printStock Journal Article - November 2024
Author: Deb Scammell, Talking Livestock
With a long road ahead of us feeding stock it’s time to look at how we can feed stock properly and save ourselves some time where possible.
Going into summer most of our stock are likely to be dry, being joined or in early gestation. This means their energy demands are low and can likely be met with roughage only.
If ewes are in containment or being supplementary fed in the paddock, feeding roughage only can be a very easy way to feed stock. The hard balance this season is going to be rationing out the high-quality cereal hay we have cut. Most of the cereal hay and frosted crops that have been cut and baled are very high quality with high energy levels and low fibre which means intakes of this hay when access is ad-lib is likely to be very high. When energy requirements are lower for dry stock or stock in early gestation, they are likely to exceed requirements with this high-quality cereal hay. Ideally low-quality hay or straw needs to be provided ad-lib (if you can access some) and the better hay used to top up daily energy requirements where required. For example, in containment, a bale of straw could be provided ad-lib and then better-quality hay provided 2 x a week to increase weekly overall energy requirements to meet ewe’s maintenance requirements.
When ewes are being fed and are requiring extra energy from grain, it is worth thinking about how you can still successfully feed and save time if labour is limited on your property.
Putting trough set ups in the fence line of containment pens can save substantial time if you have (or can purchase) a feed out cart that has the ability to feed over, or through the fence. You can very quickly feed multiple pens of animals an individual ration. Early in gestation ewes can easily be fed a grain ration every second day (rather than daily) to reduce the time required to feed. If setting up troughing in the fence line, you must ensure adequate space so that all ewes can line up as feed is delivered to avoid a tail in the mob.
Providing a TMR (total mixed ration) in troughs in containment can also save time and reduce the days over the week you need to be feeding. If troughs are built with a large capacity, it’s possible to feed ewes 3 x a week using this method and keep ad-lib feed in front of them the whole time.
Self-feeders can work well in containment and save a lot of time, provided they are monitored very carefully to ensure intake is where it needs to be. They also provide some flexibility to leave the farm if need be. There are many types of ‘lick style’ feeders that are on the market that can allow low intakes of grain if they are adjusted frequently, and grain quantity is closely watched.
New technology such as automatic feeders can allow ewes or lambs to be fed with limited labour. The only restriction with ewe feeding is allowing adequate trough space to ensure all of the ewes can line up and access feed. Ideally ewes need 30 – 35cm of single sided trough space each to ensure they can all access feed at the same time, as automatic feeders will feed grain out in one hit. The cost of the technology can be restrictive due to limitations to the number of ewes which can be fed per length of troughing. When lambs are fed ad-lib using this technology it becomes much more cost-effective due to the increased number of head that can be fed when grain is delivered ‘ad-lib’. However, if labour is an issue for daily feeding these can be a good option.
Locating containment pens close to roughage and grain storage can save large amounts of time spent carting feed around to stock. Even with a more labour intensive set up, most containment set ups still save substantial time when compared to carting supplementary feed out to paddock across the farm, once pasture gets low. If you are planning containment pens or changing an existing set up, if labour is an issue, it can be worth looking at some of these labour-saving alternatives.