Coping with shortage of feed

Press, 1 May 1981, Page 17

Coping with shortage of feed

Most farmers will appreciate that feed is at present in very short supply, but some may not realise that many farms will be in an even worse position later this winter. Assessments made by local farm advisers show that serious feed shortages will occur before. and during lambing, with the problems that this brings, such as sleepy sickness. It is also clear that ewes are up to 5 to 7kg lighter this year, giving less feeding flexibility over the winter period. Farmers must act now to plan for and reduce this problem. Action now will be far cheaper than the price that may have to be paid later. The following are management options available to save feed or obtain more feed as cheaply as possible. SHEEP WEIGHT CONTROL se of this option will have the most influence on the feed supply, as well as being the cheapest. • After mating, a ewe requires only enough feed to maintain her bodyweight and can safely even lose weight. With weights down this year many farmers. do not have much room to move as far

In many areas feed supplies are short and farmers would be wise to plan to make the best of the situation. In the accompanying item PAUL CLARK, a farm adviser with the Ministry of Agriculture at Lincoln, has some points to make which could be helpful. as reducing weights is concerned. For those who do, 10 to 15 per cent of a good sized ewe's weight can be lost over this period with no harmful side effects. Over this period the farmer should feed out his poorer quality feeds, such as straw, poor hay and graze the roughest pastures. The aim is to save the best feed for use later. Feed used over and above the minimum required is wasted. How is this control achieved? Knowing the starting point is vital — that is the ewes’ weight. Eye appraisal is not accurate enough to pick up the small weight variations, so weighing is a must. If you do not have access to sheep scales contact your local Ministry of Agriculture adviser for assistance. Weighing a sample of 10 per cent of the flock will give a good indication of the average weight.

All this, however, will be of little use unless it is tied in with a strict system rationing feed to the stock. RATIONING FEED There are several methods of achieving the control necessary to ensure correct feed rationing. Rotational or strip grazing is a well established system giving good control. It must incorporate back fencing to allow uninhibited regrowth. The least number of mobs possible should be run to simplify management. Very high ewe concentrations on small areas (up to 1500 ewes/ha/day or more depending on the amount of feed) over this period will

ensure adequate intake and leave the rest of the farm free for regrowth. Subdivision is the key to successful rotational grazing. Where subdivision with either permanent of temporary fencing is not adequate, another option is the use of a sacrifice paddock.

Allow the ewes access to feed for short periods each day before moving them back to the sacrifice paddock. This paddock should be a poor one due for pasture renewal or perhaps spring cropping. NITROGEN Nitrogen fertiliser applications are w’ell known to give additional growth. Soil temperatures are the all-import-ant factor in this and these are at present still high enough to allow a good response. A fertiliser such as sulphate of ammonia, which is not so prone to leaching in the event of heavy rain, should be used. Up to 40kg/ ha of nitrogen (2cwt/acre S/ A) should be applied to actively growing pastures that are ryegrass dominant after first grazing them well. It is most important that these paddocks are then shut up to get the best response. This feed should be used later as

pre-lambing feed, strictly rationed of course. The opportunity to use nitrogen at this stage is rapidly diminishing. SUPPLEMENTARY FEEDS

Various options are open and these are well summarised from a price and feed quality point of view in the accompanying table. This shows the prices at which various feeds cost the same when quality is taken into account. Thus grazing at 68c per week equates to barley at ?160 per tonne. This table applies to a ewe being fed to maintenance only.

If you have some of these feeds or are going to buy some, feed out those of poorest quality from now on and use the better feed later. FURTHER POINTS With feed at a premiumthis winter what little feed a

ewe is given must be used efficiently. Worm burdens affect this efficiency. A drench may be well worth considering, especially for the light ewes.

Also begin thinking of how you are going to treat those pastures that were seriously affected by the drought. In some cases these paddocks will produce little for a long time to come and will therefore aggravate feed shortages. If you have stock surplus to requirements these should be sold. They are not your main income earners and are therefore stealing feed from more productive stock. A feed shortage will occur later this winter. Attention to detail now will reduce the risk of sleepy sickness and minimise a feed pinch over lambing. It may mean the difference between being able to have a pre-lamb build up and not having one.

TABLE I Grain: price per tonne Average quality hay Grazing Barley Oats Meadow Lucerne 22 kg bale 22 kg bale per week $130 $114 $1.60 $1.85 52c $140 $123 $1.75 $2.00 56c $150 $132 $1.90 $2.20 80c ' $160 $140 $2.00 $2.30 64c $170 $149 $2.12 $2.45 68c $180 $158 $2.25 $2.60 72c