The economic profitable program of sheep feeding is depending on the environment condition, predators, rainfall and animal bites insect such as (test fly and ticks etc), in the areas with high above factors the intensive sheep production system are better for production and economically, while in the good pastures without above factors the semi-intensive sheep production system are better for economicall

1. FACULTY OF VETERINARY
Department OF Animal nutrition and nutritional
disease
Topic of assignment
➢ What kind of feeding program is applied in order to keep sheep
breeding economically profitable?
➢ How and why flushing is applied in sheep feeding?
Subject: - Sheep nutrition
Name of lecturer: - Prof. Dr. Mehmet Kemal Küçükersan
Name of student: - Abdirashid Ahmed Hussein
Roll No: 20710702
Date of Submission: / / 2021
Student Sign: Professor Sign:

2. i
Table of Contents
1. Extensive Grazing.................................................................................................................... 1
1.1 Advantage of extensive grazing system................................................................................ 1
1.2 Disadvantage of extensive grazing system............................................................................ 1
2. Semi-intensive ......................................................................................................................... 2
2.1 Advantage of Semi-intensive grazing system ....................................................................... 2
3. Intensive system-zero grazing-system..................................................................................... 3
3.1 Rearing in mud floor ............................................................................................................. 3
3.2 Deep litter shed...................................................................................................................... 4
3.3 Elevated floor shed................................................................................................................ 4
3.4 Advantage of Intensive sheep production system................................................................. 5
3.5 Disadvantage of Intensive sheep production system............................................................. 5
4. Conclusions ............................................................................................................................. 5
5. Flushing Defined ..................................................................................................................... 6
6. When and How to Flush .......................................................................................................... 6
7. Flushing with High Energy Feeds ........................................................................................... 7
8. Flushing with High Energy Feeds ........................................................................................... 7
9. Flushing with High Protein Feeds ........................................................................................... 7
10. Flushing Post-Breeding........................................................................................................ 7
11. Factors Affecting Response to Flushing.............................................................................. 8
12. Return to Maintenance Feeding........................................................................................... 8
13. Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 8

3. 1
What kind of feeding program is applied in order to keep sheep breeding economically
profitable?
There are three systems used to feed sheep and goats, namely:-
 Extensive Grazing
 Semi-intensive
 Intensive system-zero grazing-system
1. Extensive Grazing
Extensive grazing is that in which livestock are raised on food that comes mainly from natural
grasslands, shrub lands, woodlands, wetlands, and deserts. It differs from intensive grazing,
where the animal feed comes mainly from artificial, seeded pastures.
 Grazing the sheep and goat in the entire rangeland and leaving them there for the whole
season is the extensive system of rearing.
 In this method feed cost is very much reduced.
 It is not conducive to making the best use of the whole grasses and Parasitic infestations can’t
be controlled to a great extent.
1.1 Advantage of extensive grazing system
 Animal comfort is very high and they have the opportunity to choose their favorite grass
or plant.
 Animal are graze on the grassland and don't need supplemental feed.
 Extensive grazing does not require more workers because more than 100 sheep’s can be
care for by one person.
 In this method feed cost is very much reduced.
1.2 Disadvantage of extensive grazing system
 The Livestock in the drought time is difficult to get a feed in grassland that can be caused
starvation, emaciation and death.
 In extensive grazing system animal are very susceptible for predator animals.

4. 2
 Is not suitable under low rainfall areas and high test fly areas.
 In this system it is very difficult to achieve our goals such as meat and dairy because they
eat an unbalanced diet, so it is possible that their productivity is low.
2. Semi-intensive
 Semi-intensive system of goat production is an intermediate compromise between
extensive and intensive system followed in some flocks having limited grazing.
 It involves extensive management but usually with controlled grazing of fenced pasture.
 It consists of provision of stall feeding, shelter at night under shed and 3 to 5 hour daily
grazing and browsing on pasture and range.
 In this method the feed cost somewhat increased.
2.1 Advantage of Semi-intensive grazing system
 Meeting the nutrient requirement both from grazing and stall feeding.
 Managing medium to large flock of 50 to 350 heads and above.
 Utilizing cultivated forage during lean period.
 Harvesting good crop of kids both for meat and milk.
 Making a profitable gain due to less labour input.

5. 3
3. Intensive system-zero grazing-system
Zero grazing is a system where the grass is harvested and fed fresh to house sheep on a daily
basis. It allows farms to increase fresh grass utilization and milk yield from grass/forage where
that farm may not have the infrastructure to graze sheep. It is a system in which sheep are
continuously kept under housing in confinement with limited access to land or otherwise so
called zero grazing system of goat production in which they are stall fed. Generally Intensive
operation of medium sized herd of 50 to 250 heads or more oriented towards commercial milk
production goes well with this system particularly of dairy goats.
3.1 Rearing in mud floor
 In this method, once in a year 1-2 inches of mud surface should be removed.
 Application of lime powder once in a month will reduce the disease occurrence in the
shed.
 The shed should be constructed in elevated area to prevent water stagnation.

6. 4
3.2 Deep litter shed
 In this method the litter materials ground nut husk, sugarcane tops etc. are spread on the
floor for a depth of ½ feet and animals are reared in it.
 The urine and dung mixed with the litter materials and used as fertilizer.
 The litter materials should be removed once in six months.
 In heavy rain seasons, the litter materials should not be over wet to prevent ammonia gas
production.
3.3 Elevated floor shed
 Its initial investment is high.
 In the wooden floor sheds, in a distance of 3m from the floor, the animals are reared.
 This requires less labour and more irrigation land for the fodder production.

7. 5
3.4 Advantage of Intensive sheep production system
 This system it good for biosecurity and control of disease and parasite in herd.
 We can feed them a balanced diet to increase sheep production such as milk, meat and
wool also the dung is collected in one place and used as a good fertilizer
 Less space is sufficient for more number of animals also predators are reduced;
 feed requirements are reduced because of reduced walking and sheep can be penned or separated
in groups on the basis of their productive stage and managed accordingly;
 feeding programme can be mechanized or even automated in order to save labour;
3.5 Disadvantage of Intensive sheep production system
 This system of management requires more labour and high cash input.
 It can lead to overcrowding due to the fact that animals are kept in holding facilities which can
lead to pollution and break out of diseases and infection.
 The people with poor finances can't use this system because the initial investment of
Intensive system is high.
 Intensive sheep production system Animals might be stressed due to confinement.
 This system the Animal are not enjoy and do not have the opportunity to choose their
favorite grass or plants.
4. Conclusions
The economic profitable program of sheep feeding is depending on the environment condition,
predators, rainfall and animal bites insect such as (test fly and ticks etc), in the areas with high
above factors the intensive sheep production system are better for production and economically,
while in the good pastures without above factors the semi-intensive sheep production system are
better for economically.

8. 6
How and why flushing is applied in sheep feeding
5. Flushing Defined
What is flushing, anyway? The term describes a temporary but purposeful elevation in the plane
of nutrition around breeding time. Flushing is the practice of increasing nutrient intake and body
condition prior to and during breeding is called flushing. Its purpose is to increase the rate of
ovulation and, hence, lambing rate. Its objective is to boost ovulation, conception and embryo
implantation rates. Flushing may also increase the proportion of females that exhibit estrus.
Boosting these rates increases lambing and kidding rates by 10-20%; this is important because a
flock’s lambing/kidding rate is one of the primary factors influencing its economic viability.
Flushing can increase lambing and kidding rates by 10-20 percent.
The lambing/ kidding rate (or crop) for a given season is the number of all lambs or kids born
divided by the number of ewes or does that were exposed to a male, multiplied by 100 and
expressed as a percent. An example: 175 kids are born to 100 does; the kidding rate is 175%.
6. When and How to Flush
To flush, producers supplement the breeding flock with good quality hay, fresh pasture or grain
for two weeks before and two to four weeks after breeding. Most literature pertaining to ewes
recommends starting to flush two weeks before breeding; literature pertaining to does
recommends starting three to four weeks before breeding. A New Zealand study documented a
25% increase in ovulation rates in ewes when they were fed one kilogram (kg) of dry matter
(DM) per ewe per day for three weeks before breeding vs. those that were fed 0.5 kg of DM per
head per day; a 30% ovulation rate increase was noted when the elevated DM plane was fed for
six weeks before breeding.
During flushing, producers should focus on increasing the amount of energy fed to ewes and
does. Typically, producers feed one-half to one pound of grain per head per day. Grain should be
added gradually to the diet—for example, one quarter pound per day divided into two feedings
for a few days, then increasing to one-half pound per day, then to three-quarters of a pound per
day, then peaking at one pound a day—to avoid digestive upsets. Also, adequate bunk space is
essential or some animals will get too much grain and others will get none.

9. 7
7. Flushing with High Energy Feeds
As mentioned, most producers flush by using one-half to one pound of grain per animal per day.
Typical grains include corn, barley, oats, wheat and milo. If wheat is used, it should not
constitute more than 50% of the grain ration or it will form a poorly-digestible mass in the
rumen. Oil seed crops such as whole cottonseed or sunflowers could also be used but are
probably cost prohibitive.
8. Flushing with High Energy Feeds
As mentioned, most producers flush by using one-half to one pound of grain per animal per day.
Typical grains include corn, barley, oats, wheat and milo. If wheat is used, it should not
constitute more than 50% of the grain ration or it will form a poorly-digestible mass in the
rumen. Oil seed crops such as whole cottonseed or sunflowers could also be used but are
probably cost prohibitive.
9. Flushing with High Protein Feeds
Flushing with protein is advantageous if flocks are on a protein- deficient diet such as a low-
protein pasture. Pasture can be set aside in advance so that it can be used for flushing, but it is
best not to use legume pasture for flushing. Fresh alfalfa, clovers, vetches, birdsfoot trefoil and
other legumes contain estrogen-like compounds that can interfere with estrous cycles, ovarian
function, ovulation rates, cervical and uterine health, sperm transport and conception rates.
Fescue grasses, barley grain, oat grain and moldy corn may also contain estrogen-like or toxic
substances. Legume and grass hays do not have this estrogenic effect.
10. Flushing Post-Breeding
Because most spontaneous fetal deaths (early embryonic deaths or EEDs) occur in the first
month of gestation and are probably due to poor maternal nutrition, flushing for four weeks post-
breeding is recommended, especially in a flock with a low body condition score (BCS)
average. BCSs at breeding should be between 3.0 and 3.5 on a scale from 1 to 5. It takes three
weeks on an increased plane of nutrition to increase a BCS by a half-score, so animals with
BCSs below 3.0 may need to be flushed for three weeks before breeding. In addition to

10. 8
increasing the number of follicles released and reducing EEDs, elevated energy is believed to
increase the number of embryos that implant in the uterus.
11. Factors Affecting Response to Flushing
Response to flushing is greatest in animals with below-average BCSs, especially those that were
stressed by heavy lactation. Greater effect is also seen in mature females, at the beginning and
end of the breeding season and in out-of-season breeding programs. No benefit is seen in animals
with good or excessive BCSs or during the height of the normal breeding season. No effect is
noted with ewe lambs, either, because they are already on a high plane of nutrition for growth.
12. Return to Maintenance Feeding
After the first month of gestation, the plane of nutrition fed to bred ewes and does can return to
maintenance levels until the last six weeks of gestation, when fetal development begins to place
significant demands on the dam. Graph 1 below depicts the energy requirement of a 154 lb. ewe
at various stages of her productive life. Note that the energy requirement for ewes is greater
during flushing than for both maintenance and early gestation.
13. Conclusion
Why flush, then? Flushing for a six- week period around breeding time increases the lamb/kid
crop by 10-20%, primarily by increasing the number of twins born. Relatively few additional
resources are needed to support a second lamb or kid both pre-and post- natally; the first lamb or
kid helps a producer break even and the second helps turn a profit. The bottom line: used
strategically, flushing helps increase a flock’s bottom line.