🚀 go-pugleaf

Paul Krause CIRT writes:

   I need some help with a feed ration for 3 hobby sheep (suffolks).
   I find I can buy corn for the same price (about 8 cents/lb) as good
   alfalfa and there is less waste.  I know corn is not a complete
   food for people and I assume that is true for sheep too.  I have
   been adding calf manna to try and balance it better.

Corn will give your sheep energy, which is an important component of
their diet.  They also need protein, fibre, and a long list of trace
minerals and vitamins.  For detailed information on how to balance a
sheep ration, try _Nutrient Requirements of Sheep_ (National Academy
Press, 1985).  You can order a copy directly by mail from National
Academy Press, 2101 Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20418.
The tables and formulae will let you calculate a proper diet for your
sheep based on feeds that are available in your area.  If trace
elements like selenium are missing from their diet, you may have to
compensate with injections of BOSE.

Here, we only feed grain for one month before the ewes lamb, and
during lactation.  The rest of the year the sheep are on pasture or
hay.  We feed our own timothy/clover hay until one month before lambs
are due, then switch to alfalfa hay to provide a higher protein level
for the last weeks of gestation and lactation.  We provide trace
mineral salt on demand.

You can calculate an all-grain ration that will supply the nutritional
needs of your sheep -- soymeal added to the corn would supply needed
protein -- but sheep are ruminants.  Keeping those four stomachs
healthy requires bulk fibre, which usually means hay or pasture.
-- 

				Ronald Florence
				ron@mlfarm.com