[okiemom]

Hi all,

I was wanting info on what/how to feed when there are sheep, goats, jersey cow, and a mini/ shetland pony in the same pasture. Feeding time has become a nightmare. Even w/ 2 bunk feeders 8ft. long there is crowding at the begining.

A round bale is always available. I have been feeding Showtime sheep and goat and giving the cow some cattle cubes but she and the horse have still been eating the showtime. Will that be harmful to the cow and horse? Loose minerals and a sheep/goat protein block is available.

How do others feed when there are many different animals on a property? thanks Katharine

 

[Ross]

I keep them all seperate except for the donkey and he gets what the sheep get. Your biggest problem is finding a suitable mineral, they can use. All the animals except sheep will need copper in their mix, I'd think the composition would be different in other regards too. I have seen a sheep feeding area with a low rail entrance that kept Equines out and would probably have kept cattle out too. Kind of like a creep feeder. No good for keeping the goats out but perhaps they can be together to eat.

 

[prhamell]

I keep sheep and steer in the same pasture during the winter. The neighbor rotates his horses in with them during the summer months. Usually I feed the steers first. Its a race. I pour grain in buckets and hang them on nails that are too high for the sheep to reach. Then I dump a little sheep grain and alfafa cubes (hay was bad here this year) in their feeders. Normally I don't feed the sheep grain all year long, but with the steers getting grain, a little keeps the sheep occupied and out of the steers which has copper in it. Sometimes I have to stand between them all like a umpire with my sheep stick. We have a dutch door (I think thats what it's called) on our sheep barn. During the summer I keep the top half closed so that the horses can't come in. They all seem to get along except come feeding time, then its every animal for themselves. Becky

 

[McFox]

Hi all,

I was wanting info on what/how to feed when there are sheep, goats, jersey cow, and a mini/ shetland pony in the same pasture. Feeding time has become a nightmare. Even w/ 2 bunk feeders 8ft. long there is crowding at the begining.

A round bale is always available. I have been feeding Showtime sheep and goat and giving the cow some cattle cubes but she and the horse have still been eating the showtime. Will that be harmful to the cow and horse? Loose minerals and a sheep/goat protein block is available.

How do others feed when there are many different animals on a property? thanks Katharine

A cheap, safe feed for all is soy hulls. Have clover hay available. I have had no problem feeding good cow mineral to all. Hair sheep may have less problems wih copper than wollies.

 

[Ross]

I hope you'e right about hair sheep. Woolies will not die imeadiately from eating copper included mineral it accumulates in teh liver and is released in toxic doses when the animal is stressed, weakend, or there is simply too much to cope with. There is a way to remove the copper with zinc rich minerals so perhaps the particular type of cattle mineral is high in zinc. I don't know the details of what would be needed though.

 

[Guest]

Steam rolled corn and a SHEEP mineral block. Safe for the sheep and won't hurt anything else in there. Or, since you are in OK you could use wheat in the mix. Oh, and plenty of graze.