Cattle & sheep & goats — Oh my! How multi-species grazing benefits ecosystems, farmers, and consumers

There’s no question that well-managed cattle are a powerful tool in the mission to restore ecosystems and improve animal welfare. But when sheep and goats are added to the mix in a multi-species grazing system, the benefits skyrocket.

In general, multi-species grazing involves grazing two or more species in the same pasture-based system. One of the most common multi-species grazing combinations is cattle and sheep but some producers focus exclusively on small ruminants and run sheep and goats together. It’s really no surprise that adding multiple species of ruminants leads to so many benefits. Nature thrives on biodiversity.

Here are a few important things to know about multi-species grazing.

One ruminant’s trash is another ruminant’s treasure

Some people may think that cattle, sheep, and goats all eat the same plants but this isn’t true. In fact, each species prefers to eat something different while walking through a pasture or wooded area, which creates a wonderful harmony when it comes to grazing pastures evenly and efficiently. Cattle tend to prefer grasses while sheep seek out weeds. Goats enjoy browse, which includes brushes, shrubs, trees, brambles, and vines. Each species also prefers to eat at a different level. Goats like to reach as high as possible often standing on their hind legs to reach for tree limbs. Cattle prefer to graze moderately high forage while sheep prefer to graze closer to the ground.

The following chart shows the type of forages that each species prefers in comparison to other species.

Instead of using chemicals to tackle weeds, some producers have added sheep or goats to the flock. This not only controls weeds but provides another stream of income if the producer has a market for live animals or meat. And in places where an invasive species of plant is taking over a pasture, goats are becoming an increasingly popular option for controlling growth. According to some range managers in the US, the recent increase in invasive weed species on public lands is directly related to a decline in the domestic sheep population. Sheep and goats eagerly eat some of the worst weeds today on cattle ranges like spotted knapweed, leafy spurge, yellow starthistle.

As each species focuses on grazing its preferred forages, the overall grazing efficiency of the operation increases and the quality of the pasture improves. Some producers find they are able to increase the carrying capacity of their land as a result.

Adding sheep or goats to a cattle operation can improve animal health

One of the major health challenges that livestock producers face is managing internal parasites that livestock can pick up while grazing. These tiny parasites live inside the intestinal system of the animal and can cause an array of health problems like anemia. If not managed appropriately or treated in time, a heavy load of parasites can be fatal for the animal.

Fortunately, the parasites that can live inside sheep and goats cannot live inside cattle and vice versa. This means that small ruminants and large ruminants are dead-end hosts for the type of parasites that prey on the other group of ruminants. Many producers run sheep and cattle in the same grazing system as a way to help control parasites. The producer may rotate the herd of cattle through a series of paddocks and follow behind with the flock of sheep, for example. This leader-follower management approach not only provides pastures with rest to help break the parasite life cycle, but it also harnesses the power of each species’ end-host capabilities.

Lamb and goat meat are delicious, nutritious, and add variety to your diet

Lamb and goat meat may be less common in the supermarket, but both are delicious and add even more diversity to your menu. Grass-fed lamb has a better than 1:2 ratio of omega 3’s to 6’s, where roasted chicken has a ratio of 1:8. It also has twice the iron and three-times the zinc. A three-ounce portion of lamb contains 2.2 mcg of B12 compared to chicken which has only 0.3. 

Some people assume that goat meat is similar to lamb but its quite different. Goat meat is extremely lean and a good source of many vitamins and minerals that include Vitamin B6, B 12, C, E, A, K, iron, calcium, phosphorus, zinc, copper, manganese, selenium, potassium, sodium and many more.

Also, for those looking to cause “least harm,” one lamb or goat can produce a lot more meat than a chicken, and an animal raised outdoors on pasture has a much better life than one raised on a 100% grain diet indoors under artificial lighting for its entire life.

Multi-species grazing is not without its challenges

Even though there are many benefits when it comes to improving forage diversity and grazing efficiency, adding a second species to an existing grazing operation comes with a serious set of challenges. The first major challenge can be fencing. If a farm is set up for cattle, the five strands of barbed wire around the perimeter may not be enough to contain sheep or goats. Having the appropriate handling facilities can also present challenges. Handling facilities and working pens that are designed for sheep or goats are probably too small or not strong enough to work for cattle. 

Sheep and goats also usually require livestock guardian dogs to ward off predators, which can come with a host of challenges. From feeding dogs out in the pasture every day to finding a livestock guardian dog with good working instinct, working dogs require care and attention apart from the herd or flock.

Finally, before adding another species, producers have to make sure that there is a market for that species, which includes ensuring that they have access to processing facilities. Not every butcher will process sheep and goats. With the major pandemic-related processing backlogs, some butchers are no longer processing sheep and goats because the time and labor involved are not as profitable as processing larger animals like cattle and hogs.

Eating more lamb and goat meat is another way to support the case for (better) meat

When you purchase lamb or goat meat from a farm or other source that supports good grazing management and high welfare, you are helping the farmer overcome some of the challenges and complexities associated with raising more than one type of ruminant animal. Your support makes it possible for that producer to continue using multi-species grazing to improve soil health, biodiversity, and animal welfare.

Eager to learn more about sheep and goats? Check out 7 Things You Didn't Know About Sheep and 8 Things You Didn’t Know About Goats here. To learn more about the importance of ruminant animals for our planet and our health, order your copy of Sacred Cow: The nutritional, environmental, and ethical case for (better) meat here.

Lauren Manning, Esq., LL.M., is a cattle farmer, an agricultural law professor at the University of Arkansas School of Law, food journalist, and contributor to the forthcoming documentary and book project Sacred Cow: The environmental, nutritional, and ethical case for better meat.