Sheep Tools & Calculators
Article printed November 3, 2024. For the latest version, please go to: https://www.feedinglivestock.vic.gov.au/sheep-resources/sheep-tools-and-calculators/
GrazFeed is a program developed by CSIRO that can be used to predict animal performance on pasture and or supplements and or estimate the amount of supplement or ration required to meet a required performance level.
Features:
Feed includes pasture and supplements
Useful training tool for understanding nutrition
Free android app with limited features and display
Detailed reports provided
Requirements:
Knowledge of pasture amount and quality
Reasonable computer skills
Work through the tables to estimate how much energy that sheep are getting from available pasture (dry pastures), what they need (based on weight, condition score and reproductive status) to estimate how much supplement to feed.
Features:
All reference tables required are supplied
Supported by lifetimeewe training
Requirements:
Requires skill to assess amount and quality of dry pasture
For sheep only
Simple calculator of how much of two feed supplements to meet specific energy or protein requirements of an animal.
Features:
Simple to use for a 2 ration mix
Requirements:
Requires knowledge of animal requirements for energy and protein
Estimates for 2 feeds – one must be higher than requirements
An app that determines the minimum feed requirement for a range of animals as well as formulate rations, compare supplement feed costs and costs on a per head or for the total period ‘as fed’.
Features:
Free app and very simple to use
All reference data built in
Requirements:
No allowance for pasture
One off result not stored
A range of tools that estimates how long a paddock will last, or how many stock can be run. Includes a summer budgeting tool to estimate how long summer feed will last and a winter feed budget tool to estimate whether pasture targets for livestock will be met.
Features:
Range of feed budgeting tools (pasture based) and references such as image libraries and pasture growth
Reference tables provided
Requirements:
Requires good estimates of feed on offer (FOO)
Some tools require estimates of pasture growth rates, decay rates and how much stock will eat
It is used to calculate longer term quantities and costs to feed classes of stock over an estimated feeding period.
Features:
Simple cumulative spreadsheet estimating cost and total tonnage over likely drought/feeding period
Downloadable spreadsheet
Requirements:
Requires estimate of how much will be fed for how long
Estimates how long summer feed will last to help plan for feed deficits and stock selling decisions.
Features:
Step by step spreadsheet
Requirements:
Difficult to find, embedded in tools
Requires good estimates of feed on offer
The lambing planner is a simple tool that allows you to change a lambing date or a joining date to see the impacts of that on other key times in the reproductive year.
It sets out key management operations that make up the breeding cycle, providing information on ewe and ram nutrition, condition score targets at different stages and reproductive management.
Features:
A short best-practice guide for lambing
Requirements:
Available in both Android and iOS formats.
This NSW Calculator is the big brother to their Drought Feed Calculator that allows you to develop feed rations. This tool also includes pasture. Entries can be saved as a pdf or spreadsheet in the desktop version.
Features:
Free and simple to use
Includes pasture in the diet using simple slides
App and desktop version
Requirements:
Some skill in pasture assessment
This calculator has been developed by the NSW Department of Primary Industries as a useful tool to accurately predict profitability for feed lotting. Experienced users of this calculator can also use it for supplementary feeding predictions as pastures can be entered in the other feeds section.
Features:
Downloadable excel spreadsheet
Basic and advanced versions with ration options
Helpful dropdown boxes and references
Requirements:
Requires inputs on all lamb management costs plus target weights
Ration builder is an excel spreadsheet that can be used to build rations from multiple ingredients to achieve a desired energy and protein level in a diet. Includes a mixing sheet that itemises ingredients and gives a running scale weight to be used with mixing wagons.
Features:
ability to balance and cost rations with up to 12 ingredients
daily ration requirements
mixing sheets for target feed volumes if feeding once or twice per day
Requirements:
understanding of the target energy and protein content of your ration
the daily energy requirement of your stock (find on this website in Useful Tables section in Beef and Sheep Resources
A step by step worksheet to estimate how much an animal needs to eat and the feed quality to meet their energy and protein requirements; compares feeds (cost /MJ), total cost of feeding period and how much the flock/mob require per day.
Features:
Step by step calculation for each measure of interest (e.g. feed cost comparison; minimum quality of supplement required)
Requirements:
Requires knowledge of an animal’s energy and protein requirements
Print and fill in – need a calculator