Sheep nutrition and care
Find out more about the day-to-day feeding and care of our sheep!
For sheep to produce good milk, they need to feel good and cherished.
Every day, our farmers feed them, milk them and look after them so that they can flourish.
Feeding
Our breeders pay close attention to the composition of their sheep’s feed and their hydration.
When it comes to feed, most of our farmers produce their own fodder, hay, and cereals. As soon as the sheep are in the pastures, they feed mainly on grass and receive a food supplement in the form of seeds.
A sheep’s hydration is very important. A sheep drinks 10 litres of water every two hours.
Sheep care
The manicure
Sheep are a rather fragile animals that need regular care to stay in good health. Maintenance includes hoof trimming to prevent foot rot, which is extremely viral in sheep and causes lameness.
Shearing
They love it! The best time to shear sheep is in spring, so they don’t get too hot in summer.
And to make sure they don’t get too cold in winter, as they are sensitive to the weather conditions, hey bedding will help keep the sheepfold warm where they can snuggle up.
Milking
Milking takes place twice a day, at around 6am and 6pm.
Milking lasts one to two hours on average and is an important time when we observe each sheep individually to check whether they need any attention. Once milking is finished, the sheep are fed in the sheepfold to check their appetite. This allows them to stand for half an hour so that the sphincter of the udder has time to close up and not come into contact with bacteria.
The milking parlour is a strategic location. In-line or rotary, consisting of 12 to 52 stations, the rooms provide feed to distract the sheep and automates milk counting.
The dog, the sheep’s protector
The dog’s role with the shepherd and the sheep goes back a very long time in history. Dogs have always had the role of leading the herd and have had the mission of protecting them from predators.
Under the command of its owner, the dog must know how to go back and forth, take one path or another, bring back lost sheep and guide the flock. This sheep herding ability requires exceptional qualities from dog breeds such as the Border Collie or the Collie.
Pasture and sheepfold
Between spring and autumn, our sheep are taken to pastures, i.e., meadows cultivated by our breeders to provide fresh grass for the flock.
The grass is mowed and dried in the summer, producing hay, to continue feeding the sheep during the winter.
Grazing time depends on the weather, neither too hot nor too humid.
In winter, the sheep are protected from the cold and bad weather in the sheepfold.