 2016)

I have seen quite a few Barbados rams  crossed on Ramboulett, Corriedale, Suffolk and Southdown ewes... the resulting lambs were a downgrade on the ewes' production capabilities.


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## L J (Mar 16, 2016)

soarwitheagles said:


> LJ,
> 
> Mini Horses shared some excellent info and I keep learning a lot from people like him/her!
> 
> ...


I live in the northeast part of Washington state, near Idaho and about 90 miles south of Canada.

Long story short, I ended up rescuing a katahdin bottle ram over a year ago. (he is actually a hybrid of goat/sheep see the Geep thread :0 )) and needed to get him a a few pals.  I wanted to stay with the same breed and/or hair breed in general.  The gal I purchased them from was the one who cross bred.   Posting a pic of the 3 sheep, the ram is the chocolate brown.  One ewe looks mostly barbados and the other ewe looks mostly Katahdin.  Both are due any day, so will be super interested in how the lambs will look.

The pic is from last year


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## secuono (Mar 16, 2016)

Guess I should update to my current program!

Lambs are born March through April and are purely pasture raised.
Ewes are fed grain February through the end of April.
All sheep are pastured.
All sheep are given free choice grass hay from mid November through mid March.
Rams are never grained.
All sheep have access to pastured sheep mineral mix and fresh water.
Rams have a 0.5 acre pasture.
Ewes and lambs have 2.5 acres of pasture.
Horses now have roughly 1 acre, 2 minis and the pony.
Three Babydoll rams.
Eight Babydoll ewes.
One Cheviot ewe.
Ram lambs are moved to the adult ram pasture in August/September.
Ewe lambs stay with moms.
Lambs are pretty much mom-weaned. So they nurse up to about 7 months old, though, I've never seen them nurse past 4.5-5mo old.


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## soarwitheagles (Mar 19, 2016)

L J said:


> I live in the northeast part of Washington state, near Idaho and about 90 miles south of Canada.
> 
> Long story short, I ended up rescuing a katahdin bottle ram over a year ago. (he is actually a hybrid of goat/sheep see the Geep thread :0 )) and needed to get him a a few pals.  I wanted to stay with the same breed and/or hair breed in general.  The gal I purchased them from was the one who cross bred.   Posting a pic of the 3 sheep, the ram is the chocolate brown.  One ewe looks mostly barbados and the other ewe looks mostly Katahdin.  Both are due any day, so will be super interested in how the lambs will look.
> 
> The pic is from last year



LJ,

Beautiful sheep you have there!  After reading Bossroo's comment that crossbreeding AB's cause a downgrade in production, I think we will not go that route!  It sounds as if you are in real cold country up there!  I have heard stories about eastern Washington being a bit brutal during the winters.  But it must be absolutely beautiful up there!


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## Gorman Farm (Mar 13, 2017)

I was just reading through this thread and I thought I would share what we feed our sheep here in FL. 
We feed Golden Blend 14% sheep pellets, which we mix 75% pellet to 25% cracked corn. We also use Sweetlix 16:8 loose minerals which we put roughly a TB a day on top of each feed ration. We originally put the minerals in a tub for free choice but quickly realized that they were not eating any. In summer/spring and early fall the pasture grass is usually enough, although we have a small feeder that we always keep native coastal hay in, in winter we bump up the hay quite a bit as the pasture isn't very good, and we make sure there is always hay available.
We live right down the road from the University of FL cattle station, so we get a lot of good information on pastures & herd management from them. I discovered from the Univ. when we moved here that our area is deficient in selenium, which is why we want to make sure that they eat the minerals we provide.
All of our sheep get a small grain ration once per day (1 cup or so) so we can get the minerals in them, last trimester of pregnancy and through-out nursing lambs we bump up the grain ration to about 3 cups x 2 per day. The lambs start sharing the grain with mom pretty early on.

Things we discovered were that we tried another sheep grain mix but with our heat and humidity it molded before we could feed it all. I cannot remember the name of it but it contained molasses which I think was the culprit.

We tried to buy timothy/alfalfa mix hay for the better quality forage but our sheep would not eat it.
We tried straight alfalfa and they did not like that either.

We are so lucky that our vet did her internship on a sheep farm, she is a GREAT resource for us. I do fecals on my sheep 3x year, and FAMACHA monthly. We give CD&T vaccines to ewes about a month or so before they lamb. Then the lambs get CD&T at 2 months and a booster a month later. 

Our sheep are in pasture daily from 5:30 am to about 6-7pm, then they come in to the barn for the nightly meal, we have a hay bin in there which we keep full for them for the night.


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## soarwitheagles (Mar 13, 2017)

Gorman,

Thank you for sharing your feeding practices!  Wow, you must have the healthiest sheep on the planet...and our sheep must be living on barely-get-by-street!

To be honest with you, I admire your care and diligence in tending your sheep.  But it must also be quite expensive.

I followed the books like clockwork last year...grain, vitamins, shots, minerals, etc. but still lost two sheep to pneumonia...and also had a reoccurring challenge with upper respiratory infections.

So this year, I tried something new...nearly opposite of what most of the books say to do...

No shelters...stopped all grain for months...no dried baled hay, no dried baled clover, and no dried baled alfalfa, no deworming, no CD&T vaccines, no minerals, no vitamins, etc....most lambs were born during horrific rain storms and often when it was quite cold, newborns laying on the ground like ugly little very wet rug rats...

We simply left the sheep out in the field or the forest for the entire winter...and left them to fend for themselves for the great majority of the winter...

I think some people would call all this borderline animal cruelty....while others might call it organic and natural...all's I know, I am not sure what to call it but I am sure of the results!

RESULTS:

1. Healthiest looking lambs we have ever had.
2. Highest numbers of twins we have ever had.
3. No sickness or illnesses or diseases.
4. Happy looking sheep.
5. Bank account went up, not down this time.

Lesson learned and moral of the story: Don't believe everything you read...even the most well read sheep books!


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## Gorman Farm (Mar 13, 2017)

soarwitheagles said:


> Gorman,
> 
> Thank you for sharing your feeding practices!  Wow, you must have the healthiest sheep on the planet...and our sheep must be living on barely-get-by-street!
> 
> ...





soarwitheagles said:


> Gorman,
> 
> Thank you for sharing your feeding practices!  Wow, you must have the healthiest sheep on the planet...and our sheep must be living on barely-get-by-street!
> 
> ...




Well if it ain't broke as they say..I don't think your style is cruel, just different.
We are new shepherds, we purchased our first sheep 2+ years ago from a veterinarian in Northern FL. I am sure we keep learning everyday about better practices. Some of what I do is "just because" and some is because of information we received from the University or my vet. I know we do not have to shelter our sheep, but we provide the barn it's open walk in type for hot sunny days (we don't have much shade in the pastures), and we have predators, bobcats, bears, coyotes here, so we close them in at night more for our piece of mind. 
We are not making any $ on our sheep that is for sure, but it did help that we sold 3 rams last year.
My vet says I am the only client that does frequent fecals of all her customers. So far we have good parasite resistance but did have to worm the ewes after lambing last year. Oddly some of the sheep that scored lower on FAMACHA did not have a worm load at all so if we went by that test alone we would have wormed them needlessly.
So far no illness but realize it is inevitable one day we will face something. 
Thank you for sharing your practices with me.


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## soarwitheagles (Mar 13, 2017)

Gorman,

Thank you for replying and sharing about your methods.  We too are total rookies when it comes to livestock, so please do not take our example as something to be followed!

To be honest with you, I learned a lot from the good people right here at BYH.  They have been super helpful and patient especially considering I have been a city slicker for most of my life and had absolutely no clue what I was doing...

Before embarking upon this sheep adventure, the only livestock I ever attempted to raise was two hamsters when I was 7 years old and that did not turn out so well...one of em' ate the head off the other...

I am super interested in your deworming techniques and especially how you perform the fecal test.  I would like to learn how to do this test.  Can you elaborate more please?  We dewormed our sheep the day they arrived, then once more if I remember correctly.

I would like to ask you some questions if you don't mind...

1. What fecal testing kit are you using?
2. How expensive was it?
3. How easy or challenging is it to use it?
4. How much time is required to perform the tests?

I am not sure if we even have any worms here.  We had several nights that went into the high 20's.  Then massive rains too.  I read somewhere that worms require or thrive on hot, humid environments.  Not sure if this is true though...

BTW, we used Prohibit drench last time we did deworm and it was relatively easy to apply, but I learned that I should have taken some breaks during the process and not try to tackle the entire flock all in one shot.

Last, I am happy you have not had any sickness or illnesses and I hope your flock continues with such good health!


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## Gorman Farm (Mar 13, 2017)

I do not do the fecal tests my vet does them, they only cost $7 each. If I drop off the samples that is the only charge. If I am having her out for a farm call she does them on site with some kind of drops and a microscope. The results take about 5 minutes. You can spot check your herd if it is too big testing the ones that scored lower on FAMACHA.
Cydectin  is what my vet used to worm them. Vet will not use Cydectin on young lambs they only get ivermectin if needed.
Barber pole worms are more active in warm wet climates like we have. Luckily for us there have never been sheep or goats on our property before we got here. I never put waste from cleaning the barn back in the pasture I use it to fertilize the grass in the yard and spread it there.


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## Bossroo (Mar 14, 2017)

When one emphasises PROFIT and SCIENCE as one's mode of animal husbandry practices instead of the notion that farm animals are pets, one is on the right track. Here is a shocker,  just 50 years ago, 98+% of the sheep shown here would never have been raised beyond 5 months of age as they would have been sold as culls and slaughtered. The wise shepherd would only keep no more than 10- 20% of their ewe lambs as replacements and only purchase the top 1% of the ram crop as their herd sire. All less productive ewes would be culled annually as mutton or Cambells Soup.  Today's books written by the so called "experts" would have been laughed at by the professional shepherds. While today the College textbooks written by PhDs in Animal Science and Veterinary medicine are gathering dust. I would definately keep up with all of the recomended vaccinations.  Feeding quality alfalfa hay plus grains such as cracked corn , rolled barley and oats would be beneficial during periods of environmental stress to keep the ewes and their lambs in good condition.   Especially in these very wet conditions , I would not only test for worms, but for liver flukes as well as these wet conditions are very favorable for their propagation.  Losses could be heavy.


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## soarwitheagles (Mar 24, 2017)

Thank you for your reply Gorman, and sorry for the late reply...been way too busy here...

Our sheep are still "mowing " the neighbor's forest.  Most of his property if filled with 10-14" grass, clover, forbs, etc.  I am just a tiny bit concerned because now some of our ewes are coming back with signs of low level bloat on a nearly daily basis.  But every morning, they appear to back to normal size.  So not sure what to make of this...I will probably start a new post so I can find some good advice at BYH!  This is the first time I have ever seen them with a little bloat.  In the past I really admired them because they were always able to self monitor and never showed any signs of bloat...not sure what is going on now...


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## Gorman Farm (Mar 24, 2017)

soarwitheagles said:


> Thank you for your reply Gorman, and sorry for the late reply...been way too busy here...
> 
> Our sheep are still "mowing " the neighbor's forest.  Most of his property if filled with 10-14" grass, clover, forbs, etc.  I am just a tiny bit concerned because now some of our ewes are coming back with signs of low level bloat on a nearly daily basis.  But every morning, they appear to back to normal size.  So not sure what to make of this...I will probably start a new post so I can find some good advice at BYH!  This is the first time I have ever seen them with a little bloat.  In the past I really admired them because they were always able to self monitor and never showed any signs of bloat...not sure what is going on now...



Wow bloat is really serious. I have not had to face anything like that. I heard that not turning them out onto lush new pasture until after the dew dries, and not leaving them all day helps prevent that. We have our own small pastures which we can close off to 3 sections, it has been a very dry winter so nothing too lush here. In the summer it is rainy season here and I literally have to mow some of the pasture, the sheep can't keep up or leave the bits they don't like.


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## Cloverleaf Farm (Apr 15, 2017)

I am brand new at sheep, I live in Central Oregon, which is high desert.  A friend gave me two 4 year old Dorper / St. Croix cross ewes last summer.  I had them bred to a Dorper / S.C. ram, and have 4 babies that are less than a month old.  I also now have a pure Dorper ram lamb for this year's breeding.  
We are on dry lot, so they get Timothy / Bluegrass mix twice a day, and once a day they get Purina Lamb Grower (14%).  Moms are super fat.  One of them likes to attack other sheep when she first has babies, so I can't put them all together yet.  In another week or so I'm hoping to be able to turn them all out into my riding arena for more exercise.
I am vaccinating for CD-T, and they have free access to an iodized salt block.
I am trying to glean as much info as I can, luckily I have a couple of friends in the state that have had sheep for a while and seem to be "doing it right" and don't seem to mind my questions...I quickly figured out that the friend that gave me the ewes knows about as much as I do, despite having raised them for quite a while...


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## Gorman Farm (Apr 15, 2017)

Cloverleaf Farm said:


> I am brand new at sheep, I live in Central Oregon, which is high desert.  A friend gave me two 4 year old Dorper / St. Croix cross ewes last summer.  I had them bred to a Dorper / S.C. ram, and have 4 babies that are less than a month old.  I also now have a pure Dorper ram lamb for this year's breeding.
> We are on dry lot, so they get Timothy / Bluegrass mix twice a day, and once a day they get Purina Lamb Grower (14%).  Moms are super fat.  One of them likes to attack other sheep when she first has babies, so I can't put them all together yet.  In another week or so I'm hoping to be able to turn them all out into my riding arena for more exercise.
> I am vaccinating for CD-T, and they have free access to an iodized salt block.
> I am trying to glean as much info as I can, luckily I have a couple of friends in the state that have had sheep for a while and seem to be "doing it right" and don't seem to mind my questions...I quickly figured out that the friend that gave me the ewes knows about as much as I do, despite having raised them for quite a while...



Check with your local farm extension office, they can tell you a lot. I use a loose mineral that is made for sheep that not only provides salt but other trace minerals they need. Ruminants need to graze to keep their gut moving so keep some forage for them to munch on through out the day.


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## Cloverleaf Farm (Apr 15, 2017)

Gorman Farm said:


> Check with your local farm extension office, they can tell you a lot. I use a loose mineral that is made for sheep that not only provides salt but other trace minerals they need. Ruminants need to graze to keep their gut moving so keep some forage for them to munch on through out the day.



Thanks, I give them enough hay at each feeding that they always have something to munch on, so I suppose I should say that they get free choice hay, not that I feed twice a day 
I do have a loose mineral, but I need to get some kind of heavier feeder to put it in that they can't knock over, it always ends up wasted on the ground...


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## soarwitheagles (Apr 16, 2017)

Gorman Farm said:


> Wow bloat is really serious. I have not had to face anything like that. I heard that not turning them out onto lush new pasture until after the dew dries, and not leaving them all day helps prevent that. We have our own small pastures which we can close off to 3 sections, it has been a very dry winter so nothing too lush here. In the summer it is rainy season here and I literally have to mow some of the pasture, the sheep can't keep up or leave the bits they don't like.



Gorman Farm,

That is amazing how the seasons vary according to geographical location!  Here, summers are incredibly dry and without water, everything on the ground turns brown, brown, dead brown.

Our sheep are doing well.  It will not be long before everything turns brown and it usually occurs all within a 3 day period.  Presently, we are continuing to experience rainfall that is breaking records.  We do not have any snow at our ranch, but only two hours away, Kirkwood Ski Resort has had 57 feet of snow this year and presently has 11 ft. of snow on the ground.  After 5+ years of a terrible drought, we have received record breaking snow and rainfall and we desperately needed it.  There are parts of our Sierra Nevada mountain range that has broken all written records [dating back to the 1800's] for snow levels.  God has had great mercy on us as a state.

Presently, our pastures are more luscious than anything I have ever seen...we now have 18-24 inches of grass, clover, chickory, bird's foot trevfoil, etc. in every pasture.  I moved the sheep three days ago from the forest to the planted annual pastures.  They are thriving.

Have a great day!


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## Jrios (Aug 14, 2021)

rockdoveranch said:


> _I have hijacked this thread from the goat forums as I have found it to be very interesting.  I replaced goats with sheep.    Thank you for an interesting thread elevan. _


Does anyone feed the medicated sheep/goat feed? We have both sheep and goats and they are pastured together, fed separately. (new sheep, trying to handle them). Also,  i know you can't do goat minerals for sheep,  but could you do sheep minerals for both species? And hay- we will be having part of our place baled, it's mostly Johnson grass (which my goats like), weeds,  some coastal Bermuda. Will that be ok?


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## secuono (Aug 14, 2021)

Jrios said:


> Does anyone feed the medicated sheep/goat feed? We have both sheep and goats and they are pastured together, fed separately. (new sheep, trying to handle them). Also,  i know you can't do goat minerals for sheep,  but could you do sheep minerals for both species? And hay- we will be having part of our place baled, it's mostly Johnson grass (which my goats like), weeds,  some coastal Bermuda. Will that be ok?


Medicated against cocci?
It's best to use it 2mo before lambing and through to weaning. It lowers amounts that are shed and helps prevent it, but it is not a cure. 

You can feed sheep minerals to goats and then do a copper bolus for the goats.

As for hay...Mine are crazy picky, nothing but the best horse quality, 2nd cut, leafy, super soft hay will do for my snobs. 🙄 So, I can't help much with that.


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## Jrios (Aug 14, 2021)

secuono said:


> Medicated against cocci?
> It's best to use it 2mo before lambing and through to weaning. It lowers amounts that are shed and helps prevent it, but it is not a cure.
> 
> You can feed sheep minerals to goats and then do a copper bolus for the goats.
> ...


Yes, medicated against coccidiosis- the feed store lady said since the chickens are in there i should feed it all the time.  The medicated is about 50 cents more.  Thx for other info!


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## secuono (Aug 14, 2021)

Jrios said:


> Yes, medicated against coccidiosis- the feed store lady said since the chickens are in there i should feed it all the time.  The medicated is about 50 cents more.  Thx for other info!


Coccidia are host-specific, meaning the species of coccidia that affect poultry do not affect sheep and goats.


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## Jrios (Aug 14, 2021)

secuono said:


> Coccidia are host-specific, meaning the species of coccidia that affect poultry do not affect sheep and goats.


Interesting,  thx!


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## Cotton*wood (Sep 17, 2021)

soarwitheagles said:


> Gorman,
> 
> Thank you for sharing your feeding practices!  Wow, you must have the healthiest sheep on the planet...and our sheep must be living on barely-get-by-street!
> 
> ...


It doesn't sound like cruelty to me--it sounds like having sheep in their natural habitat.

This has basically been our management plan as well, though I do have a little shade shelter that I drag between paddocks in the heat of the summer, which they crowd into (it gets REALLY hot in the summer in Kansas).  And we did bring the ewes and lambs into the barn when they were lambing in the week when it was between -9F and -16F (and I'm glad we did, because a neighbor whose ewes all lambed that same week lost over half of them, and we didn't lose any.) But we wouldn't have brought them in otherwise, and that's been the only time they've had any shelter from the wind/snow/storms.  The only grain we feed is a couple scoops of whole corn when I need to move them to a paddock that's not adjacent to the one they're currently in.  We use electro-net fences, and they're moved every day or two, depending on the forage in the current paddock.  We did throw them some hay when there was enough snow on the ground that I felt sorry for them, but they probably would have been fine without it.  So far, it's been taking about 3 1/2 months to rotate around all the pastures.

Loose minerals, yes, and I did fecal sampling to see if they had worms (no, or at least none that were detectable in the samples.)

But haven't done anything else--no trimming, no worming, no shots, no extraneous feeding, and they are happy healthy creatures.


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## Show Sebright (May 15, 2022)

I have a show lamb. He gets 2-4% of his body weight 2 times a day. He gets a handful of hay at each feeding. Free choice purina sheep minerals with clarifly. He has a salt lick too. Treats are animal crackers.


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## jambi1214 (Nov 6, 2022)

Cotton*wood said:


> It doesn't sound like cruelty to me--it sounds like having sheep in their natural habitat.
> 
> This has basically been our management plan as well, though I do have a little shade shelter that I drag between paddocks in the heat of the summer, which they crowd into (it gets REALLY hot in the summer in Kansas).  And we did bring the ewes and lambs into the barn when they were lambing in the week when it was between -9F and -16F (and I'm glad we did, because a neighbor whose ewes all lambed that same week lost over half of them, and we didn't lose any.) But we wouldn't have brought them in otherwise, and that's been the only time they've had any shelter from the wind/snow/storms.  The only grain we feed is a couple scoops of whole corn when I need to move them to a paddock that's not adjacent to the one they're currently in.  We use electro-net fences, and they're moved every day or two, depending on the forage in the current paddock.  We did throw them some hay when there was enough snow on the ground that I felt sorry for them, but they probably would have been fine without it.  So far, it's been taking about 3 1/2 months to rotate around all the pastures.
> 
> ...


This is great to see too. Last year I did more minimal intervention and had beautiful healthy babies. No trimming only vaccinating lambs twice and deworming as needed. I haven't really checked stools which I know is needed and cheaper to go that route but everyone has done so well. Like in nature?! This year I'm changing it up...why?! Have 15 sheep vs 6 and lost a ewe. It's also expensive as I've only sold 1 ram! Gotta find a way to be able to continue to afford these guys! But really seeing the real life experiences vs my Google services is very valuable.


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## Baymule (Nov 6, 2022)

You can take weaned lambs to auction. You need a scrapie tag, call the USDA scrapie office and they will issue you a number and point you in the right direction to get tags and an applicator. Most auctions will put a tag on for you, cost is usually a couple bucks. Not all do though. 

Selling rams, private sale, usually has less than stellar results unless you are in an area where ethnic buyers want ram lambs for holiday slaughter. Ewes are easier to sell.


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