Food, nutrition is a topic that will interest everyone, because our health is based on it. A similar situation is with animals, which we must take care of properly, providing them with the right food that will ensure their healthy development. In today’s material on our Blog, we will take a closer look at the topic of sheep nutrition and present some rules regarding it.

What do sheep eat?

Sheep nutrition is based on a wide range of products that allow animals to develop, grow, maintain appropriate weight and health. What do sheep eat? These animals feed on plant foods – mainly green fodder, hay, root crops and grain. In addition, compound feeds are available – they usually contain oats, barley, wheat, peas, bran, corn, nettles, herbs, pomace (e.g. flax, rapeseed). Of course, the more organic and balanced the feed, the better. It is worth that they contain a significant percentage of fats and proteins, and at the same time be enriched with an appropriate dose of minerals.

How to feed the sheep? Are there any differences?

• Feeding sheep after lambing – the selection of postpartum feed for lactating ewes should be particularly well thought out to ensure high milk yield throughout the lactation period. It is recommended to use high-quality hay, silage, maize silage, root crops. Balanced energy and protein doses are important, and it is also worth using mineral and vitamin supplements.
• Feeding small sheep – for the first weeks, lambs feed on mother’s milk, and if it turns out to be insufficient, milk replacers are used. After about 3 weeks, feeders for lambs are separated, where they get to know grains (mainly oats). Later, other feeds are introduced, which should be of very good quality, which will translate into proper rearing of lambs.
• Stones of adult sheep – varied feeds are conducive to the proper development of animals. Ideally, they should be abundant in green plants, hay, silage, cereals, herbs and enriched with minerals.

How to share food rations?

Let’s start with watering the sheep. This should be done twice a day – usually before the morning and after the evening. The daily requirement of an adult sheep for water in winter reaches about 2 liters, while in summer it is even 5 liters.

Sheep do not have high feed requirements because they have a well-developed digestive tract. In summer, pasture plays a key role in feeding sheep. Alfalfa, clover fields, stubble fields and fields (e.g. after harvesting potatoes or beets), as well as accidental pastures (escarpments, agricultural areas, roadside ditches, orchards, areas after cattle grazing, etc.) are suitable for sheep grazing. In summer, 85% of the feed belongs to green food.

In winter, quality fodder is used, and its quantity is used in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations. Adult sheep are then fed twice a day (morning and afternoon), serving half of the daily ration of concentrated and juicy fodder, as well as 1/3 of hay. In the evening, the sheep are served the rest of the hay and straw on an overlap.