Selecting Species - Sheep, Goats or Cattle?

Developing a grazing prescription begins by selecting the right animals for the job. The species of livestock best suited for vegetation manipulation depends on the plants of concern and the production setting. All herbivores are not created equal when it comes to digestion and the ability to cope with toxins. Animals consume foods that they are physiologically adapted to digest and that meet their nutritional requirements. Because of these inherent dietary differences, herbivores are often classified into three major groups: grazers, browsers, and intermediate feeders.

Grazers, including cattle and horses, primarily consume grass and have the digestive capabilities to handle large quantities of forages relatively low in quality. Cattle, because of their overall size and mouth design, are better adapted to grazing than browsing. Cattle have a large muzzle and lips and a tongue that is used as a prehensile foraging tool. The larger muzzle limits their ability to select among plants and plant parts. They forage using their tongue to sweep vegetation into their mouth where is it pinched between an upper dental pad and lower incisors and torn off. Cattle have large rumens, giving them the ability to digest lower quality roughage. That makes them superior to goats or sheep for managing fibrous and abundant herbaceous vegetation like dormant grasses. For example, cattle and horses are being employed to control Johnsongrass in Arizona in an attempt to restore native grasses.

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