The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Helen Wiltshire Horn on February 10, 2017, 12:09:41 pm
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I am hoping that you can give me some advice. I have 15 of last year's lambs that I need to fatten up pretty quickly. They had fluke in the Autumn and owing to a long withdrawal period on the flukecide I wasn't able to get rid of them in the Autumn as planned. I have someone who may be interested in buying 6 - 8 of the heaviest in 4 weeks' time and possibly the rest when they have put on some weight. How much cake should I be feeding them? Just ordinary 18% protein nuts or something else? They have good quality hay and a high energy lick already but some are pretty skinny. I haven't got any good grazing at all and am keen to get rid of them asap. Thanks.
Helen
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What I am doing to fatten some lambs at the moment is to feed ad lib a 16% protein pellet together with a licky bucket and ad lib hay. I would think yours would take at least a month to fatten on this regime. However, in a month's time the grass might just have started growing and this would help fatten them.
Regards, David
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Can you bring them in? If so I would do that and put them on lamb creep rather than ewe nuts. But if they are very skinny they will probably take longer to put condition on (and has the fluke left permanent damage ?)
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Thanks. How would I know if the fluke has done long term damage? I had a few lambs with fluke a couple of years ago and they recovered well and gained weight steadily. A few of these ones still have fairly loose stools despite a negative FEC in January. They have access to a field shelter but I haven't kept them in but may consider it (that said I will need to set it up for lambing). I am in Surrey and so hopefully we will have some grass growth relatively soon. I just hate still having them here. I have no space for them and have too many animals! To top it all one of my pigs had to be put down today as it broke its leg.
Helen (not a happy smallholder at the moment!)
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Broadly speaking it takes a month of good grazing to put half a condition score on a sheep. Liver fluke is devastating and the damage done to a vital organ will have a knock-on effect on other aspects of the health of the sheep.
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If you need to fatten them quickly then as daveh says bring inside( to stop any weather effect ) and feed lamb fattening pellets ad- lib and hay
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If you want rid of them asap, have you considered selling them as stores? otherwise give them ad-lib lamb finishing pellets. ewe nuts can be a bit dangerous to feed male lambs due to the high magnesium content.
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Just be mindful of acidosis if your trying to get a bolloc? load of conc into them. In terms of ££ probably work out more feasible to sell as stores.
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You could try giving them cabbages as well as the cake. Turnips and fodder beet are also good.