[Jacob-list] grass vs. grain

[dave & katrina]

I love this topic and have some questions of my own...thanks for bringing it up, Betty, it has been on my mind.  
I was told by other sheep raisers that sheep in general were not fed grain until there was a grain surplus during the war... ruminants were given grain as a way to get rid of it.  Later it just became the thing to do.  I have heard speakers at conferences (via other breeders) talking about the bacteria in the rumen and how it adjusts to the animals intake...if the animal has built up the bacteria needed to process grain, it has a difficult time utilizing grass.  I have also been told that if you do feed grain, whole grains keep the rumen much healthier than pelleted or highly processed grains.  Compacted, highly processed grains can cause health problems.  By the way,as a personal pet peeve, I have a little bit of a problem with the term 'better nutrition' meaning higher protein... To me that is like telling humans that the more hamburgers they eat, the better their diet is.  Just causes more misunderstandings of sheep diet in my mind. I think there might be reasons to feed grain, but think the reason of better nutrition should be used cautiously. 

Our sheep are entirely on pasture with hay/alfafa in the winter and we have been very pleased.  We have not had any difficult births so far, they just seem to pop them out, and everyone seems to maintain condition and health. (In the commercial flock we worked with before, prolapses lessened dramatically when we lessened their protein intake.) Some lambs grow faster than others, but most have taken their first year. Some of the rams here were rolling in fat this spring in our efforts to keep the pastures down.  I think a big advantage of a pasture-based program is that everyone has a fair chance at the best food out there.  I hate watching big fat ewes eat all the goodies that the smaller ones need, while ewes farther down on the totem pole hang back and get skinny. Around here that is the way it goes even with alfafa, so we spread it out as much as possible. Less fights on pasture too.

As far as grass-fed lamb, many people would prefer to buy grass-fed for the health benefits.  It supposedly is high in omega 3 fatty acids which are said to be helpful in balancing weight, cholestrol and mood. Here is a site you might want to explore: http://www.eatwild.com We were not a big meat eaters, but were pleasantly surprised by the taste and texture of our meat.  Most people who we have shared it with have had very positive reactions.  I am not sure how it compares with grain-fed jacob meat.  I think there might be some differences, but not sure.  I think it would be interesting to hear from people who have experienced both.

Anyway, from my experience as far as health and management, I am convinced in grass-fed. My only question up to this point is about fleece. Since most grain is higher in protein, it makes sense that it would affect hair and horn growth.  Most of our fleeces here have been long and pretty, and I can't see that the grass diet has influenced them negatively.   But I have noticed this year that a few ewes' fleeces felted at the tips (I guess that is what it is called)...any one have info on what causes that? Kind of balled up at the ends.   I also had one or two shed down the back along the spine. By the way, I have noticed that the first thing that grows in is a harsher hairier wool in those areas...kind of like a protection and then later it disappears and it seems like those areas catch up with the rest of the fleece.  How do they do that?  Most of these sheep have not been here terribly long and it is difficult to tell if this is an individual trait or if it was caused by diet.  The pastures were not as good here this summer with the drought...that is for sure!  We now have more pasture to work with and I have started to add kelp and garlic to the mineral mix ...I wonder if that changes the wool characteristics also.

Any thoughts to add to my ponderings? I would love to hear more about other peoples experiences...including why they grain.  Would be interesting to hear for me to hear.
Katrina Oberholtzer Lefever, 
Chicory Lane Farm, Hanover,PA


  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Betty Berlenbach 
  To: jacob-list at jacobsheep.com 
  Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2001 9:25 AM
  Subject: [Jacob-list] grass vs. grain


  I've been reading a lot lately about the advantages of feeding grass only and not grain, in terms of it being better for the ruminant's digestive system, what it was made to eat, and better, less cholesterol, more anti-carcinogens, int erms of meat for people.  Now, I'm wondering just why people started feeding grain to begin with.  ANd I have a few questions which I'd like to ask of those of you who feed only grass/hay:

  1-Any difference in fleece quality?

  2-Any difference in pregnancy difficulties: my sheep book says if you feed a lot of hay, andno grain, they have to eat too much for the space given, and will prolapse more often.  Perhaps that is just for standard bred sheep, which this book is oriented toward...aren't they all...

  3-What advantages and disadvantages do you see to being a grass-fed animal breeder over hay/grain, at least in winter?Given our winters here, and the amount of snow, to go completely to grass/hay, I'd probably have to build a new storage facility,twice the size of the one I have now, to hold enough winter feed.  Right there is a disadvantage.  Or, perhaps if I got better hay, they wouldn't eat as much... Betty!
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