Feeding basics: what each animal needs

In short

• Three groups of animals eat in three ways: ruminants (goat, sheep, cow) live on hay and grazing, pigs and poultry need grain and protein, and rabbits and horses need fibre.
• Protein is the most common shortfall: a laying hen needs 16–18 %, a chick 20–22 %, while maize (corn) has only about 8–9 %.
• Every change of feed is gradual: ruminants 7–10 days, poultry and pigs 5–7 days, rabbits up to 2 weeks.
• Water is the first feed: a hen 0.3 L, a goat 6 L (a milker up to 15 L), a cow up to 100 L (26 US gal) a day.
• Mould, raw beans, green potatoes and kitchen waste (even meat-free) never go into the ration of animals that produce food.
• You check the ration by hand and by eye: condition, droppings, feathers or coat, eggs and milk.

What's inside

Chapters

1. What feed is made of
2. Three ways of digesting
3. What each animal needs
4. Feedstuffs: what's what
5. How to read a feed label
6. Changing feed
7. Water: the first feed
8. Condition: how you know the ration is working
9. Safety: red lines
10. Feeding through the year
11. Common mistakes
12. Printable checklist

Worksheets

• Daily and yearly feed calculator
• Ration log
• Condition and weight
• Feeding calendar
• Shopping list and questions for the feed merchant