4in 



8 July, 1908.] Lucerne Hay for Fatlen'mg Ex fort Mutton. 



Feeding racks should be placed in suitable sized grass paddocks, and the 

 sheep should be allowed to graze when they like and have free access to 

 an abundant supply of good water. These conditions are just as impor- 

 tant as the feeding with hay and oats, for the latter .are dry and heating 

 foods. 



Hav should form the principal food for the sheep to come and go to. 

 They will clean u|> the oats first. If lambs are being fattened, a pound to 

 every ten lambs, with the morning hay, is fair feeding. Nothing is gained 

 by over-feeding on oats, but they should have all the hav they will eat. 

 They will, however, prefer ])icking about the paddock between times. 

 The racks should be filled at least twice a dav when feedin"; fair numbers. 



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aCCTION FRONT- ELLVATIOH 



5CAL& OF FCE^T 



FEEDING RACK AND GKAIiN TROUGH. 



We are indebted to our Tasmanian sheep men for evolving the rack 

 and grain trough shown in the accompanying plan. These work admirably, 

 and the only objection with us is that the adoption demands an outlay of 

 capital which onh those on suitable freehold farms can undertake. Thev 

 should be substantiallv and carefully built, and their situation carefully 

 planned beforehand. It will be noticed that the rack leans the opposite 

 way to the rack usually used for horses, standing out in the bottom an-I 

 leaning towartls the wall at the top. It is set 16 inches from the 

 wall at the bottom, and 8 inches at the toi), along which 

 a 6-inch board is placed slanting upwards, in order to form 

 a slanting shelf to guide the hay into the rack when being filled. The 

 sheep, in picking out the hay from between the bars, will break some 

 leaves off, which will fall into the oat trough and not get under their feet. 

 The sheep eat from the lower part of the rack, for the oat trough, together 

 with the rack, being sloped back, keeps them from reaching higher. It also 

 keeps the bullies from getting close in, side on, and keeping others off. 

 The sheep will lea\e a certain amount of broken stems in the racks, which, 

 when gathered, can be fed to cattle as it is not damaged as it would be if 

 the hay were given to the sheep on the open ground. In places sheltered 

 from the wind, a double rack can be made under the one cover, back to 

 back, but in windv situations, a back to the shed is necessary. 



The rack illustrated should be 2 feet 6 inches wide or 3 feet over all, 

 the distance between the bars 2% inches full. This does for sheep or lambs, 

 as it is not advisable that thev should pull out much at once. The grain 



