BASICS OF GOAT & SHEEP WEIGHT MANAGEMENT
Successful Steps for Meeting Show Weights
Feed management begins the day you select your livestock animal project. Starting off with the correct animal weight will be the first step and it will be the difference between a struggle to make weight or an enjoyable experience. Because shows have a minium / maximum weight range for show animals, a goat or lamb that is too small and too young will only equal an uphill battle to make weight! It is far easier to walk away from a small cute animal and find another whose weigh is appropriate for your show. Can you see the size differences of these animals on the auction rack? This group may have a range of weights of 10-20 lbs. They can all be shown at the same fair, but the smaller animals will need to be on a strict feeding program to ensure that they make weight.
SO WHAT IS A GOOD WEIGHT?
The following questions MUST be answered before you begin shopping for your livestock project. It will help you and the breeder select the right sized animal for the show. For more information about feed quantities to pounds gained, refer to feed article “Feed – Feeding Basics” for more information. Questions to have answered are:
Show Date – How many days before the show?
Weight Range – What is the required weight range for the show? This range can change from year to year, so be sure to read the exhibitor handbook for the specified range.
Calculate – Perform the calculation using the information to determine a good starting weight. The basic rule of thumb for figuring the Average Daily Gain (ADG) is:
It’s Day One of Feeding your New Livestock Project!
Weight management starts on day one and does not stop until the goat or lamb is being loaded on the truck at the fair. It’s a wise choice to make the weight calculations to ensure that you have chosen the right weight animal for your show. Here are a few suggestions for ensuring that your animal makes weight.
FEED SEPARATELY
Regardless of what size project you purchase, I cannot stress enough the importance of weighing the feed amounts & feeding all animals separately! If you share a pen, always feed each animal separately twice a day! It is important it is to know exactly how much food is going into your animal from day one! And it is important to remember that the bigger animal will always eat more feed faster than the smaller ones! And why would you want to be feeding your friend’s animal your feed? At $26.00 for a 50 pound bag of feed is = $.52/lb. x 2 lbs. of feed is $1.04 per day. So spend your money on your animal. Otherwise, the lost feed will add up against you and your animal will not be growing at the rate scheduled. FEED SEPARATELY – Know with certainty the exact amount of feed consumption!
Free Feeding – I do not recommend free feeders for market animals. While they appear to offer as much food as your goat or lamb is willing to consume, it blinds you to how much is really being consumed each day. If there or more than two animals sharing a feed bin, you’ll really never know how much is consumed. If your goat or lamb did not feel good and was off his feed, it would be easy to not know this for a day or two. The benefit of knowing how much your goat or lamb is really consuming for weight management is important. It’s the same as knowing how much gas is being put into your car!
Question: If I covered the gas gauges on the pump and your car…you would not know if I pumped in 5 or 20 gallons! How comfortable would you be to drive that car? You would not know with any certainty that you would be able to reach your destination. The same is for your goat or lamb. Know how much is being fed and know that you will reach your goat or lamb’s weight destination!
TIPS FOR FEEDING SEPARATELY:
CHEAP & EASY
Hang a feeder on the outside of your pen. One goat or lamb eats inside while the other eats outside. With food in the feeder….that goat or lamb most likely will not go anywhere! I always liked to hang the feeders on each side of the gate, as this created a little nose to nose competition which helped them eat more. Only choose this method if the goat or lamb is safe within a larger fence area.
FOLDING PANEL
Make a partition panel using a 3’ & 6’ portion of galvanized hog panel. It can be attached to the fence and clipped to the gate to create a feed station to keep the goat or lambs separate. When not in use, it can fold up against the fence wall.
HOW MUCH FEED WILL MY GOAT EAT?
On average, your market goat will eat about 6-7 bags of feed or 400 lbs. of feed! In the beginning your goat will eat very little each day. They need to be trained to eat grain with a handful of alfalfa or grass hay.
The basic rule is 7 lbs. of feed should equal 1 lb. of weight gain. But because goats don’t eat a lot, their weight gain is slow. So it is very important to buy a goat or lamb that already has some weight!
In the chart, see how the amount of feed increases with each weight range? It will be important to weigh both your feed and your goat! It’s the only way to be certain that the amount of feed is the correct amount needed for proper weight gain. Using a Digital Hanging scale is a great way to accomplish weighing feed. See article on How to Measure Feed for more information.
GOATS
HOW MUCH FEED WILL MY LAMB EAT?
On average, your market goat will eat about 7-8 bags of feed or 400 lbs. of feed! In the beginning your lamb will eat small amounts of grain each day. They need to be trained to eat grain with a handful of alfalfa or grass hay.
The basic rule is 5 lbs. of feed should approximately equal 1 lb. of weight gain. Sheep gain a decent amount of weight each day, but don’t assume that you can feed out a little lamb to make weight. Again, it is very important to buy a lamb that has some weight!
In the chart, see how the amount of feed increases with each weight range? It will be important to weigh both your feed and your lamb! It’s the only way to be certain that the amount of feed is the correct amount needed for proper weight gain. Using a Digital Hanging scale is a great way to accomplish weighing feed. See article on How to Measure Feed for more information.
SHEEP
FEED BASICS & RULES
Feed Must be Nutritional, Sufficient, Adjusting & Increasing
Good Ingredients = Good Weight Gain
Know your Feed to Weight Gain Ratio – Weigh your Feed Daily
Hollow/Empty Ingredients = Poor Weight Gain & Health
Feed Must be Nutritional, Sufficient, Adjusting & Increasing
Nutritional – Feed must be of good quality and designed for growing a market goat or lamb. The feed mill manufacturers have designed each blend of feed to meet the nutritional and growing needs of the market goat or lamb. Most feed brands will have different levels for market goat or lambs such as a grower feed and a finisher feed. The main difference is usually protein & fat levels along with other mineral adjustments.
Sufficient – Feed must be sufficient for the weight and size of the goat or lamb. Because your goat or lam is growing by pounds each day, so must the amount of feed given.
Adjusting – Feed should be adjusted to meet the goals of the livestock project. If your goat or lamb is suddenly growing faster than planned, leveling off the feed should help to slow down the growth rate. The opposite applies if your goat or lamb is not growing as fast, you will need to add more feed and calories to get the daily weight gain to improve.
Good Ingredients = Good Weight Gain
It is basic math…good feed ingredients equal good weight gain. By starting your goat or lamb with a good show feed, your weight gain should be steady and increasing. If weight gain is low, factors such as worms, poor feed, poor genetics, sickness or environment may be impacting your goat or lamb. Be sure to have help in evaluating if any of these apply to you. The sooner you bring it to the attention of your leader, the sooner the issue can be dealt with and fixed!
Know the Feed to Weight Gain Ratio & Weigh your Feed Daily
By using the calculations above, along with weighing your feed, this will help you feed the right amount for your animal’s current weight.
Hollow/Empty Ingredients = Poor Weight Gain & Health
It cannot be stressed enough…junk in = junk out! I’ve seen all sorts of tricks to get rapid weight gains at the last minute. The most serious risk is that of the goat or lamb’s digestive tract! Suddenly giving your goat or lamb a change in diet can result in serious diarrhea and more weight loss!
For adjusting your goat or lamb’s weight, there are plenty of quality show supplements designed to add or hold back weight. Please check out our business partners in the feed industry for their recommended feeding programs or contact your local feed dealer for the products available. There are products designed to appropriately add fat or muscle to your goat or lamb. Your adviser, breeder or feed dealer can help you assess which product will help you achieve your market weight. Refer to Feed – Feeding Basics for more information and details on the quantity of feed to equal steady weight gain.
