Feeding the Sheep
Probably ranking among the top in the list of controversial subjects, the type of feed and its cost are high on the list for shepherds.

This subject is/was near the start of my list of things to fully understand as a new shepherd. I've written to more than several major companies and distributors asking for information on their research regarding proper nutrition and supplements for sheep, why they add particular ingredients, and why the mineral levels are set where they are, but I got what I expected; NO REPLY. Perhaps that's not entirely true, one chain store distributor (Tractor Supply - great people), farmer friendly, did actually take the time and made a serious attempt on my behalf to get answers from their private-label supplier -- and they got nowhere too (you would ALL know this large brand name).
 
My only conclusion at this time is that while the chemical and food industry in this country is required to know every possible side effect, mutagen, carcinogen, and other toxic and nutritional nature of what goes into humans, the same does not apply to the feed that producers give to the animals that go into these same humans. . . . . .

I'm asking for it, prove me wrong. Show me the research being done by the feed producers on sheep nutrition and I'll gladly make them the star of this page.


A few sources for you to start reading on your own:
 
Virginia Cooperative Extension - Feeding Sheep   (Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State Univ.)

New Mexico State University - Sheep Nutrition

Purdue University - The Basics of Feeding Sheep

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What Your Sheep Need:

There are as many ways to raise and feed sheep as there are shepherds. You might be an intensive rancher who encloses the sheep indoors and controls the movement and all of the feed the animal eats, OR, you can be free-range organic which neither uses chemicals on the land as fertilizers or feeds the sheep anything but grass naturally grown on the pasture/s.
 
These two styles are obviously at opposite ends of the spectrum and there is a rainbow of styles in-between. The most common, probably what you're now doing or thinking of, is pasture feeding supplemented with feed you purchase. The more land you have and the season of the year you're in will affect the amount and type of feed you might give your sheep. The exact nutritional supplements/feed are something you'll need to learn and discover on your own or from people in YOUR AREA who are already raising sheep.
 
I'm in a part of Texas which is very hot in the summer (Mid 90's with a heat index reaching 105 - 115), humid most of the year (95-100% in the morning, 85-90% by mid day), has no snow, rains in the summer and not the winter, and my grasses are mixed with a lot of weeds. The last place I lived was covered in snow 6 months of the year and the state before that was semi-arid desert. All of these places, as well as your own local weather, are unique to you and that's why you need to study up on and monitor your flock carefully. Develop a method that works for you, your budget, and your sheep's health and be careful not to overpopulate and overwhelm your pasture.

Basics - 
 
Copper (Cu) -
Excess copper is bad for sheep, really bad. No, I mean it - be careful. In humans, excess copper can interfere with the body's ability to utilize zinc, magnesium, iron, Vitamin C, folic acid, Vitamin B1, and Vitamin E. Generally an excess will cause a bunch of symptoms in YOU from sleeplessness to heavy fatigue. Every animal needs a little copper, but sheep can die if they get too much.
 
If you graze your animals on open pasture a good amount of the time then 1 - 2 lbs of a feed that has up to 20 ppm copper (read the label) is fine for blackbelly's, but generally speaking don't purchase ANY FEED OR MINERAL that adds copper to it. Most cattle, horse, goat, and other animal supplements can add significant amounts of copper, fine for them but not for your sheep!
 
Copper is only slowly used and released from sheep resulting in an accumulation in the liver. If the level gets too high, they might get something called "Copper Toxicity" if they are not getting other minerals to help neutralize the copper. Once a sheep starts showing symptoms of copper toxicity it's probably too late for you to save it. Copper Toxicity in Sheep - Purdue University

Researchers have concluded that supplements of the elements Sulfur (S) and Molybdenum (Mo) bind with the copper and reduce its absorption in the gut. Too much of these can cause copper deficiency. What's the right amount? -- provide free-range minerals and let your sheep decide.

Water -
Provide a good clean source of water at all times. Getting rid of unwanted salts, urine, other body wastes, milk production for lambs, and stabilizing body temperature all require the right amounts of good clean water. A normal average adult sheep can drink anywhere from 1/2 - 2 gallons of water a day depending on the water available in the food source and if the animal is producing and feeding lamb/s.
 

 

 

 

Many have suggested to me that pond water is not a good idea because sheep dung (feces, pellets, . . . whatever) can wash into the drinking water and carry with it parasites. This is something you might want to consider and instead invest in a good plastic bucket or watering trough that can easily be drained for cleaning weekly and re-filled. There are even devices similar to the tank in your toilet bowl that will keep the water level constant.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Salt -
Salt is needed because the water absorbed from the grasses the sheep eat, as well as the water they drink, deplete the sheep's supply of salt when they urinate. Without salt there is less retention of water and the animal may stress. In a sheep, stress equates to possible health issues and a lower body weight. We all like happy, relaxed, stress-free, fat and sassy sheep.
 
A block of salt costs from $6.50 to $8 depending on who supplies it; very cheap. Depending on how you shelter it (if you shelter it) and the number of sheep and other animals that use it, it can last a good long time. I've had an average of eight sheep on a single block of sheltered salt for over 18 months in addition to supplemental minerals that also constain salt. 

 

You might also ask about blocks that contain calcium.


Free-range (Free-choice, At-will, Free-will) minerals -
Minerals are needed because the grasses don't have everything the sheep need to grow healthy and strong. Many of the mineral supplements put Calcium (Ca), Selenium (Se), Salt (NaCl), Molybdenum (Mo), and other essential minerals as well as vitamins into the mix that will keep the sheep healthy and happy. Always read the label and make sure the mineral you purchase is made SPECIFICALLY for sheep - No Substitutions.

Minerals can also be added in block salt OR in other protein blocks. I prefer the lose mineral because I can monitor it better, it takes up less space, and the sheep find it easier to eat rather than standing around nibbling or licking at a block for 20 minutes (Which also costs more).

Protein -
As you might remember from your early days at school in that long forgotten High school biology class, "Proteins are the essential building blocks of cells." 
 
Ask yourself, when would my sheep need to build extra cells?

Answer:
a) When my sheep is growing a baby,
b) When my lamb is growing up fast to being an adult.

The time to purchase the more expensive feeds for your sheep is during these two times. Late in the pregnancy, when the ewe is starting to show, somewhere at about 3-months, start feeding her the high protein feed. Show feeds may contain as much as 16-18% protein.
 
Your ewe will be lactating (producing milk) for at least 6-8 weeks after giving birth. She'll be passing all of these proteins on to her young and barely managing to keep up with her own needs. Not only do you want the high protein, you also want to increase her rations by about 30-50%. If possible, to keep your costs down, pull out your pregnant and nursing sheep and feed them separately.
 

Less protein is required in the summer and fall and during the times when you simply want to 'maintain' weight. When the summer grasses are more mature the amount of protein can be cut back as well as the amount of feed in general. This is the payback for having land and the extra expense of high protein and extra ration months of winter & spring.

 

 

	Typically Feeds and Uses
All-Stock, 8 - 10% Protein	Lower grade, low cost, general purpose feed  used primarily for maintenance weight in adult sheep -- SEE COMMENTS SHOWN BELOW THIS TABLE --
All Stock, 12% Protein	Standard general purpose feed for healthy  sheep maintenance and care
Show Feed, 14%-16% Protein	Higher grade feed used for lactating ewes  and weaned lambs at the end of their rapid growth cycle
Show Feed, 18% Protein	Highest grade feed used for best results of weaning lambs, lactating ewes with multiple births, and  lambs being prepared for show. This feed may be  medicated using Decoquinate to help prevent coccidiosis and should be started 2 weeks prior  to show, starting the weaning process, or anticipated  stress conditions such as travel when coccidia is suspected to be present

 

According to a study performed in 1932 (Protein Requirements of Sheep, J Anim Sci, 1932. 1932:37-41, W.E. Joseph) there are varying results published as to the exact amount of protein required by sheep. However, reading into the publication it seems that 14 - 16% may be "rather high for most breeds of sheep". Further, since the publication is examining wool sheep, which are stated in the article as utilizing 25 - 38% of their protein for wool production, the need for higher protein based feeds for Barbados Blackbelly and American Blackbelly is likely only needed during the last weeks of gestation and first month of birth.

 

Based on the article, I'd recommend that a 8-10% All-Stock be used for normal daily feeding. By chance this feed is also the least expensive feed available in the market and answers the nagging questions and my complete bewilderment as to why ALL OF THE FEED COMPANIES I've written to have refused to answer my questions and requests for research on their various blends of feed they provide.

 

The simple reason for research not being made more public is that the high protein feeds have extraordinary profit margins for the feed companies and are unnecessary for our sheep. While the 10% protein feeds are running somewhere between $7.50 - $9.00  per 50 lb bag, the 14-16% feeds range in the $13.50 - $15.50 arena -- That's nearly double the price !

 

Molasses -
Not really a nutrient, but you'll see Molasses in many of the products like "Sweet Feed" and some show feeds. Molasses is a sugar by-product. Typically you'll see more left behind in the brown sugar used for baking and it's what sets it apart from pure sugar.
 
Molasses is sweet and the sugar is good quick energy for the sheep. I remember in the colder months that many of the horse ranches near where I lived gave a significant amount of sweet feed in the winter months to help elevate their body temperature to withstand the snow and frigid temperatures. Since our lambs can be born around the winter months molasses introduced into feeds offers both the ewe and lamb a way to replace energy lost by the cold  -- and if not the cold, energy lost from playing and jumping around the pasture.

 
Forage / Grasses -
This part of their diet is really what you're giving them from your land when they pick up energy in the form of cellulose metabolized by the sheep from the grasses digested and changed into sugars in their stomach. The better the grasses, meaning substantial in bulk dry weight, probably the better they'll be for the sheep's energy level. And the more available to them, the less additional feed you'll need to supply.
 
For example, in the spring when grasses and leaves are fist developing the bulk forage has a very high water content. You'll notice that the sheep will be drinking less and urinating more; nearly knocking on your barn door for feed at times. But in the fall, when the summer grasses and leaves are mature and slowly drying out before the winter months, the forage they eat are packed with nutrients and energy. You may come across information about hay during your research and stumble across the different types of hay depending on when it was harvested. Primarily the season it was cut in had something to do with that.
 
From winter through the first month of summer you might tend to give your flock extra rations of feed, but as the summer progresses, a lesser quality and less feed should be offered for the typical ewe or ram.

 
Carbonate (Baking Soda) -
I read somewhere that sheep and goats can sometimes eat too much of a good thing. What do you think? When the food is rich in sugars the bacteria that aid in the digestion process can generate a lot of heat and acid; giving them an upset stomach as the acidity increases.
 
I thought about this a bit and knowing that people treat their stomachs with Calcium Carbonate (Like Roll-aids or Tums) I figured that the next best thing to use as a cure would be baking soda (Sodium Carbonate); which is edible and in many people's tooth paste today.
 
Along with the choice of free-will minerals I place a box or two of baking soda in the cup next the mineral (See the picture below). From time to time I see both the goat and sheep take small amounts; never more than they need to solve the problem they might have. The baking soda neutralizes a bit of the acidity, slows the digestion process slightly, and the sheep feel much better.