A lot of us with livestock have noticed a wicked increase in pre-mixed and pelleted feeds. And there has been some mumbling about a suspected formulation change in certain commercial brands that is making them less than satisfactory. So... The obvious
answer is to see if buying separate ingredients and mixing our own feeds can be less expensive.
Right now, we are feeding a commercial organic pellet and for 15
dairy goats (none in
milk, none bred), we're spending $600/mo (!!!) between the
feed and
hay. They can browse. We need an
LGD, though. The predator pressure has increased unbelievably in the last two years. Prior to that, we had NO issues (for 10 years).
So if you have a mix you like, can you start with what critter/s you're feeding, whether they are dairy or meat or egg layers, and maybe where you are located? Some feed crops grow better and are better suited for animals living in that area.
Not all of the folks here can grow all of their own feeds right now for one reason or another. But it would be good to have that info to come back to, if you'd care to share. Sometimes we permies can get a little '
pie in the sky'. Let's try to keep this one really practical so that the info can be used today, if needed.
Thanks heaps,