Animals - Class 6 Science Revision Notes

• Animal Feeds
  • Pastures
  • Fodder
  • Conserved Feeds
• Methods of Grazing
  • Rotational Grazing
  • Zero Grazing
  • Herding

Animal Feeds

They are classified into:

• Pastures
• Fodder
• Conserved feeds
• Commercial feeds

Pasture

They are grasses and legumes that animals feed on directly.

They are classified into;
Pure stand ; only consist of either grass or legumes only
Mixed stand ; consists of both grass and legumes

Grass

Examples of grass include;

• Kikuyu grass
• Star grass
• Giant sataria
• Rhodes grass

Legumes

There are 4 main legumes used as pasture, they include;

• Clover
• Lucerne
• Glycine
• Desmodium.

Fodder

They are crops that are hervestered or cut then given to the animals. examples;

• Napier grass
• Guatemala grass
• Potato vines
• Maize stalks
• Kales
• Sugar beet

Conserved Feeds

They are animal feeds that are preserved in a special way to be used in future.
They are divided into two;

1. Hay
2. sillage

Hay

• It is cut and preserved by drying
• It is stored in bales

Silage

• It is harvested when it is about to flower. It is preserved by fermentation.
• It is stored when still green or in the succulent state.
• It is stored in silos
• The molasses is added to speed up fermentation.

Methods of Grazing

• Rotational grazing
• Zero grazing
• Herding

Rotational Grazing

They include:

• Tethering
• Paddocking
• Strip grazing

Tethering

The animal is tied to a peg or post using a rope
The rope allows the animal to graze within a restricted area.
It is practised were few animals are kept

Paddocking

The land is divided into small areas known as paddocks using a permanent fence
A watering point is usually provided in each paddock.

Strip grazing

The animals are enclosed in a small portion of the pasture using a temporary fence.
An electric fence is usually used.

Zero Grazing

It is also known as stall feeding
The animals are confined in a permanent structure (shed)
The shed should have feeding area, watering area, sleeping area and milking area.

Herding

It is a type of grazing where animals are allowed to graze
freely on large areas of land.