Practical Pointers for Supplementary Feeding
- Sheep should not be starved before feeding grain, although some sheep are reluctant feeders.
- To avoid severe digestive upsets, sheep must be introduced to concentrates slowly. Start at about 50 g/hd/day (5 kg/100) for 10 days. Gradually build up to full ration over the next 7-10 days.
- About 0.50 kg/hd/day (50 kg/100) of barley provides half maintenance. Feeding grain above this level is not recommended.
- Sheep cannot be maintained on grain alone. Some other pickings from pasture stubble or any straws should be fed. Saliva produced while eating straw or pasture is rich in bicarbonate, helping to neutralise acid in the rumen. In addition, fibre present in the rumen helps to neutralise acids.
- Feeding hay first helps prevent gorging and stock losses. Weighing bales gives a better estimate of feeding levels.
- The safest grain to feed is oats, followed by barley, ryecorn, and wheat. Wheat is the most dangerous and may require a longer introductory period than the usual 10 days.
- Water is very important during a change in diet.
Where grain constitutes a high proportion of the ration, mix 1.5 kg sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) per 100 kg grain to help offset the effects of grain overload. Bicarb can help to neutralise the acid in the rumen. Feed additives, including Eskalin and Rumensin, can also be fed with grain to reduce acidosis problems.- To attract hoggets to grain, add 3 kg of salt per 100 kg of grain fed.
- Wheat, oats, barley or ryecorn fed to sheep do not need to be processed for effective digestion. Whole grain is better as it stimulates chewing and addition of saliva, and breaks down less rapidly in the rumen, reducing the risk of acidosis compared with feeding processed grains. Cattle require processing of wheat, barley and ryecorn to maximise utilisation of grain. However, oats generally do not need processing.
- Grain should be fed from a hopper, leaving a long narrow line on the ground about 40 mm deep and 100 mm wide. This allows enough room for all sheep to feed. Grain can be fed to sheep on dry ground near hedges or trees, or underneath a fence to avoid trampling losses. It is often better to distribute the grain and then shift sheep into the paddock. Grain should be fed to cattle in makeshift troughs. Cattle are less able to pick up grain from the ground compared with sheep; therefore, wastage is much higher.
- Watch for shy feeders and draft out when necessary.
- An increase in energy intake is needed as lambing approaches. It is important to have sufficient quantity of high-quality conserved pasture, silage, balage or hay to maintain energy intake during this time. Energy content of forages should ideally be at least 11 MJME per kg of dry matter. Low intakes of energy prelambing can lead to sleepy sickness (ketosis).
- Having a strategy and feeding plan organised early makes getting through a dry spell easier.
Stuart Ford
Agricultural Consultant
Agriculture New Zealand
Timaru
Contact for Enquiries
Manager
North Island Regions
Sector Performance Policy
MAF Policy
Hamilton
NEW ZEALAND
Phone: +64 7 957 8313
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