# Sheep and goat mineral



## hzuniga81 (Jan 22, 2016)

Hello all! Was wondering if anyone knows if the same type of mineral block can be given to both sheep and goats? 
Thanks!


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## Rosepath (Feb 18, 2011)

It doesn't exist, for good reason. Goats have higher need of copper, in amounts that will kill sheep. They need different minerals, and there are several choices available from farm stores, or online. They both do better with loose minerals than a block.
Try Jefferspet.com or Caprine Supply (http://www.caprinesupply.com/products/health/nutritional-supplements.html)
They'll both need loose salt, also from farm stores, and weekly I give them kelp free choice, which they seem to like.


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## hzuniga81 (Jan 22, 2016)

Awesome! Thank you so much for the info!


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## grandma12703 (Jan 13, 2011)

I personally like the blocks. Definately do not feed goats/sheep same mineral block. Been working with sheep lots of years and never had a problem with it.


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## tree-farmer (Jul 5, 2015)

It's hard to find around here. I ordered a couple blocks a month and a half ago from the feed store and they still haven't come in. Online might be your best bet too.


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## loiscae (Feb 18, 2016)

I have been told that in our area we can no longer get the small salt and mineral blocks, only the giant ones. I like the hanging stones for my horses because they like to play with them. I was able to buy a small mineral block for my goat.


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

Loose minerals are better than blocks and you can give sheep minerals to both as long as you supplement the goats with extra copper


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## hzuniga81 (Jan 22, 2016)

Thanks everyone!


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## ArmyDoc (May 13, 2007)

Slightly different take. You don't want to have goat minerals lying around, because they can be harmful to the sheep. On the other hand, you can use a mineral block that's safe for sheep for goats, but will need to supplement the goats with copper. 

A safe way to supplement copper is to use Copasure goat boluses. These can be found online at Jeffer&#8217;s Livestock Supply. They are are gel capsules full of tiny copper rods. When the goat swallows the bolus, it will sit in their rumen and slowly dissolve. The copper rods are broken down over time and slowly absorbed into the blood stream. Be sure to use the smaller goat-sized It is recommend to give goats 1 gram of copper per 20 lbs of goat. Copasure comes in 2 gram or 4 gram sizes. Use whatever combination that will add up to 1 gram/20 lbs. Start bolusing your goats at 6 months old and repeat this dose every 4-6 months.

Here's another way - put the copper in a marshmallow. Check out the bottom of this article:
http://goatspots.com/articles/copper/


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## secuono (Sep 28, 2011)

You should be able to find loose sheep mineral in a farm store. If you also have goats in with the sheep, add the copper the goats need to their feed, when you split them up to feed. 
In some areas though, you may be severely lacking copper and may need 'some' for the sheep.


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## grandma12703 (Jan 13, 2011)

Loose mineral and salt? More waste is one big reason I like the blocks better. Another is that with a block they lick what they need and don't overdue it. It has always worked well for us. Blocks have always worked well for us and beyond dealing with BP worms this past season due to a wet spring/summer we have been blessed to have many years of very healthy sheep. Everyone has to make up their own minds but many have made a great point. Sheep mineral with goats is fine just need to make sure goats get added copper but goat mineral for sheep is not fine.


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## odieclark (May 11, 2016)

I don't know the protocol for this forum, as this is a thread that has been inactive for awhile, do we start a new one?

I am wondering what type of minerals others give to their lambs and sheep?

I am aware that sheep and goat mineral needs are not the same, and we do not give them the same minerals.

Anyone have an effective and good suggestion for lamb/sheep minerals?


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## Hiro (Feb 14, 2016)

We have used Purina Sheep Mineral for many years with good success. Any dealer can order it. But, very few keep it in stock, at least in our geographic area.


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## odieclark (May 11, 2016)

Thank you. 

We need to check the options out and see what we can find.


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