Presented January 2020 at Mini Symposium Southern Section American Society of Animal Science, Chattanooga, TN.

1. GROWTH AND
PERFORMANCE OF LAMBS
AND KIDS ON PASTURE
SUSAN SCHOENIAN
Sheep & Goat Specialist
University of Maryland Extension
sschoen@umd.edu | sheepandgoat.com

2. Pros and cons of rearing lambs and kids on pasture
PROS
 Leaner, more healthful meat
 Growing demand for grass-fed and
organic meat, dairy, and fiber
 Potentially more economical gains
CONS
 Predator risk
 Worm risk
 Weather risk
 Potentially poor performance

3. Factors limiting performance on pasture
NUTRITION PARASITES

4. Impact of pasture quality on lamb performance
Type of pasture Typical daily live weight gain, g
Poor quality grassland < 100
Medium quality permanent pasture 100
High quality grazed grass > 200
Silage aftermath 100 - 150
Autumn grass 70 - 150
Root crops for comparison 150 - 250
Lamb Finishing Systems: Options for Sheep Farms in Wales (2017)

5. Impact of internal parasites on performance
Modeling by Dave Notter, Virginia Tech, 2014
Parasitism has been
documented to cause a 10
to 20 percent reduction in
feed intake, with an
additional reduction in
nutrient digestibility,
metabolism, and
utilization. (Hart, 2019)

6. AN OVERVIEW OF
THE LITERATURE

7. Seasonal and breed effects on performance, g/d
Virginia State University (Wildeus and O’Brien, 2019)
Breed  Barbados Blackbelly St. Croix
ADG, g/d 89 100
Season of birth  April August
ADG, g/d 73 115
Grazing period 
Birth month 
Dec 6- Jan 16 Jan 17-Feb 13 Feb 14-Mar 5 Mar 6-Mar 20
April 76 160 128 309
August 16 137 131 340
Grazing season Spring Summer Fall
Purebred 108 48 98
Crossbred 142 68 156
Both 126 59 126

8. Effect of supplementation
Virginia State University (Wildeus et al, 2017)
Supplementation period 0 21 42 63
ADG, g/d 51 64 101 128
Soy hulls @ 2% of BW

9. USDA ARS-ASFRC
Beaver, West Virginia
Alfalfa Red clover Orchardgrass
ADG, g/d 100 68 59
Performance of meat goats (n=72) grazing different forages (Turner et al, 2007)
Suffolk Katahdin Meat goat
No supplementation 91 82 32
Whole cottonseed @ 0.5% BW 145 91 54
Effects of supplemental feeding to lambs (n=72) and meat goats (n=36) (Turner et al, 2007)
Red clover Birdsfoot Trefoil Chicory
ADG, g/d 69 53 35
Performance of meat goats (n=72) grazing different legumes and forbs (Turner et al,
2017)

10. USDA ARS
Booneville, Arkansas
Effects of modest supplementation of fall born Katahdin lambs (n=72) (Wood et al, 2018)
No grain By product supplementation @ 0.5% BW
Year 1 110 137
Year 2 175 179

11. Supplementation of pasture-raised lambs, ADG (g/d)
The Ohio State University (Felix et al, 2012)
Experiment No supplement 2.5% DDGS 2.5% Soy Hulls Soy Hulls + P
1 132 249
2 100 222
3 95 222 191
4 104 227 200
312 Hampshire x Dorset lambs

12. UNIVERSITY OF
MARYLAND

13. Western Maryland Pasture-Based Meat
Goat Performance Test
 11 years
2006-2016
 Mostly June thru September
 736 bucklings
 All meat goat breeds, but mostly
Kiko
 100 producers from 20 states
 Top performing bucks were selected
on basis of three criteria:
1. Growth (ADG)
2. Parasite resistance (FEC)
3. Parasite resilience (FAMACHA©, Tx).

14. Pasture-based performance test
Cool season perennials: MaxQtm tall fescue, orchardgrass, forage chicory
Warm seasonal annuals: forage sorghum, dwarf pearl millet, sunn hemp, cow pea, sunflower
Goats received supplemental feed (soy hulls or barley) in 2014 (second half), 2015, and 2016

15. Meat goat growth performance on pasture
86
115
56
93
63
56
62
33
26
50 49
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
ADG, g/d
1007 929
664
403
3050
1102 1102
3710
6040
5739

16. Assessing pasture diet quality
Year Date CP DOM DOM:CP
2014
June 19 16.66 46.87 2.81
June 27 19.03 50.00 2.63
July 3 21.19 50.06 2.36
Aug 7 21.52 47.40 2.50
Aug 14 21.79 44.01 2.00
Aug 20 18.42 38.32 2.10
2015
July 13 17.75 47.18 2.70
Aug 3 13.47 36.50 2.70
Aug 13 15.54 41.37 2.70
Grazingland Animal Nutrition Lab, Temple, Texas
Energy supplementation
recommended

17. COMPARISON OF RAM, WETHER,
AND SHORT-SCROTUM LAMBS
2018-2019

18. Comparison of ram, wether, and short-scrotum rams
 60 lambs in 2018
64 lambs in 2019
 East Friesian x Lacaune
From a sheep dairy
 Managed as a single group on pasture
Rotationally grazed among
five 2-acre paddocks + 2.5 ac
silvopasture
 Lambs fed for moderate gain and finish
 Supplemented with complete feed
(barley + SBM, 16% CP)
Hand fed twice daily
2-3% of body weight
2-3 lbs. per head per day

19. Rotational grazing, ~6 lambs/acre (April-August)
Spring oats Dwarf pearl millet
*Montana Meadow Brome, Tetraploid Perennial Ryegrass,
Freedom! Red Clover, Regalgraze Ladino Clover, and Forage
Chicory.
Pasture mix*
Mostly annual pastures in 2018; mostly perennials in 2019

20. Average daily gain, g/d
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
450
Low Avg High
150
230
320
250
350
430
2018 2019

21. PLANS FOR 2020

22. Using whole grain to increase the profitability of
pasture-raised lamb
~80 weaned lambs
 Half of lambs will graze
 Other half will graze, but
receive supplemental feed
(whole barley).
 15 lambs from each group
will be slaughtered to collect
carcass data and determine
fatty acid profile. Funded by Maryland Grain
Producers Utilization Board
(checkoff)

23. Final thoughts about rearing lambs/kids on pasture
Good management is needed regardless of method of
finishing.
Good quality pasture is necessary to finish lambs/kids.
Pastures have to be managed to minimize the risk of
parasites.

24. Final thoughts about rearing lambs/kids on pasture
If necessary, pasture diet should be supplemented to
improve nutrition and mitigate effects of internal parasites
(but needs to be cost effective).
Need to match finishing method to market.
Not all breeds are suited to pasture finishing (without
moderate supplementation).

25. THANK YOU.
COMMENTS?
QUESTIONS?
Susan Schoenian | Sheep & Goat Specialist
University of Maryland Extension
sschoen@umd.edu | sheepandgoat.com |wormx.info