Sheep - AgRIS

fodder as green or hay, concentrate feed should also be given. The concentrate feed should
contain higher proportion of grains like maize, barley and sorghum. It should also contain fishmeal
or meat-meal at a level of about 5 per cent along with mineral misture and vitamins to
ensure good growth. The digestible crude protein content should be about 14 to 16 per cent.
Composition of a typical creep ration is: maize or barley, 60.0; groundnut-cake, l5.0; fish and
meat-meal, 5.0; wheat bran, 17.0; mineral mixture, 2.0; common salt, 1.0; and vitamin mixture,
@ 25 g per quintal of feed.
The lambs on an average consume 200-250 g creep ration per head per day from 15th day
of age to 90th day of age under ad lib feeding, and grow @ 125-150g in native and 175-200g
per head per day in mutton crossbreds. After weaning there is a depression in growth for the
first 2-3 weeks which should be avoided by ensuring good development ofthe rumen by
appropriate feeding management during preweaning period. The lambs weaned completely at
90 days of age should be supplemented with 500g concentrate mixture in addition to grazing
for 8 hours on grass-legume pasture or fed ad lib, on cultivated leguminous fodder as green
andtor hay in the stalls up to the age of 6 months. Fed in this manner they can reach about 24-
25 kg body weight in the indigenous breeds and 30 kg in crossbreds at 180 days of age. When a
good grass-legume pasture is not available weaned lambs should be kept under stall-feeding.
Under the intensive feedina, the lambs are maintained totally under stall-feeding. They are
offered ad lib. complete feeds comprising concentrates and roughages. A complete feed with
concentrate: roughage ratio o-E 50:50 is most economical for fatlamb production. Among
roughagest cowpea, berseem and lucerne hay-meals and Zizyphus nummularia (pala), Prosopis
cineraria (khejri) leaf-meals are useful. Leaves of Ailanthus excelsa (ardu) can also be used. A
feedlot gain of about l50g in natives and 200g per head per day in mutton crossbreds can be
easily achieved by feeding a 50:50 concentrate rouqhaqe complete feed.
A package of practices for fat lamb production has been developed at the CSWRI,
Avikanagar, in which the mutton ewes grazing on Cenchrus ciliaris pasture for 8 hours a day,
were supplemented with 300g of concentrate mixture per head per day during last 45 days of
pregnancy, and with 400g of concentrate mixture per head per day durint the first 60 days of
lactation. The lambs born weighed about 2.50-2.75 kg in natives and 3.00 3.50 kg in mutton
crossbreds at birth. Lambs were allowed suckling and ad lib. creep ration and a little green
fodder in the form of lucerne, cowpea or peralmillet from 10 days to 60 days of age. They were
completely weaned thereafter The lambs on an average, consumed 150-200g of creep ration per
head per day during this period and attained a weaning weight of about 12-13 kg in native and
14-15 kg in crossbreds. These lambs were then put on feedlot for 90 days and offered ad lib. a
complete feed comprising 50 per cent concentrate and 50 per cent roughage. They reached a
live weight of 24-25 kg in native and 28-30 kg in crossbreds at the age of 150 days. The
average dressing percentage of larnbs slaughtered at this age was 50-52 and bone: meat ratio of
1:4.5 to 1:5.00. The composition of a typical feedlot ration is given below:
ngredient Parts
For lambs For early weaned
weaned at 90 days lambs (60 days)
Cowpea hay or meal or Zizyphus 50 40
nummularia or Prosopis cinereria or
Ailanthus excelsa leaf-meal
Maize or barley 30 40
Groundnut-cake 18 18
Mineralmisture 1 1
Common salt l
Vitablend AD3 25g/quintal 20 g/quintal
of feed of feed
9.2 Handling of Animals
9. 2.1 Lambing Ewes
An ewe about to lamb prefers to leave the flock and will at tempt to scrap a bed for herself.
She will appear restless, the udder is often distended and external genitalia are in a flushed and
placid condition. Normally a healthy ewe should not encounter any difficulty in parturition, still
the following precautions may be taken during and after parturition.
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