FEEDING SHEEP.

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXIII, 2 June 1926, Page 2

FEEDING SHEEP.

■ IN WINTER AND SPRING. SHOULD FEWER TURNIPS BE GROWN? It will he remembered that at the. Farm. School in Timaru a week ago, Mr A. M. ’ Paterson M.R.0.V.5., asked fanners to consider whether it would not be worth their while to go into the question of feeding fewer roots, and more hay and chaff, and greenfeed .to their sheep, in the eokl and wet months of winter and' spring. Mr Paterson said he was convinced that giving too many turnips in winter to sheep was the cause of nearly all tho complaints from which sheep suffered at the .season of the year referred to — complaints such as antepartem paralysis in ewes, renal congestion in lambs, and gastric parasitism. .He added that in countries where roots are not fed to sheep in the winter these and similar 'complaints are unknown, and the same could be said concerning individual farms in Now Zealand whore no roots are grown. Turnips, fed as they generally are hero, he said, are an unbalanced- ration, and it was essential that /more grass, hay, chaff, or green feed should bo fed instead of so many turnips. Recognising that tlio practice of growing a good many turnips for winter feed, is an old established one hero, he did not ask farmers to niakc tho change over suddenly, but to go thor-. oughly into tho matter and satisfy themselves as to whether what lie had said was right, or wrong; if tbc.v_ considered. he was right (ho was convinced himself that he was right) then in their own interests he suggested to them that they should do ns ho said. During the week a “Hom'd” reporter gathered tho opinions of farmers from. ■ all parts of South Canterbury on this ..subject. Evory farmer spoken to agreed that anything Air Paterson said was -worthy or serious consideration, as they had learned by past experience, and wliilo some of them seemed averse to changing their method of winter feeding they raid it would ho wise to do so if it would ho tho means of elimininating so much disease, and the- loss of thousands of pounds annually as Mr Paterson said’.

The first farmer seen on tho subject, said that ho had always believed in plenty of roots for tho winter, when they could be grown. 'Tin's practice had been good enough for his father, and up to tho nrosont it had been good enaugh for him. But he was free to admit that in seasons when it had been found impossible to grow many turnips for tlio winter there bad been less disease among his sheep than in seasons when there had been nu ' abundance of turnips. For this season lie'was inclined to think that there must he something in what Mr Paterson said.

“I like turnips for two reasons,” said another farmer, “first because they are easily and cheaply grown, and secondly because tho preparation of the ground for turnips, and tho subsequent feeding off of tho roots, is an excellent preliminary for a crop of wheat in. that particular paddock. Disease among the sheep when being fed on turnips has been looked upon ns part of the game which is unavoidable, ami wo have put up with our losses in this respect as a matter of course. But according to Mr Paterson we can avoid those losses hv ; changing our methods, .and if that _.is so I think we should seriously consider the expert advicei which we are now offered.” > Another farmer who was scon on the subject said that Air Paterson is undoubtedly right, as ho (tlio farmer I know. Last winter he had had 1000 ewes on furnipa and lost 80 of them. He was satisfied that this was owing, almost wholly, to tho owes being given too many roots; sheep on turnips should have a good grass run off, and be given hay or-chaff, or both. AVith the advent of top dressing, ho anticipated that tho trouble would to some extent ho remedied, as this meant more or better pastures, and when such conditions prevailed there would rob be the same need to grow so many turnips ns -were at present grown. Another farmer likened the excess of cold, watery food like turnips, to the effect of ice creams on human beings. Ho had, lie said, tasted only ono ice cream in his life, and he Imped it Would bo his last. It was only reasonable, to suppose that in frosty weather sheep could not do well on such watery food as turnips, and that balance should he given to the ration by feeding chaff, or straw, or hay with them. He knew that in seasons when turnips wore in short supply there were fewer deaths . among the ewes than in seasons when, they were plentiful. He could recall years when his ewes had had no turnips and there had in those years been practically no deaths among them. “It’s all very well for Air Paterson; to tell us not to feed turnips, but what' are wo to food in their stead,” said an-, other meat-producer. “Wo can grow green feed, and for -my part I always do, but in wet weather we cannot put sheep on it. At the same time I believe there is a lot in what ho says. I believe in providing a good j un-off, and I never allow my sheep to bo on tho turnips more than five hours in any ono day. They are always off them at night and on a'good, dry camp. I don’t think it advisable to give the oaten sheaf chaff with the turnips. I boliove straw chaff, or hay, is quite good, but oats are too heating.” Another farmer, when asked his experience in feeding turnips, said that last year lie had put liis sheep on turnips at tlio commencement of July and had taken them off' at tlio end of August, during which time he had only lost one ewe. Ho believed in turnips, he said, but lie did not believe in feeding them without some tiling lo balance tlienn. Ho always provided a good runoff for the sheep which he had on turnips, and never allowed them to camp in tho turnip paddock. Even if thero was not much grass in tho run-off paddock, the exercise did the sheep good, - and cliungo was essential for them.

“Tin-nips,” said a sheep breeder and fatlener who makes a scientific study of tho business, “consist of nearly 90 per cent of water, tho balance of their constituent parts being carbo-hydrates (sugar arid starch), and it stands to reason that sueli a watery food must be counter-balanced by one of a drier and warmer nature.” He always made a practice of feeding hay to his sheep when they were on turnips, and in this way reduced his losses to a minimum. He agreed with Mr Paterson that too many turnips are grown, and that it would bo better if more dry food and fewer roots wore fed to sheep in tho winter and spring. A farmer from tho plains, who grows turnips solely for sale to hill-country men who are always booking for sheep feed in tho winter, said that ho was not concerned with tho question as to whether turnips were good or bad, for sheep. He grew them because there was a demand for them. I hero was comparatively little work, or expense, attached to growing them, and mi his low-priced land, which grew tuniin-. well, it paid him to grow them for .sal". He did not grow them for his own sheep because he always had plenty ol roughage, and a stack or two of hay or oaten-sheiif chaff. He had formed tho opinion, however, that on light land liko his, turnips were not likely ’to he so harmful fo sheep as -Then they were grown and eaten off on tho heavy, sticky, or tarry soils.

“I am glad,” said another farmer, “that Mr Paterson did not a.sk us to suddenly abandon our Jong established practice in a day. Such a change .as lie suggests can only come gradually. I believe it will come, hut before we can make the change we will have to get- our pastures in better order, and go in for under stocking rather than for over stocking, so that there will lie plenty of rough, dry grass for the win-

ter and early spring, rs well as more hay and chaff, than there is under our present method of funning ” Due thing appears plain, namely that turnips .should, not .be fed to sheep the wliolbßlde way that they archied at tlie present time without a drier loud to ha';nice them.