When to let little lamb on pasture

[HappyPalace]

We are bottle feeding our little Daisy (1 month old Barbados Blackbelly) and have some lamb pellets and hay in the pen with her. She's eating appx. 18-20 oz. of milk replacer a day. She nibbles on the grass she can reach from her pen. My husband is anxious to let her out on the pasture, but I'm terrified of bloating her! From what I've read her rumen isn't fully developed yet.

How should we introduce her to the pasture?

When does she need loose mineral & a salt block made available to her?

The hay I have is 2nd cutting, but it's rather stemmy - I bought it for the cow. Should I get some sort of alfalfa hay or pellets for her?

I'm pouring over my book & the forums here, but there is no hard and fast rule to "do this at this age for this long, etc.. . " LOL

Thanks for your help!

 

[SheepGirl]

Lambs at that age will nibble on the grass, but will not eat sufficient quantities of it because they are still getting most of their nutrition from their momma (or in this case, you). If I were you, I would just put her out on pasture for about 10-15 minutes per day, increasing it by five to ten minutes each day. If she spends most of her time out playing rather than eating, leave her out longer.

Since you are creepfeeding her pellets and hay, I would go ahead and set out a loose mineral for her to nibble at, too. She will only eat what the milk, hay, and grain can't provide her, and that may be little to nothing. If you have a loose mineral out, you don't need a salt block.

Our sheep eat stemmy hay, though it may not be very palatable to a young lamb. I would put some leafy alfalfa hay out for her and see if her hay consumption increases. Grain feeding helps the rumen to develop faster, so keep feeding her the pellets.

 

[secuono]

I let mine out at 5 and 6wks. A few hours a night and slowly increased until they could stay out 24/7.

 

[HappyPalace]

Oh, thank you! We'll let her out in the pasture for a little bit & see what she does. It will thrill my husband!

I'll have to see if I can find alfalfa hay. Don't know if someone will sell me just a few. We have alfalfa cubes - could I crush those for her?

 

[secuono]

Why crush the cubes? She can nibble off bits. Plus, there's always crumbles of it in the bag, can just give her that in a little bowl.

 

[Royd Wood]

Why crush the cubes? She can nibble off bits. Plus, there's always crumbles of it in the bag, can just give her that in a little bowl.

Better still just wet them up and watch them explode - much nicer for the lamb and get the full benefit of the cubes

Can you exstend the pen that she's grazing from already. Do you have any more sheep or is she a loner ( 2 or more is VERY GOOD 1 is not so good)
Are you looking to breed Daisy or eat her


Good luck with your lamb

 

[HappyPalace]

Why crush the cubes? She can nibble off bits. Plus, there's always crumbles of it in the bag, can just give her that in a little bowl.

Better still just wet them up and watch them explode - much nicer for the lamb and get the full benefit of the cubes

Can you exstend the pen that she's grazing from already. Do you have any more sheep or is she a loner ( 2 or more is VERY GOOD 1 is not so good)
Are you looking to breed Daisy or eat her


Good luck with your lamb

Thank you all so much!!

No, we can't extend her pen (it's under the barn roof), but my daughter is taking her out into the pasture everyday for some play time. There is a little grass growing close to the fence & they nibble on that.

She was a loner until Friday night when we found a baby sister for her . They're two weeks apart in age. Daisy is definitely happier with the company.

Right now she's - they - are just for fun, but I think we may breed them at least once to have the experience. Daisy's new sister in a woolie, but I would breed them both to a Kahtadin - the ram lambs are easy to come by here.