Grazing

Grazing is the use of grasses and other plants to feed herbivores, such as sheep and goats. Most sheep and goats graze at least a portion of the year. On this page, grazing links are arranged by subject category: controlled grazing, extending the grazing season, grazing behavior, grazing management, grazing systems, management-intensive grazing, multispecies grazing, prescribed grazing, riparian grazing, rotational grazing, silvopasture, and stocking rates.

KIND HORN FARM RECOMMENDS: For optimal parasite management, we recommend that you keep your Icelandics in the same paddock for no more than 5 days at a time, with 1-3 days being optimal for the forage.  Rest the pasture for 90 days ideally before bringing the sheep back for another grazing.  Try your best to work within these guidelines!

[PDF] Grazing - Canada Sheep
Grazing: Sheep 101
[PDF] Grazing alfalfa - University of Kentucky
GrazingHandbook.com @ NDSU
[PDF] Grazing practices: a review of the literature - NCSU
[PDF] Great grazing with sheep and goats - ATTRA
[PDF] A guide to grazing requirements for goats - Vict. Australia

Controlled grazing

Controlled grazing - West Virginia University
Controlled grazing: a proven management practice - Wash State
[PDF] Controlling grazing: balancing... - Michigan State University
Controlled grazing of Virginia's pastures | PDF
[PDF] Designing a controlled grazing system for goats - Sweetlix®
Prescribed grazing management to improve pasture productivity...
Principles of controlled grazing - Manitoba Forage Council

Creep grazing

Go to Lamb and Kid Feeding page.

Extending the grazing season

[PDF] Extending grazing and reducing stored feed needs - MW Forage
Extending grazing season reduces cost - West Virginia University
[PDF] Extending the grazing season - Extension Central
[PDF] Grazing corn: an option for extending... - University of Kentucky
[PDF] Guide to year-round forage supply - Iowa State University
[PDF] Managing for a year-round forage supply - University of Maine
[PDF] Putting forages together for yearround grazing - KY Forage
[PDF] A quick guide to extended grazing - Manitoba, Canada | HTML
Strategies for extending the grazing season - Penn State | PDF
[PDF] Supplemental pastures for sheep - University of Nebraska
[PDF] The use of turnips to extend the grazing season - SDSU
Winter grazing @ Cornell University
[PDF] Winter grazing: an overlooked opportunity - Michigan State Univ.
Winter rye for extending the grazing season - Ohio State

Grazing behavior

Animals as grazers - Ontario, Canada
[PDF] Current topics in behavior-based grazing research
[PDF] Diet selection and grazing behavior - University of Maine
[PDF] Foraging behavior: experience or inheritance? - University of Idaho
[PDF] Grazing animal management and behavior
[PDF] Grazing behavior - DEFRA UK
[PDF] Interpreting grazing behavior - Texas AgriLife
[PDF] Managing grazing behavior - University of Idaho
[PPT] Sheep grazing behavior - University of Idaho
What do goats really like to eat? - Australian Cashmere Goat

Grazing management

Grazing management - Sheep 201
Grazing management 101 - University of Arizona
[PDF] Grazing management - University of Maryland
Grazing management for healthy soils - Managing Wholes
Grazing management @ Oklahoma Rangelands
[PDF] Grazing management concepts for rangelands
[PDF] Improving small ruminant grazing practices - WV
Pasture and grazing management @ Oregon Small Farms
Pasture and grazing management @ The Univ. of Vermont
[PDF] Pasture, rangeland, and grazing management - ATTRA | HTML
Principles of grazing management - WV University
Sheep grazing management - Virginia Tech | PDF
Small acreage grazing management - Colorado State University

Grazing systems

[PDF] Developing a grazing system - Miss. State University
[PDF] Developing grazing system for sheep and goats - Miss. State
Grazing management systems - Ontario, Canada
[PPT] Grazing management systems - University of Nebraska
Grazing systems - LifeStyle Block NZ
Grazing systems - McGill University
Grazing systems - West Virginia University
Grazing systems - Alabama Coop. Extension | PDF
Grazing systems planning guide - Universit of Minnesota
[PDF] Pasture systems and grazing systems - Iowa State University

Management-intensive grazing (MIG)

Adoption of intensive grazing systems - Journal of Extension
Getting started grazing - Ohio State University
Getting started with intensive grazing - Manitoba, Canada
[PPT] Intensive grazing - Mississippi State University
Intensive grazing @ TAMU
[PDF] Intensively managed rotational grazing systems for irr. pasture
Management intensive grazing (Rotation) - New Zealand
[PDF] Management-intensive grazing in Indiana
[PDF] Principles of management intensive grazing - WV University

Multispecies grazing

[PDF] Bonding to facilitate multispecies grazing - NDSU
[PDF] Goat browsing and multispecies land use - Oregon State
[PDF] Influence of grazing sheep and cattle together...
Multispecies grazing - ATTRA | PDF
[PDF] Multispecies grazing and leafy spurge - USDA ARS
[PDF] Multispecies grazing for leafy spurge control - Manitoba, Canada
[PDF] Multispecies grazing in Oklahoma
[PDF] Multispecies grazing: opportunities and pitfalls
[PDF] Sheep and multispecies grazing - ASI

Prescribed grazing

Go to Weed Page.

Riparian grazing

BMPs to control the effects of livestock grazing on riparian areas
[PDF] Grazing management for riparian areas - Mich. State Univ.
Managed grazing in riparian areas - ATTRA | PDF
[PDF] Riparian area management - BLM
Riparian areas - Oregon State University
Riparian grazing - Washington State University
[PDF] Sheep and riparian/watershed management - ASI
Strategies for livestock management in riparian areas in New Mexico
Stream and riparian area management @ Montana State University

Rotational grazing

4 steps to rotational grazing - Penn State | PDF
[PDF] Cell grazing: getting started on your place - Kerr Center
Designing a rotational system - Ontario, Canada
[PDF] Economic issues in rotational grazing - NCSU
[PDF] High-intensity, year-round rotational grazing - Leopold Center
[PDF] Livestock distribution in riparian areas - British Columbia
[PDF] Pastures for profit: a guide to rotational grazing - Univ. Wisconsin
Rotational grazing - University of Kentucky | PDF
[PDF] Rotational grazing doesn't have to be complicated - by Joe Rook
Rotational grazing: livestock systems guide - ATTRA | PDF
[PDF] Rotational grazing: will it pay? - Mississippi State University

Silvopasture

[PDF] Agroforestry silvopasture - University of Kentucky
Animals in agroforestry - The Overstory
[PDF] The biology of silvopastoralism - University of Nebraska
[PDF] Converting a pasture to a silvopasture in the Pacific NW
[PDF] Domestic stock grazing to enhance woodland diversity (UK)
[PDF] Goats among trees: a silvopasture possibility - Univ. Florida
[PDF] Sheep grazing in forestry - Victoria, British Columbia
Sheep in trees - Shropshire Sheep Breeders Association
[PDF] Silvopasture: an agroforestry practice - University of Nebraska
[PDF] Silvopasture: an agroforestry practice - USDA Forest Service
Woodland livestock grazing - University of Florida

Stocking rates

[PDF] Animal unit months, stocking rate, and carrying capacity - Man. Can.
[PDF] Determining your stocking rate - Utah State University
Generalized average stocking rates - NDSU
Grazing management: stocking rate - Ontario, Canada
[PDF] Guidelines for setting a proper stocking rate - University of Idaho
How many goats per acre? - Onion Creek Ranch
Pasture stocking density and relationship to performance - Univ. FL | PDF
[PDF] Pasture stocking rate - University of Georgia
[PDF] Stocking rate and grazing management - Kansas State
[PDF] Stocking rate and grazing management - Texas AgriLife
[PDF] Stocking rate: the key to successful livestock prod. - Okla. St.
[PDF] Stocking rate: the most imp. tool in the tool box - Univ. Hawaii
[PDF] Understanding pasture stocking rate and carrying capacity - Univ. MD

The Maryland Small Ruminant Page [sheepandgoat.com] was created in 1998 as an information portal for sheep and goat producers and anyone else interested in small ruminant production. The web site includes original documents and images as well as a comprehensive list of links pertaining to small ruminants and related topics. The web site was developed and is maintained by Susan Schoenian, Extension Sheep & Goat Specialist at the University of Maryland's Western Maryland Research & Education Center. Susan has been with University of Maryland Extension since 1988. She holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Animal Science from Virginia Tech and Montana State University, respectively, and also attended The Ohio State University. Susan conducts the Western Maryland Pasture-Based Meat Goat Performance Test at her research facility in Keedysville. She raises registered and commercial Katahdin sheep on her small farm called The Baalands in Clear Spring, Maryland. Please direct all questions, comments, or suggestions to Susan at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Disclaimer: The information and links contained on the Maryland Small Ruminant Page [sheepandgoat.com] and other pages created by Susan Schoenian are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of any person, organization, business, product, or web site. The author disclaims any liability in connection with the use of this information. Users of this web site and all external links are advised to apply common sense and sound judgement to all information obtained from the internet, regardless of source.

Last updated 01-Dec-2010 by Susan Schoenian.