ALMOST 20 years since introducing an on-farm feedlot, Balaklava farmers Philip Shepherd and his son Tim have a specialised nutrition plan for their ewes and lambs down pat.
The Shepherds run about 600 Merino ewes in combination with a cropping program on about 800 hectares.
Philip said he decided to introduce a feedlot system to help better manage the two enterprises.
"We changed the joining period for a later lambing because of a lack of feed availability - we were always hand-feeding and it caused ewes to walk off from lambs," he said.
"But because we lamb later we cannot always turn lambs off before the dry summer period, so we finish them off in the feedlot."
Philip said what had begun as a barley ration had since increased to include peas, lupins and buffer pellets, as well as magnesium and calcium supplements.
Tim said stubble quality from past seasons was also low so the feeding program was vital for flock nutrition.
"Knowing the ewes and lambs have adequate nutrition builds confidence at the other end," he said.
Loose lick helps ewes thrive
Last year, for the first time, the Shepherd family provided in-lamb ewes with a magnesium boost to help battle the increasing number of ewes affected by pregnancy toxaemia and so far, they say the results have been "well worth it".
In past seasons, Balaklava producer Philip Shepherd and his son Tim have lost about 5 per cent of their 600-head Merino ewe flock to the condition.
The Shepherds operate an on-farm feedlot to not just finish their Maroola, Lines Gum Hill and Nyowie-blood lambs but also to provide ewes with additional nutrition before and after lambing.
Philip said he was surprised that despite containment feeding ewes with hay and grain, the number of ewes "falling down" had not declined.
"I figured ewes should be healthier and perform after being in the feedlot but in the past few years the number was rising - especially in the cold and wet weather while being heavily pregnant," he said. "Particularly the older ewes were going down and had the staggers."
Philip said despite the introduction of calcium lick blocks a few years ago the issue prevailed, so he consulted a nutritionist who advised a magnesium loose lick supplement to manage pregnancy toxaemia.
"He said a diet heavy in grain and hay locked up magnesium in the ewe's system and that caused loss of appetite and weakness," he said.
Ewes receive about 40 grams of magnesium supplement a day, including zinc and Vitamin E, for about six weeks prior to lambing.
"Last year we were a bit late getting it out so ewes only had access to it for about two weeks, so we lost a few but this year it will be for the full six weeks," Philip said.
"Ewes will also have access to supplements after lambing to help with milk production too," he said.
This year ewe condition was noticeably stronger, Tim says.
"We are not even close to losing 5pc this year and because we buy in ewes that are north of $200 a head, the supplements have helped us to recover a decent loss," he said. "I would say the problem will hopefully be no issue by next lambing."
To also further aid flock health, a buffer pellet for lambs and a rumen drench for the ewe's stomach health were also incorporated into the Shepherds' nutrition plan this year.
Tim said he had confidence he could increase the value of their flock through supplementary feeding.
"Our lambing percentages are normally about 100pc and last year we got 107pc," he said.
"But it has also helped to produce better productive lambs. We sold 300 lambs to Colac, Vic, at the beginning of this year that dressed at 30 kilograms."
