The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: jack on June 30, 2010, 08:07:11 am
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I wonder can anyone tell me if Goat Mix is ok for sheep just as a daily treat.
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That's exactly what I was told to feed my 2 lambs, they love it and we have had no problems.
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at this time of year why are you feeding them.
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Sheep can't have copper but goats can, so you will need to check the ingredients....
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odd we need to give them access to a copper sup as our land has very poor levels.
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Different animals have different dietary requirements, its always best to read the label and not assume anything. Its quite easy to jump to a conclusion and be slowly poisoning or holding back your little friends.
Ta
Baz
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Copper in quantities suitable for goats is toxic to sheep, so goat feed will certainly have too much. Dual sheep/goat feed will probably be OK....
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Thank you, I am not feeding them at present just trying to find if it is ok for the winter months, seems
not that good so anyone know of a suitable feed for winter.
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corse mix with hay is fine,
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Thank you do you mean a course mix sheep food . . .
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sorry yes.
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Thank you . . .
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My cousin was only saying last night that he has to give copper to his flock at end of Jan and end of Feb each year to prevent sway back.
We fed our orphans creep and now lamb feed to wean and they still get a scoop or two each day now they are in the field with the rest, the reason for this is, we dont have a sheep dog, my terriers hunt and would be off at the merest hint of a deer scent. So we want the orphans to act as guide to the rest of our little flock to get them in to the pens for shearing, vaccs, worming etc.
The orphans went in the field last wednesday and so far have managed to tempt 8 of the flock down to the trough with them for a nut or two, only 19 left to persuade!!
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Any sheep course mix will do. I would avoid goat food for the copper levels. Plus, generally goat mix is more expensive than a basic sheep mix!
We are being careful not to give the lambs any of our goat mix or calf mix leftovers that the goats leave.
Beth
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I'm very new to this but my last wee lamb died last year after eating calf feed (which he had been stealing...not fed deliberately) This year I'm making sure that they only get sheep pellets.
Checked with vet last week (who was treating Claudia for Achey bones) and she was happy with Volac in morning, grass all day and a wee scoop of pellets to keep the mineral content of the feed balanced. All comments welcome.
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However in an emergency goats can have some sheep mix.... mine had to recently when my order went astray... and they are fine.
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but my last wee lamb died last year after eating calf feed (which he had been stealing...not fed deliberately)
The copper levels in a calf feed would be toxic to sheep (pig feed will also kill your sheep). There are dual purpose feeds for cattle and sheep that have low copper levels.
Copper toxicity can be a tricky one - some breeds are more susceptible to it than others. Having said that some copper is needed as it is necessary for growth amongst other things. Copper deficiency can be a problem in some upland areas. You certainly shouldn't give copper as a supplement unless you have had forage samples done that indicate very low copper levels or unless your vet advises.