Hay needs when feeding barley grass

[thefranks2009]

Hey, ya'll! I have read that icelandic sheep can be feed exclusively hay - and this interests me because I have also read that they are a sort of "triple purpose" breed; meat, milk, and fiber. As a dairy animal, could I feed icelandic sheep just barley grass and nothing else? I am referring to the type of barley grass that I can grow in tubs that take only 8-10 days to be ready to be eatten. I am asking this because I know sheep need long stemmed roughage to keep their gut working properly. But I dont know if it needs to be the dry type like hay, or if barley grass would fulfill this need. It seems like the wild sheep and wild deer I see do just fine without hay. Anyway, we dont have sheep yet, but I am just trying to get my ducks in row before we do And only having to buy and store bags of barley seed seems a lot easier than having to locate and store mountains of hay, plus numerous types of grain. Plus Ive heard all sorts of good things about barley grass, increased milk production, healthier animals, easy births. Just seems to be the way to go. So sorry for the long post, but any information I could get would be much appreciated. - Mrs. Frank

 

[SheepGirl]

Any sheep can be fed exclusively hay. But that does not mean their nutritional needs are being met. A sheep that does not meet their nutritional needs will have breaks in their wool, be lighter muscled, and won't produce much milk.

If you were to use a sheep as a dairy animal, you better feed them like one. That means getting them to consume as much calcium as possible, which usually means giving them an alfalfa-based diet. Plus grain to meet their nutritional needs. The type of barely grass you are talking about is a type of fodder--which personally I'm skeptical about. How much seed does it take to produce 1 lb of fodder? What is the DM % of it? Reason I'm asking is because sheep need 2% of their body weight in DM lb/day. Most grasses are only about 19-24% DM, which means they have 76-81% moisture. So you would need to feed about 11 lbs of the stuff to meet a 140 lb sheep's nutritional needs. That does not account for waste, and I am being conservative on that number. Also with that much moisture (I'm sure this fodder has more moisture than that, though, since it is young & tender rather than older and coarser), it reminds me of what would be like lush spring grass--forage that normally causes scours in sheep because of the amount of moisture.

Now the 2% figure I gave you is just for maintenance. A sheep will require a LOT more if it is growing, breeding, in late gestation, or lactating. Personally I think it would be better if you just fed hay. Most people feed grain to livestock because it is nutrient dense and palatable. Usually you can figure 1 lb of grain is nutritionally the same as 2 lbs of hay. Of course it all depends on what grain and hay you are using. But use that as a general rule of thumb. And let me tell you--1 lb of grain fits a LOT better in a heavily pregnant ewe's tummy than 2 lbs of hay! (And as I understand it, Icelandics often have twins and triplets--try fitting that much hay in your belly with a belly full of lambs! )

I only buy one type of grain and one type of hay. Hay does take up space, but I can fit 400 lbs of hay in a 4' square area (16 sq ft). It's a round bale (which are, by the lb, cheaper than square bales). It fits on the back of our pick up truck and I can easily roll it off and put it on a pallet. Like I said, it's 400 lbs...I am 130 lbs and I have average strength but even still it does not take much force to roll it where you need it. Plus roughly 2.5 bags of feed (125 lbs) will fit in a 32 gallon trash can.

I think it's worth it to feed the conventional stuff (hay and grain) rather than try to see if fodder will work out for you. But you can certainly try it. I'm curious to hear if it would, overall, be cheaper (including the daily maintenance of it)

 

[thefranks2009]

Hey thanks for your reply! Wow there's so much I didn't know. Good thing I have plenty of time to make a decision But given what you said, it makes me curious as to how these grass fed dairies are able to keep their animals healthy. I'm not trying to discredit you by any means, just curious. I'm new too the dairy world, I've only ever had chickens and rabbits. Very different than sheep! Would a sprouted mixture of grains (oats groats, black oil sunflower seeds, wheat berries) + hay, and a small amount of of barley grass still cause scours? I am reluctant to feed commercially prepared "mystery nuggets" after all the food recalls... I will still be offering salt, baking soda, and minerals (copper free), so no worries there

Oh, and from what Ive been reading, 1lb of barley will sprout into 6lbs of fodder. So a 50lb bag essentially becomes 300lbs of food! That's another reason why I am so interested in this. Prices for a fifty pound bag, Ive seen anywhere from $5-$15, so it also appears to be cost effective.

 

[SheepGirl]

Hey thanks for your reply! Wow there's so much I didn't know. Good thing I have plenty of time to make a decision But given what you said, it makes me curious as to how these grass fed dairies are able to keep their animals healthy. I'm not trying to discredit you by any means, just curious. I'm new too the dairy world, I've only ever had chickens and rabbits. Very different than sheep! Would a sprouted mixture of grains (oats groats, black oil sunflower seeds, wheat berries) + hay, and a small amount of of barley grass still cause scours? I am reluctant to feed commercially prepared "mystery nuggets" after all the food recalls... I will still be offering salt, baking soda, and minerals (copper free), so no worries there

My neighbor has a 50 head pasture-based dairy. But the cows still eat grain when they come in for milking. And my friend has a 400+ cow herd housed conventionally (in free stall barns). They eat a diet that is mainly chopped alfalfa hay and they get grain, too. My friend's family grows all their feed. But what you don't know is that dairy cows fed grass or grass hay (when pasture isn't available) only don't produce as much milk as the cows being fed to meet their nutritional needs.

I've never sprouted grains before so I don't know the answer to your question. I just give my sheep their feed the way I buy it. I buy my feed from Southern States, and they buy grains straight from the grain producer and then the feed is mixed (following a recipe) on-site. It is a mixture of rolled corn, whole oats, whole barley, and pellets. And molasses. Right now only the lambs get that (about 1/2 lb each), plus I give the flock 2-3 lbs of hay/day (they also have a little bit of pasture left), and the Southern States loose sheep mineral (my vet recommends this brand). If you have a sheep-specific mineral, you don't need to give salt or baking soda. Those would just be a waste of money because the sheep will consume that rather than the mineral. And salt is just that--salt--it doesn't have the selenium, iron, calcium, copper, etc they need. (Note: sheep still need copper, but only a little bit...and there is a fine line between "need" and "toxic" for sheep.) I also wouldn't keep baking soda out all the time; rather just give it to them when they need it. I've had sheep for almost 7 yrs now and not one have I had bloat on me (knock on wood).

If you have any more questions, feel free to ask!

 

[thefranks2009]

Oh my. Even more things to consider, lol. Thats good to know about the minerals though, all I kept hearing is, "Don't give sheep copper! They'll die!". I definitely want our animals nutritional needs to be met, no doubt about that. But I'm just hoping to find a way to do that, that doesn't break the bank and that allows me to stock up on feed (if only for a short time) in case of some sort of disaster should happen. *sigh* I am at least certain on one thing, that sheep are going to be our main animal! Lol, now I just need to figure out everything else, or at least some sort of middle ground. Something tells me though that this may be just one of those things I'll have to tweak over time, and adjust to my animals particular needs, likes/dislikes. Dang it.