Why Grazing Sheep & Cattle Together Could Revolutionize Your Farm

[@markpiersall9815]

The top 2 cm or .8 inch is where 90% of parasites reside. Given Cattle are less susceptible to parasites and prefer to graze at a higher height running them before Sheep might be beneficial to keeping Sheep healthy. It would be interesting to know the frequency of the paddock moves. Greg Judy Rejuvenation Ranch Channel moves Cattle morning and Evening; an in early June through September includes a midday move as well. Every two days he moves the Sheep to graze the paddocks the Cattle grazed the previous two days. He has a similar number of Cows to Ewes. Good video.

[@Marilou-g5t]

@@markpiersall9815 Please, share your sources. Premier one and purina sites say lowest 2-3 or 4-6 inches of the plant is where the larvae are typically found. Closer to the soil. Tips of plants are typically best to harvest to avoid paracite infection.

[@markpiersall9815]

@@Marilou-g5t I think it was a KY Forages Channel video.

[@Marilou-g5t]

​@@markpiersall9815 Eco Farming Daily "Preventing Causes of Infection in Cattle" by Herbert J Karreman, V.M.D gives tips to avoid paracite infections

[@markpiersall9815]

I inquired why Greg Judy separates his Cattle and Sheep and someone (not Greg) replied they think it important to separate at Lambing season because they would have a Cow or two that would want to mother a Lamb and her mother Ewe would abandon the Lamb. I wish our Federal dollars would not be spent creating bioweapons such as COVID (see Dr. David Martin videos) but on creating Alpaca fiber baring Sheep. We should also eliminate Hook Worm from all of South America. Plowed land and pasture land is both property taxes at the Unimproved Agricultural rate. However Plowed land has erosion while pastured land builds up. Farms should not be exempt from Motor Fuel Taxes. Herbicide resistant Genetically modified seeds, herbicides and pesticides should have User Fees. Farm machinery should not be exempt from sales tax. Just some ideas to reduce health problems. Sad that University Crop Budgets do not have a Cost line for soil lost to erosion.

[@londonwerewolves]

@@markpiersall9815 Uh-huh. Being asked to share your sources was a rhetorical request giving you an opportunity to admit your mistake. Instead, you double-downed with an attempt to throw another channel under the bus inferring it was THEIR mistake while trying to minimize YOUR responsibility by slipping in a "I think". Nice try, but that BS only works with the weak minded.

[@londonwerewolves]

I flerd it through the grapevine that parasite limitation is a benefit. Cow parasite eggs can't survive if ingested by sheep and vice-versa. Any truth to that, and has there been a noticeable difference in the parasite load?

[@Forester-qs5mf]

@@londonwerewolves yes this is well established science that is widely recommended as a strategy to minimise parasite load

[@HeiferUSA]

Great thought! We have heard that also, but have not been able to actively test for it. We will keep an eye out!

[@Marilou-g5t]

Widely known that most paracites are species specific.

[@dchall8]

When the Spanish arrived on the main continent they first brought goats to clear the land for grasses to grow. The next year they brought cattle and grazed/browsed them together one for one goats and cattle.

[@HeiferUSA]

Wow nice info!

[@atenas80525]

QUESTION - what is the approximate size of your paddock in the video? Do you have multiple paddocks of same size? By chance have an aerial photo? Thanks!

[@HeiferUSA]

Answer! ☺️In this case, we have the flerd in a paddock of about 3 acres in size. You can also see the aerial view in some shots in the video😁

[@Marilou-g5t]

Paddock sizes are adjusted for many factors: amount of forages in your area for that moment; amount of animal units to consume that forage; time you will leave them in the paddock; shape of the paddock (long and narrow encourages more trampling);... When your forages are lush, you can make smaller paddocks. During dormant seasons, you may need larger paddocks or to supplement with hay...

[@Marilou-g5t]

Portable fencing minimizes livestock making trails and allows a more even graze and spread of manure and urine on the land.

[@yeldesi9449]

Good work, thanks!

[@HeiferUSA]

Thanks for watching!

[@veziqiniso4425]

Thank you for s good overview. Are you applying a form of adaptive multi paddock grazing, and if so, what is your typical duration of stay within a paddock (or, frequency of moving), and typical duration of rest, on cultivated forages and on natural rangelands?

[@HeiferUSA]

Yes, we apply adaptive multi-paddock grazing systems. Duration of stay depends on the species, climate and forage conditions, and a few other factors as does duration of rest. We typically move ever other day depending on stocking density and try to allow for a paddock to not be grazed more than twice a year with at least 60 days of rest.

[@mariameadows3151]

Would this management plan provide the same benefits with goats rather than sheep? And when following a flerd with poultry, is it better to wait a rest period before introducing the birds or follow them immediately behind to spread manure and and clean up seeds etc left behind?

[@Marilou-g5t]

3 days after ruminants for chickens for max bug ingestion

[@HeiferUSA]

Great question, but since we are not actively raising goats we don't have a good answer for you 😅

[@Marilou-g5t]

@@mariameadows3151 Your forage resources can be considered for determining which ruminant best fits your context. Goats browse the taller woodier plants, they will get up on their hind legs and reach as high as they can stretch. Goats will forage some broadleaves AND graze grasses a little, as well. Sheep will browse a little, forage a good bit, and graze some too. Cattle mostly graze but will forage and browse a little. For some ideas on goats eating habbits, check out Goats On The Go for some video of goats in action! Goats require GREAT fences, they are Houdini's. 7000+ volts (i am pleased with my Speedrite s1000 portable solar energizers) with many lines, i use 7 polybraid lines on the 2nd through 8th hooks on O'Brien step in posts (too much low forage at lowest hook for me to use it). I trained each goat (sheep, calf, LGD) by using a halter to allow the critter to get shocked when (s)he got in contact with the HOT wire. Usually by 3 or 4 times, each critter looked at the polybraid and moved away. Then i dropped the halter and allowed grazing for half an hour before i removed the halter. This last step would have allowed me to more easily catch the critter, if the training was not successful. My SIL bought the TSC fencer and braid and the goats frequently were out. 5 to 7 goats and/or sheep equal 1 Animal Unit (AU), while a mature bovine may be 1 to 1.5 AU. 1000 pounds of livestock equals 1 AU. 3 to 4 days MAX behind the ruminants for the birds to eat the paracites. If you have healthy soils, you will see lots of worms and dung beetles, if you look for them.

[@Marilou-g5t]

@@mariameadows3151 same soil building benefits with proper management. Great interviews online with Allen Williams, Ray Archuleta, Jim Gerrish, Gabe Brown,...

[@rancholoskarichis9846]

Que porcentaje de fertilidad tienes en los empadres de febrero a junio

[@HeiferUSA]

Hey! normalmente con las ovejas se maneja un porcentaje de fertilidad de 99%!

[@rancholoskarichis9846]

Yo tambien manejo kathadin

[@patrickmcginnis6898]

I'm considering following this management program. Curious what your long term solution will be for the Cu (copper) mineral? I've had some tell me they offer their sheep free choice copper mineral without issue. I did initially, they gobbled it down without a problem, but I didn't refill. Either your cattle go without, your sheep get it too, or you design some kind of creep system I suppose

[@Forester-qs5mf]

Build a mineral feeder for the cattle that the sheep can’t access if you are worried.

[@patrickmcginnis6898]

​@@Forester-qs5mfso you have successfully offered copper to your sheep

[@HeiferUSA]

We are still analyzing the situation for long term solutions to this. We do offer free choice minerals for our cattle.

[@halilbalaban1056]

I have some questions. ***In the 3 acre Flerd paddock you use in practice, how many cows and how many sheep do you keep together? ***How many days do you keep this number of animals on 3 acres? ***How many cattle and how many sheep can be kept together and appropriately on 1000 square meters of land? ***How many square meters of land do you mean by 1 acre in your country?

[@HeiferUSA]

We cover all of that and more in the video! See the segments on animal stocking densities :D

[@halilbalaban1056]

@@HeiferUSA Since I don't know English, I watch your videos with subtitles. In subtitle translations, sometimes not all conversations can be translated in a logical, literal sense. That's why I couldn't get the answers to these questions from the video.

[@HeiferUSA]

Please send us an email to [e-mail] and our team will be able to help you!

[@petiteplanete]

One question: why not just let the sheep and/or cattle graze across the entire field? Why is the herd / flock always given part of the field and then moved on? What happens if you just allow the sheep to have access to the whole area that is, say, four times larger than any paddock rather than giving them one paddock at a time and rotating them across four? It seems to me (not a rancher) than the impact on the grass is the same. Also, that was more than one question ;-)

[@jaredblankenship3575]

It’s better for the animals and the soil. In ideal growing conditions, grasses will begin regrowth in just a few days. The animals will nip that new growth because it tastes better and stunt it. During those same conditions, parasites can pass through the sheep onto the ground, the eggs will hatch, and they’ll be 3”-4” up onto the grass within 4 days or so. So moving quickly breaks the parasite cycle. Finally, the animals are like my kids. If given the choice, they’ll eat their dessert first. So, if given a larger paddock, they’ll eat the candy on the first day or two. Then they’ll move to the less palatable stuff. By grazing a smaller paddock for just a day or two, their plane of nutrition stays more stable. There are other benefits, but these are some of the bigger ones.

[@petiteplanete]

@@jaredblankenship3575 interesting, thanks!

[@HeiferUSA]

You can learn more about rotational grazing in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gWiblXh_Zrpppa8

[@Marilou-g5t]

@@jaredblankenship3575 excellent description!

[@petiteplanete]

@@HeiferUSA thanks, that video was very informative!

[@tentamalaska]

Sheep are browsers. They eat the broad leaf, shrubs, saplings, herby flowery, stems, things cattle will pass by as long as there's grasses and legumes forages. Cattle are grazers. They prefer the grasses and legumes.

[@dr.mitchellbrew2656]

What are your thoughts of also pasture raising chickens in same Flerd paddock with sheep and cattle? Is it too much?

[@HeiferUSA]

We can't say for sure. Right now, it probably would not fit with our calendar and order of operations well. But we may give it some thought for the future! Thanks for sharing.

[@Spiked2005]

Have the chickens come through at least three days after the animals which will give the birds enough bugs from manure droppings. Having three animal groups covering the same ground will substantially improve soil and microbe levels.

[@tireddad6541]

I HEARD THAT Joel Salatin does, but heard he uses the same fields for the chickens every year. I am guessing to make it easier on the chicken tractors. ​@HeiferUSA

[@rancholoskarichis9846]

Por q no pones a tus borregas lactantes en corral para q los corderos crescan mas rapido y gasten energia al estar caminando en potrero ah de ser para no tener mas gastos

[@HeiferUSA]

Es una gran idea! Lo pensaremos :D

[@MostLipiAkter420]

❤❤🧡

[@borasorm8830]

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