Author Topic: Feeding standing peas/barley/oats mixture? (Read 2244 times)

Big Mat · « **on:** April 02, 2018, 06:47:50 pm »

Hello all,

I've got some seed coming this week, a spring pea/barley/oats whole crop mixture. I've talked to be people having good luck feeding it to cattle as wholecrop silage/haylage, but can anyone think of any reason why I couldn't feed it to the goats as a standing crop?

We have the goats on grass most of the time, with just extra hay and hard feed in the winter and at kidding time. My plan is to sow a patch of the seed as a trial in the spare paddock to see if they'll eat it as a standing crop, probably around July/August, to help get some extra weight on the goats destined for the freezer? Can anyone see any reason why i couldn't?

It's crops that we'd feed to the goats once harvested as grains and straw so I figured a trial plot in the field for them to eat might be worth a go? If it fails it owes me £30 in a seed which I could probably utilise in other things.

thanks
mat

thanks
mat

Dogwalker · « **Reply #1 on:** April 03, 2018, 06:49:12 am »

Is there any way you'd be able to ration it. I'm pretty sure mine would clear it in one go and make themselves ill.

landroverroy · « **Reply #2 on:** April 03, 2018, 10:04:14 am »

My thoughts too. I'm sure your goats would love and do well on the mixture. I would feed it gradually to prevent scouring or possible bloat, and have hay constantly present. The ideal would be to section it off a bit at a time with electric fencing. Failing that I would cart it to them initially, to ration what they ate, and then eventually let them onto the field once they seemed to have fully adjusted to the diet. Even then, I would still give them the option of some hay to browse on.

Big Mat · « **Reply #3 on:** April 03, 2018, 10:26:17 am »

Yes I'd use electric fencing to strip graze it.

I'm only thinking of doing a 10 metre by 10 metre test plot in the spare paddock as a trial, that way I can gauge their interest in it and ideally next year do a larger plot and bale it

Dogwalker · « **Reply #4 on:** April 04, 2018, 07:13:27 am »

I don't think lack of interest will be a problem!

And I'm not sure an electric fence would keep mine off it once they'd had a taste of it.

Big Mat · « **Reply #5 on:** April 04, 2018, 11:41:58 am »

I made sure I bought a very strong energiser as we want to keep highland cattle at some point as this one claims it will hold them off! And I got a tester and u regularly check the wire.

I'll do a trial plot and update this thread as and when