Types of Feed for Sheep: A Beginner’s Guide
Feeding sheep correctly is one of the most important things you must learn as a young sheep farmer. Good feeding determines how fast your sheep grow, how healthy they remain, and how profitable your farm becomes. Sheep are ruminants, meaning they depend mostly on grasses and roughages, but you must understand the different types of feed and how to use them properly.
Below are the major types of feed you will work with:
1. Grasses
Sheep love grasses, and this should form the largest portion of their diet—especially if you are doing grazing or semi-intensive farming.
Recommended grasses:
- Guinea grass
- Highly nutritious
- Grows fast
- Good for grazing and cut-and-carry
- Elephant grass
- Very common in Nigeria
- High yield per hectare
- Best when cut young and tender
Why grasses are important:
- They provide fiber
- Help digestion
- Cheaper to produce
- Good for maintenance feeding
Tip: Cut grasses early when they are young and green for higher nutrition. Old, dry, hard grasses have low value.
2. Legumes
Legumes are rich in protein. They help your sheep grow faster and support body development, especially in pregnant ewes and growing lambs.
Examples:
- Stylo (Stylosanthes spp.)
- Centro (Centrosema spp.)
Benefits of legumes:
- High protein content
- Improve pasture quality
- Help sheep add weight
- Natural nitrogen fixers (improves soil)
Tip: Plant legumes together with grasses to balance both energy and protein.
3. Crop By-Products
These are cheap and easy to get, especially around rural areas and markets. They help reduce feed cost and are useful during dry season when grasses are scarce.
Examples:
- Peels (cassava peels, yam peels, sweet potato peels)
- Bran (wheat bran, maize bran)
- Hay (dried grasses or legumes)
Advantages:
- Inexpensive
- Good source of extra energy
- Useful for dry-season feeding
- Reduces feed wastage
How to use them:
- Sun-dry cassava peels before feeding
- Mix bran with grasses or legumes
- Store hay in a dry place for dry-season feeding
Caution: Avoid fresh cassava peels with cyanide. Always dry or ferment them.
4. Concentrates (For Fattening)
If you want fast growth, especially for sheep fattening programs, concentrates are essential.
What are concentrates?
They are high-energy and high-protein feed mixtures usually made from:
- Maize
- Soybean meal
- Groundnut cake
- Fish meal
- Rice bran
- Mineral/vitamin premixes
Why concentrates are important:
- Promote rapid weight gain
- Improve muscle development
- Ideal for fattening before market
Typical feeding rate:
- 0.5 kg to 1 kg per sheep per day (depending on size and age)
Tip: Introduce concentrates gradually to avoid digestive problems.
Summary: How to Feed Sheep Effectively
| Feed Type | Purpose | Importance |
|---|---|---|
| Grasses | Main diet | Affordable, high fiber |
| Legumes | Protein supplement | Faster growth |
| Crop By-products | Cost-saving energy source | Useful in dry season |
| Concentrates | Weight gain | Essential for fattening |
Practical Feeding Tips for Young Farmers
- Provide clean water at all times
- Always keep feed troughs clean to prevent disease
- Avoid overfeeding concentrates
- Combine grasses + legumes + by-products for a balanced ration
- Observe your animals—healthy sheep eat actively
