Author Topic: Creep Feeding and Vermin (Read 2352 times)

sillyewe · « **on:** March 28, 2016, 09:40:45 pm »

Hi all

I currently have a creep feeder out in the field with the sheep. I often see the lambs eating at the creep feeder as I would expect. However, either the lambs are eating one heck of an amount of feed or something else is also eating it. Deer or badgers? There are a lot of them around here.

Foobar · « **Reply #1 on:** March 28, 2016, 09:51:09 pm »

Pheasants? I know our local birds steal creep and leftover ewe nuts.

sillyewe · « **Reply #2 on:** March 28, 2016, 09:53:35 pm »

There are some pheasants, but only a handful. I only see 3 hens and 1 cock bird each day but they hang about in the trees, maybe they venture out when I'm not there.

Hellybee · « **Reply #3 on:** March 28, 2016, 10:09:13 pm »

Creep cam? Sorry, must be annoying, I don't think there's much you can do bar moving the creep feeder regularly.

suziequeue · « **Reply #4 on:** March 29, 2016, 08:02:41 am »

Rats? Creep cam would help.

harmony · « **Reply #5 on:** March 29, 2016, 10:39:34 am »

How much is a "heck of a lot". If a badger can get its head in so could a sheep.

sillyewe · « **Reply #6 on:** March 29, 2016, 03:51:34 pm »

Good point harmony! Well there are 20 lambs and they are eating 5 bags of creep a week at the moment

that must be too much!! The oldest lambs are just coming on for 8 weeks old.

Marches Farmer · « **Reply #7 on:** March 29, 2016, 03:58:52 pm »

I'd suspect badgers, especially if the feed has any molasses content - they've a sweet tooth. I used to leave lick buckets open all the time until I found one clawed into pieces by a badger. Now I put the lids on at night and lick bucket consumption has reduced by 40%. Don't forget badgers visiting your land may well be urinating and defaecating bTB, which can be contracted by ovines, as they go, as well as leaving saliva (also infectious) on the feeder.

sillyewe · « **Reply #8 on:** March 31, 2016, 06:42:30 pm »

Hi marches. I do suspect it could be badgers, our troughs often have claw marks on them - dont want to be feeding them to be honest! to get to the bottom of it i think i will either have to sit out and hide to see the culprit(s) or purchase one of those trail cams.