How to manage feeding and breeding during the breeding period when raising sheep

In most parts of our country, it is still very hot after late August. The key points of raising sheep are to continue preventing heatstroke and cooling, drying green hay, and feeding ewes before mating. After End of Heat, the temperature gradually drops and the weather turns noticeably cooler. The key points of raising sheep are eliminating pests, feeding breeding rams before mating, and inducing estrus in ewes, estrus identification, and mating.

Preventing heatstroke and cooling. The most suitable living and production temperature for sheep is 8°C~16°C. When the temperature exceeds 30°C, the daily weight gain of meat sheep and the milk yield of dairy goats both decrease significantly. When the weather is hot, the main measures for preventing heatstroke and cooling are as follows: Provide enough drinking water. Keep fresh cool water in the trough at all times, preferably groundwater, add a little salt to the water, and try to put it out fresh for drinking. Adjust the diet structure. Feed more green, juicy forage and less dry coarse forage such as straw and hay. The content of nutrients such as protein, vitamins, and minerals in the diet should be increased. 0.5% sodium bicarbonate can be added to the diet. In addition to neutralizing rumen hyperacidity and preventing diseases such as ketosis and fatty liver, it can also promote heat loss through respiration in sheep. Supplemental night feeding. Because the daytime weather is hot, sheep can be given extra forage at night when the weather is cool to make up for the insufficient feed intake of sheep during the day. Strengthen ventilation. Open the doors and windows of the sheep shed, and install electric fans where conditions permit, to accelerate air circulation inside the shed and reduce stuffiness and dampness or high temperature and high humidity. Shade. Doors and windows of the sheep shed facing the sun should be shaded with asbestos tiles, fiberboards, plywood, etc.; if there is no tree shade in the exercise yard, a shade shelter should be set up with reed grass, wheat straw, straw, etc., to prevent sheep from being exposed to the scorching sun. Cleaning and disinfection. Regularly disinfect and eliminate pests inside and outside the shed with 5% Lysol or Baidusha solution, remove manure in time, and fill in sewage pits to reduce interference from mosquitoes and flies. Drink dandelion water. Dandelion water has anti-inflammatory, bactericidal, and heat-clearing effects. In early autumn, sheep are prone to internal heat and eye diseases. They can often drink dandelion water and wash their eyes with dandelion water, 3~4 times a day.

Drying green hay. Green hay contains less water and more dry matter, is rich in nutrients, and has good palatability. It can replace green grass during the withered grass period. Sheep raised with high-quality green hay have strong physiques and stable high production. Therefore, full use should be made of green grass and hot weather to prepare sufficient green hay for the withered grass season. When drying green hay, the method of crushing green grass with straw can be used: spread 1/3 m thick wheat straw on a large threshing floor, then spread 1/3 m thick green grass on top, then spread another 1/3 m thick wheat straw on top of the green grass, and then crush it with a roller. The flowing green grass juice can be absorbed by the wheat straw, and the flattened green grass can be thoroughly dried after one day of exposure to the hot sun.

Feeding ewes before mating. Generally, the peak mating period for sheep is from late August to late October. Because of the severe heat, ewes experience decreased appetite, and several months of continuous lactation consume a great deal of physical energy, leaving them thin and weak. After the weather turns cooler, the appetite of ewes increases, and at this time forage is abundant, nutritious, and highly palatable. Therefore, the favorable forage and climatic conditions should be used in time. From 20~30 days before mating, ewes should be given short-term premium feeding to achieve mating at full body condition. Feed ewes a sufficient amount of high-quality forage every day, such as alfalfa, Russian fodder cabbage, and grain amaranth, and supplement with comprehensively nutritious concentrate, about 0.5 kg per day.

Eliminating pests. Mosquitoes and flies can cause sheep nasal botfly disease. It can be prevented and treated by applying trichlorfon ointment around the nostrils of sheep (1% refined trichlorfon mixed with waste engine oil or other oils or ointments) or spraying the nostrils of affected sheep with 2% Lysol. Ticks can cause sheep piroplasmosis. It can be prevented and treated by brushing the sheep body once a week with 0.5%~1% trichlorfon solution or 0.05%~0.1% cyfluthrin (cypermethrin) solution.

Feeding breeding rams before mating. The feeding of breeding rams before mating is very critical to the success of mating. Generally, starting from late August, breeding rams are fed 0.5 kg of concentrate per day; starting from End of Heat, they are fed 1 kg of concentrate per day, and are supplemented daily with 2 raw eggs or 1 kg of goat milk, with high-quality forage provided for free intake.

Inducing estrus in ewes, estrus identification, and mating. After late August, when daylight changes from long to short and the temperature begins to drop, ewes gradually begin to come into estrus. Ewes in estrus show a series of regular changes in mental state, sexual behavior, and external genitalia. Estrus identification should be done well according to the signs of estrus in ewes, and mating should be carried out in time. Observe ewes every morning and afternoon. To prevent missed mating, it is best to use a ram for teasing, that is, put a strong, sexually experienced ram into the ewe flock. If a ewe is found to accept mounting, she can be judged to be in estrus.