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

[animalcrackeracres]

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!

 

[n8ivetxn]

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

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

 

[kuntrygirl]

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

 

[SheepGirl]

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

 

[kuntrygirl]

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

May be fed free-choice, as a top dress or mixed into the ration

Guaranteed Analysis:
Calcium (Ca) (min.) 10.00%, Calcium (Ca) (max.) 12.00%, Phosphorus (P) (min.) 6.00%, Salt (NaCl) (min.) 16.00%, Salt (NaCl) (max.) 19.00%, Sodium (Na) (min.) 7.10%, Sodium (Na) (max.) 8.50%, Magnesium (Mg) (min.) .75%, Potassium (K) (min.) 1.00%, Iodine (I) (min.) 100.00ppm, Selenium (Se) (min.) 20.00ppm, Selenium (Se) (max.) 21.00ppm, Zinc (Zn) (min.) 1200.00ppm, Vitamin A (min.) 40,000IU/lb, Vitamin D3 (min.) 15,000IU/lb, Vitamin E (min.) 100IU/lb, Ruminant meat and bone meal free.

Feeding instructions:
Feed free-choice from a sheltered feeder at the rate of up to 1.15 oz. per head per day to sheep. Alternatively, mix in or top dress an appropriate amount for the ration based on the number of animals consuming a given amount of feed. Always supply fresh, clean water.

Caution: Follow label directions. Feeding added selenium at levels in excess of 0.3 ppm in the total diet is prohibited.

DuMor is Tractor Supply Company's premium brand of animal feeds, nutritional supplements and mineral blocks. Included in the line are several different feed formulations designed to meet nutritional needs for development of calves/cows, poultry, rabbits, goats, sheep, hogs and horses in all different stages of life. DuMor offers a show-quality feed line. In addition to the feed, supplements and mineral blocks, DuMor also includes treats for horses and milk replacers for calves.

 

[SheepGirl]

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

 

[kuntrygirl]

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.

 

[BHOBCFarms]

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.

 

[norseofcourse]

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.

 

[bcnewe2]

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.