[sabrina]

I have 3 Hebridean male lambs bred this year. they have been running on our hill paddocks with one of those energy tubs which they seem to use in the mornings. The grazing looks very poor now and I am wondering what to feed them. I have hay but its pretty coarse and in the past any sheep we have had prefer soft hay. I also have small bales of haylage which the ponies only get in the morning when first turned out. Lambs could be fed some of this. do they need hard feed and if so what is best. In the past I always fed ewe and lamb mix but that was for ewe lambs plus sugar beet sherds. As these lambs are a rare breed I am not sure what to give them so advice please.

[Talana]

I would give them hay / haylage thas all they should need if no grazing left. If they are thinner in condition and poorer hay you can supplement them with either energy bucket  or lamb finisher. Do not give them feed that's for ewes as the mineral content can give males problems. The best concentrates for males is Lamb finisher - you can give them a small amount if they are destined for breeding and on the thinner side just now. If you are aiming for them to be fat for your freezer or sale you can give them more lamb finisher. Go by their condition. hope this helps.

[clydesdaleclopper]

Mine just get hay. One year they had haylage as that was all we could get and they got too fat.

[fiestyredhead331]

hay and we use an 18% sheep nut 

[Anke]

Hebs being one of the primitive breeds will put a lot of growth on in their second spring/summer. Feeding them now and over winter will probably not result in much weight gain. I would give a good slice of hay in the morning and see how you go. I presume you are not planning to get them slaughtered this side of Christmas...

[sabrina]

The plan is to put them away next year around April/May. they look well enough. I do have another paddock for them but as it floods in the winter keeping them off that until early Spring.

[Anke]

My shetlands look really well by June/July in their second year - well covered rather than fat and the meat is fantastic. They don't get anything other than hay over winter.

[fsmnutter]

We only feed haylage here as we can get small bale haylage that's cheap and easy and more available than small bale hay.
We have fed some very poor hay before and the hebs loved it.
I would expect them to do just fine on hay or haylage, whichever suits you best. Keep an eye on their condition as you get to around Feb/March if you're looking at sending away April/May and you could top up if they're lean, or just give them a wee while after the grass comes through to put on condition. Ours are usually fat after the summer, with only lick buckets and a handful of coarse mix (must be "suitable for tups" when feeding boys) fed to the whole field (ewes with last year's hoggs) before and up to the end of lambing, and only top up of hay/haylage through winter.