 |
 |
|
|
|
Tommy Yankey
You can e-mail Tommy -- tyankey@uky.edu
FARMER'S MARKET
WINTER FEEDING WILL BE A CHALLENGE! By: Dr. Roy Burris, Beef Extension Specialist, University of Kentucky
This year has been one for the record books. The shortage of hay will cause this winter to be a real challenge for Kentucky cow-calf producers. However, this challenge can be met by careful planning now and avoiding bad decisions. I believe that two bad decisions are (1) paying too much for poor quality roughage, and (2) liquidating good cow herds that have been developed over years. The present situation has producers scrambling to purchase anything that can be loosely described as "hay". Whenever roughage is costing as much as concentrate feeds (corn, soyhulls, etc.), you should question why you would buy the feed with less nutritive value. Why would you pay $60 (for example) for a roll of grass hay that may not weigh over 1,000 lbs. That would be about $120/ton for a feed that has only about half the value of most concentrates. Low quality hay will need supplementation anyway. If the price of concentrate feeds keeps increasing, corn may become our most economical option as a supplemental feed. However, protein supplementation will be necessary. We seem to think that we have to give the cows all the hay they will consume. But is this really true? Maybe we have enough hay and just need to supplement for best performance. How much hay must a cow really have? It is not 20 to 30 pounds daily but rather enough to keep their rumen healthy. In other words, about 5 to 10 lb. of long stem hay will do just fine. Ohio State University did a 3-year winter feeding trial in which they fed only 2 lb. of hay daily with no apparent ill effects, as long as it was supplemented properly. We can adjust to the hay shortage by limit feeding hay and spending our feed dollars on concentrates like energy and protein supplements. Feeding cows 20-30 lb. of hay from CRP land or corn stalks will require supplementation to keep cows in decent body condition. This feed is especially low in protein. Feeding low protein diets (<10% crude protein) can result in weak calves at birth. Cows in poor body condition will also have less immunoglobulins in their colostrum (first) milk which makes their calves susceptible to diseases. Finally, cows which come out of the winter in poor body condition will not rebreed as well as those with a body condition score of 5. Wintering costs will certainly be higher than usual this year. No matter what we choose to feed, we must balance the diet for energy, protein, minerals and vitamins. It's a matter of "pay now or pay later". Some producers are even opting to liquidate their herds. This is a drastic decision in my opinion. It may be okay for someone considering retiring and getting out of the business. However, as a temporary solution, it overlooks several problems, the biggest of which is abandoning your genetic progress which was made over several years. It is not likely that you can go out next year and buy a good herd of cattle with no health and management concerns. This may be a good time to do some "down-sizing" or "right-sizing" though. Cow prices are holding up so we should consider some culling which is a normal fall activity anyway. Your cow herd should be pregnancy tested so that open cows can be eliminated prior to winter feeding. Poor-producers, aged or unsound cows should also be culled. You can then focus on keeping the remaining "base cow herd" in good condition. Calculate the amount of feed that you need to purchase and make those purchases now. Don't way until February to adjust. Feed will likely be higher at that time. Maybe we can come through these tough times with an even better herd. That can be our goal. Finally, you don't need any "moralizing" from me but. . .I don't think that we should be overcharging our neighbors for hay and feed just because the opportunity exists. Kentucky cattle producers need help and we can help our industry by working together to keep our feed costs as low as possible. We have a rich history of helping other states in time of need. It is now time to help ourselves.
Farm
Services Agency: Ag Marketing
Service: Offers links to price reports on most crops and
livestock. Precision Agriculture
for Kentucky Agri-surf:
A good general agriculture site especially for non-traditional enterprises. Agriculture
Virtual Library: The most complete list of ag info available on the web but can
be slow. A
LOT Angus Page of Links: A very complete page of links to about anything related
to cattle production. Kentucky
Cattlemen's Association Kentucky
Department of Agriculture Commodity
Feed Bulletin: Weekly update of price and supply sources for byproduct feeds. University
of Kentucky College of Agriculture "Daily
and Weekly Tobacco Summary"
|
|
Educational programs of the Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service serve all people regardless of race, color, age, sex, religion, disability, or national origin.
UK Cooperative Extension Service ·
UK College of Agriculture ·
University of Kentucky |
|
Send mail to adchelp@uky.edu with questions about this web site. |
For the latest dairy
information from the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture go to: