Labor is expensive and how exactly does that fit into grazing animals. Would your farm benefit from multi species grazing. Does your ranch produce it's maximum fodder for animals? Let's talk about them in this blog.
(Look at all those broad leaf plants that are usually mowed)
Is your field full of weeds or plants that your animals don't want to eat. Before you jump out there and pay for some chemical or apparatus to control them, and then turn around and pay for them to be applied or used; consider the fodder value of it to another species. You may be able to raise another species within the same confines of your current animals and then be able to sell their get as well as your current livestock. There are many ranches that are successfully running more than one species and they often prefer different types of fodder. If your run a ranch with cows then goats or sheep could be introduced to control the weeds and broad leaf species that invade many pristine fields of great ranches. Maybe lease out a field to a local herd if you want to try if they will work first.
(Above picture my horses wouldn't touch but cows cleaned it out. It crowds out better quality grasses)
It could benefit both you and some other producer if you leased out your field to someone that runs another species. This could give you an idea of if they will consume the invasive species of weed that is in your fields as well as let you know if there are major changes to your ranch structure such as fences and corrals. The other producer will likely request changes necessary to keep their animals safe or offer to make them while their animals are there. Maybe as simple as adding hot wire to existing fence or start in most affected fields and start redoing fence. If the other species is profitable enough they should pay for the upgrades. You could then start small and expand as they pay for fence upgrade. Or if the other species prefers weeds a certain time of year only have them there during that time.
(Poison Oak above is said to be a favorite of goats)
There are many fields that suffer more from ranchers prejudice than their pocketbooks warrant them to have. Goats in certain times of year are very profitable. Also goats per pound raised are more profitable over time via their production. They can produce up to 300% a year if managed correctly. They do this because they can kid every 8 months so in two years they can have three kid crops and usually have twins. From personal experience they can manage well on their own if you breed for that valuable trait. After we babied our kid crop, penning in barn to kid out and still losing many, I researched and found that they kid out in wild in their native land and still bring home twins. Or they are eaten. We raised Boer goats at that time. There are some sheep breeds that are resistant to parasites so do some research on what would best benefit your situation. I can imagine some tall breed of goats helping clear more valuable brush land for cattle and sheep helping keep broad-leafs out of pastures that would make cattle land more productive. So although an initial investment in fence maybe required the return on profit long term should certainly warrant the consideration of cross species grazing.
Thanks for reading
Comments