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FEEDING OF ADULT SHEEP AND LACTATING EWES
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Feeding of adult sheep
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The adult sheep should be allowed to graze free of choice on pasture or grass land and should be supplemented with 100 gm of concentrate mixture.
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If legume or hay is available then concentrate mixture need not be given.
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When legumes are fed alone the chances of developing digestive disturbance increases and so some dry fodder like straws should be given along with legume fodder.
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When sufficient pasture land is not available and straw is available then feeding of straw along with 300-400gm of concentrate mixture should be done.
Feeding of lactating ewes
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During first 10 days after lambing legume hay may be fed.
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After 10 days upto weaning 250 g of concentrate mixture may be supplemented with good quality legume hay.
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After 3 months, maintenance allowance is sufficient.
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The requirements of energy and protein are higher during lactation.
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Feeding during the first 4 weeks of lactation is critical and affects lactational performance of the ewes and thereby growth and survival of lamb.
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Both energy and protein should be balanced in a diet of lactating ewe.
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Therefore feeding of 800 g good legume hay or 100-g/day-concentrate mixture for 75 days after lambing in addition to 8 hours of grazing is recommend for feeding of lactating ewes.
Composition of salt lick
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Ingredient
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Composition (%)
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Rock salt
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40
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Sulphate of Ammonia
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20
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Dicalcium phosphate
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20
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10
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Molasses
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10
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Salt is added at 0.5% to complete diet or 1% to the concentrate mixture.
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They consume more salt per unit of body weight than the cattle
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In addition to the above information, the following on different systems of rearing sheep and how to improve their nutrition may also included
Systems of sheep rearing:
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Extensive system
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Intensive system
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Semi-intensive system
Extensive system
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In this system, the availability of energy throughout the year, in particular from January to June and protein for more than half of the year is less than the animal requirements.
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Over grazing of the available grazing land and overstocking leads to problems of soil erosion and land degradation. This leads to low animal productivity. Sheep and goats weigh only 15-16 kg at 9-12 months of age, lower dressing percentage (35-40) and narrow bone:meat ratio (1:3.5-4.0). The reproduction is also affected with high mortality in lambs and kids.
Measures to improve productivity under Extensive system
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Reseeding with more productive and nutritive grasses like Cenchrus ciliaris, Lasiurus sindicus, Dicanthium annulatum
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Intercropping legumes like cowpea, Dolichos lablab, Clitoria ternata , Stylosanthes hemata etc. with grasses like Cenchrus ciliaris will increase biomass yield, palatability and the grass-legume mixture can sustain 4-5 sheep/ha/annum.
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Silvi-pasture: During the period from December-June, when the grazing material from pasture lands becomes scarce and the quality deteriorates, the fodder trees and bushes serve as valuable sources for feeding sheep and goats. A three tier silvipasure having fodder trees like Prosopis cineraria, Azhadirachta indica, Morus alba, Leucaena leucocephala, gliricidia maculate, sesbania etc., fodder bushes like Zizyphus nummularia and Dicrostachys mutans with ground cover of grasses like Cenchrus ciliaris can be practices
Semi-intensive system
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It is a combination of free range grazing and stall-feeding.
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Integration of sheep rearing with arable cropping is also included where either the sheep or goat are tethered or cut and carry system of available fodder is employed.
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The poor nutritive value of native pastures and crop residues makes it necessary to improve the nutrient intake for better animal performance.
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Free grazing on range land for 8-10 h / d and supplementation with 1.5 to 2.0 % of body weight with concentrates allowed to graze on available grazing lands or pasture lands and supplemented with legume hays, legume leaf meal or concentrate mixture @ 1.5 t0 2.0 % of body weight till they attain 25 to 30 kg finishing weight at 5 to 6 months of age.. For example if a ram lamb weighs 20 kg, then the concentrate will be 20 x 0.15 = 300 g or 20 x 0.02 = 400 g/ day
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Supplementation with concentrates has been shown to increase dressing percentage, lambing and kidding percentage, increased birth weight of lambs and kids and reduced mortality, and increased wool yield.
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Optimum level of fodder trees and shrubs when used as supplements should be about 30 to 50 % of the ration, on DM basis.
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In addition to grazing the pregnant ewes/does during last 30 days of pregnancy and lactating ewes/does during first 60 days of lactation be supplemented with 300g/h/d concentrate mixture containing 12 % DCP and 65 % TDN to ensure 2.5 to 3.0 kg birth weights.
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To attain a weaning weight of 14 to 16 kg at 60 days of age, the lambs/kids should be provided ad lib suckling, creep ration and green/dry leguminous fodders during pre weaning period
Intensive system
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The intensive system of sheep and goat production includes grazing on highly developed pastures or complete stall feeding on cultivated fresh or conserved fodders, crop residues and concentrates. Although goats prefer to browse as compared to grazing, they are quite capable of making efficient use of cultivated pastures for meat and milk production similar to sheep.
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Stocking rates of 16 to 60 sheep or goats per hectare are feasible depending on the type of grass, level of fertilization and presence or absence of legumes and fodder trees.
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This system requires high labor and capital investment.
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Judicious use of available feed and fodder resources, crop residues, agro-industrial byproducts is possible under this system
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The energy expended for grazing/browsing can be conserved for body weight gains
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Several studies have shown ADG (g) and feed efficiency (kg DMI/kg gain) of 100-200 and 12-18, respectively in sheep and goats under intensive system of management.
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This system is ideally suited to feed sheep and goats on complete diets containing tree leaves, crop residues, improved legume hays or grass hay and concentrates in the ratio of 50:50.
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In lambs maintained on complete diets, ADG of 100-150 g, FCE,, 14-15, finishing body weight of 25 kg at 6 months and 30 kg at 9 months were attained.
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Several least cost feed formulations involving leguminous fodders (cowpea, dolichos, clitoria), tree and shrub leaves (khejri, ardu, pala), cheaper energy supplements (jowar, bajra, etc) and low cost protein supplements (mustard cake, guar meal, sunflower cake) have been developed for economic and sustainable production.
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I . Composition of creep ration
(DCP 18-20 % and TDN 70-75%) weaners and adults
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II. Concentrate mixture for supplementation of
(DCP 12- 14 % and TDN 60-65 %)
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| Maize
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20%
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Maize
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20%
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| Gram
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20%
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Gram chuni
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32%
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| Groundnut cake
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35%
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Groundnut cake
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15%
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| Wheat bran
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23 %
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Wheat bran
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30 %
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| Mineral mixture
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2.5 %
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Mineral mixture
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2.5 %
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| Common salt
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0.5 %
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Common salt
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0.5 %
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III. Complete diets based on crop residues (CP : 12-14 %, TDN : 60 - 65 %)
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Participants