WASHINGTON, D.C. - What
and where sheep eat could make a
difference in reducing soil lost to
erosion in the years ahead, say
scientists at the U.S. Department
of Agriculture.
Problem; Americans prefer
lamb from young sheep finished
for market on grain, usually corn,
a crop often tilled in soil that is
easily carried away by the winds
and rain. Australians and New
Zealanders, on the other hand,
widely accept lamb fed only
forage.
Solution: Sheep are excellent
foragers. They get an average of 90
percent of their nutrients from
grass and legumes. Let the sheep
graze on range or pasture forage
instead of feeding them grain. That
way, lamb producers can grow
grass or grass-legume mixtures on
some land now tilled for grains.
Much of this land is hilly and
susceptible to being washed and
blown away after its ground cover
is lost in the cultivation of crops
like com.
Halting or slowing the loss of
vulnerable soil is one reason USDA
scientists are doing research on
forage crops such as alfalfa for
sheep, said Terry B. Kinney, Jr.,
administrator for USDA’s
Agricultural Research Service.
Another goal of the research is to
boost U.S. sheep production, which
fell from 25 million animals to half
that many between 1965 and 1979,
said Kinney.
Since then, the number of sheep
rose slightly about 1 to 2 percent
a year giving the lamb industry
some encouragement, according to
USDA’s Statistical Reporting
Service.
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Scientists link lamb taste to sheep diet
“Sheep offer a market outlet
as do cattle for forages that are
vitally needed to increase water
absorption, reduce soil erosion and
help maintain productivity,” said
Kinney. “And farmers often raise
sheep in areas that are hilly and
subject to soil erosion.”
The challenge, said Kinney, is
that American consumers
generally have not accepted lamb
to the degree they have accepted
beef and pork and they prefer
animals fed grain, most often com,
over those fed forage for the
market.
To meet that challenge, Gordon
C. Marten, research leader and
agronomist with USDA’s
Agricultural Research Service,
and Robert M.- Jordan, animal
nutrutionist at the University of
Minnesota, have teamed up at St.
Paul to study lamb production as it
is affected by forage. They are
trying to develop lower-cost
cropping systems that will reduce
soil erosion.
"If we can develop forage
oriented cropping systems that
appeal more to present and
potential sheep producers,”
Marten said, "we may be able to
reduce the cost of producing sheep,
increase production and con
sumption of lamb and create
markets for forages that will in
crease water absorption and
protect soils from erosion.”
Success, he said, hinges on
consumers accepting lamb fed on
forage rather than grain. Marten
and Jordan are comparing daily
rates of gain by lambs on alfalfa
brome pasture and pure alfalfa
pastures, with and without pelleted
grain. They are using cross-bred
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lambs which are an eighth Finn
sheep, noted for multiple births,
mixed with Hampshire and
Columbia breeds, noted for meat
production.
In the experiments, average
daily gains were almost identical
when lambs grazed alfalfa or a
mixture of alfalfa-brome that is
predominately alfalfa. Daily gains
on alfalfa-brome declined when the
grass provided more than half the
total forage available. The dif
ference disappeared when lambs
also were allowed to eat gram.
“We found by
Check pastured heifers daily
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mer pasture is often considered
“free" room and board for
replacement heifers. That “free”
room and board may turn out to be
pretty expensive if heifers don’t
grow and mature the way they
should
Summer pasture for 1 defers does
not take much labor on your part,
but it does take some management
skin and attention to detail, say
Penn State Extension Veterinarian
Lawrence Hutchinson.
Here are some do’s and don’t’s
for keeping pastured heifers
growing and healthy:
Water supply should be
plentiful, accessible and of good
quality; avoid stagnant or algae
laden water;
supplemental trace
mineral salt, as well as calcium
and phosphorus;
Avoid overgrazing: sup
plemental feed and /or additional
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feeding gram to lambs on both
alfalfa-brome and alfalfa
pastures,” said Marten. “But
when you don’t feed grain, the best
economic response occurs when
you have a high quality forage like
alfalfa.”
Because grass contains more
fibrous cell walls than does alfalfa,
said Marten, grass moves more
slowly through the digestive tract.
This means less grass forage can
be consumed, fewer nutrients are
made available for growth over a
period of time and lambs reach
market weights at older ages than
those fed alfalfa
pasture may be necessary in mid
to late summer;
Pastured heifers should be
wormed at least twice during the
pasture season. These wormings
pay best dividends if given early in
the pasture season. However, if
you haven’t wormed them by now,
start right away;
Leptospirosis frequently af
fects pastured heifers. Use iepto
vaccine', especially on breeding
age heifers;
BVDand other infections
may be a threat to your heifers.
Check with your veterinarian for
vaccination recommendation;
Flies irritate pastured heifers
and can reduce weight gains; they
also spread diseases, including
pinkeye. Insecticidal ear tags and
oral larvicides are two elements in
a fly control program. Ask your
county agent for details. Good fly
control will also reduce or
eliminate cattle grub problems;
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Grain-fed animals consume
more nutrients than those fed only
pasture forages and these animals
reach market weight the earliest.
“Meat from these younger
animals is more tender and more
marbled with fat than is meat from
forage-fattened animals,” said
Marten. “In Australia and New
Zealand,” he said, “lamb prod
cuers simply market forage-fed
lambs at a young age when the
meat is tender. The lamb has
nationwide acceptance. We hope
this degree of acceptance can be
achieved in the United States.”
detection of pastured
heifers is a problem on many
farms. Holstein heifers should be
showing heats by the time they
tape 600-650 pounds; they should be
bred when they are about 750
pounds. If you intend to breed your
pastured heifers Al, you will need
daily or twice daily observation,
heat detection aids (chalk mark or
detector patch), and restraint
facilities.
Hutchinson reminds farmers
that the best single thing you can
do for your heifers this summer is
to observe them daily. Those
heifers on pasture are your future
herd; keep an eye on them!
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