A lamb that bleats all the time is probably hungry and not getting enough to eat. A healthy lamb usually stretches when it rises. Conversely, an unhealthy or hungry lambs often stands scrunched up. Healthy lambs sleep 8 to 12 hours per day.
As sheep are somewhat crepuscular, in my observation, they tend to eat in the morning, chew cud in the afternoon, and then eat again as evening falls. Unlike humans, sheep doze in small amounts throughout the day and night but don't engage in a lot of deep, long sleep.
Sheep will eat 2–3% of their bodyweight each day, although younger sheep or ewes with lambs can eat up to 4%. Generally, the best option for feeding sheep and goats in drought is grain but there is no advantage in crushing the grain for sheep.
The amount offered depends on the condition or fat covering of the ewes and quality of the forage. If ewes are in fair to good condition, 0.5–0.75 lb (225–350 g) daily is usually sufficient.
Sheep are grazing animals. They eat grasses and other low-growing vegetation and ruminate (chew the cud). They spend most of the day alternating between periods of grazing and resting/ruminating.
Healthy sheep are eager to eat. They are almost always hungry. They will overeat, if we let them. Sheep bleat in anticipation of being fed and will rapidly approach the feeding area.
Sheep can be fed on several different schedules, at the discretion of the shepherd. We used to feed twice a day in the early years, until I read a study that sheep fed only once daily were healthier than those who were fed twice.
Grain overload is also known as acidosis or grain poisoning. It occurs when cattle, sheep or goats eat large amounts of grain, and can result in acidosis, slowing of the gut, dehydration and often death.
Notes on full hand feeding
Cereal grain is commonly used to address energy deficiencies and is generally a cheaper source of energy than hay. Cereal grains (barley, triticale, wheat etc.) typically contain around 13 Megajoules of Metabolisable Energy (MJME) per kilogram of dry matter (M/D).
(1) Rough rice fed whole was a highly palatable feed for lambs.
Sheep are herbivores and eat mainly plant material. In the wild or when living in pastures, sheep spend a good part of their day grazing on grass and weeds. Sheep that live in an enclosure with no grass to graze are often fed hay or silage. Silage includes foods such as fermented hay or corn.
Some common garden plants, such as azaleas, chrysanthemums, acorns, buttercups, daffodils, holly and elderberry are poisonous for sheep to eat.
Mostly sheep eat grass, legumes, forbs, and other pasture plants. They especially love forbs. In fact, it is usually their first choice of food in a pasture. A forb is a broad-leaf plant other than grass.
The large size of the retina also allows for rather good night vision, and a filament like Tapetum Lucidium, similar to the kind found in cows contributes greatly to night vision. Interestingly Sheep and Goats are farsighted with a slight astigmatism, another common trait of prey animals.
The water content of feed is a critical determinant of whether or not sheep need supplemental fluid water. In indoor housing situations with dry feeds, all sheep will need access to a fluid water source, regardless of temperature.
Sheep are hesitant to move towards the dark or into an enclosed area. For instance, if you need to move them into the barn at night, turn on the barn light and they will more easily follow you in.
A common mistake on hobby farms is to feed bread to sheep – it's alright in small doses but bread does contain fats that are harmful for sheep if you overdo it. When the sheep has more than a few months wool, assessing its condition by just looking isn't sufficient.
Providing substantial amounts of good quality cereal hay and coarse chopped chaff, even to the extent of removing pellets completely.
Sheep and goats can survive on grass and leaves because they're both ruminants. Their stomachs have four compartments that allow them to digest greens.
A mature sheep on dry feed in summer might use 8 to 10 L per day whilst the same animal on dry feed in winter might use less than 4L per day. The amount of water used by animals also varies depending on their breed, type, age and weight. Female stock will have an increased demand during pregnancy and lactation.
So sheep have evolved to live on plant material and, even in domestic situations where we may require higher levels of production than from a wild sheep, for some of the year, your sheep will be able to live quite happily on grass.
Chewing the cud: After food has been in the rumen for about an hour it is regurgitated as cud, which sheep chew to extract more nutrients before it passes into the reticulum (second stomach) for further digestion. Sheep often appear to be resting as they chew their cud as they are not actively grazing.
Sheep tend to arrange themselves better around circular self feeders than rectangular self feeders.
Sheep prefer to drink still water as opposed to water from a moving stream. It is generally recommended that streams be fenced off and that livestock not be allowed to drink from natural water sources.