By PR Extension Office
That seems to be the million dollar question this summer, according to MSU Extension Powder River County agent Mary Rumph.
“I contacted MSU Extension Beef Cattle Specialist Megan Van Emon for insight,” said Rumph. She painted the following scenario:
“A 1,400-pound cow needs about 30-35 lbs. of feed each day. This year gut fill will be extremely important. If you can find high quality hay, it can be limit fed, but we need to fill the cows with other feeds so they remain full, which can be done with low-quality feeds, such as straw. So, just some rough math, feeding for 6 months on full hay (180 days) multiplied by 35 lbs./head/day multiplied by 100 cows is 630,000 lbs. of feed or 315 tons of hay. This doesn’t account for any pasture that might be available.
Supplements can help with digestion of low-quality forages, but also increases feed intake, so this can be a double-edged sword if you are thinking of feeding protein lick tubs. Additionally, some lick tubs won’t provide enough additional protein to meet the shortfall from the low-quality hay. If you have a 12% CP supplement and they recommend feeding 2lbs per day, that’s only 0.24 lbs. of protein, which isn’t much.
I’ve had several producers call and ask about feeding alfalfa range cubes, these are a good source of protein and energy, but they are limit fed for a reason. The particle size of the alfalfa in the cubes is small, which increases digestion and fermentation, so they are unable to utilize that much protein prior to being excreted. Additionally, the small particle size can lead to other issues, such as bloat.
If you can find hay, you may have to purchase what you can get and consider lowering stocking rates through strategic culling and early weaning.”
In response to the question of how much wheat midds can be fed instead of forage, Van Emon responded, “Wheat midds can be fed at a higher proportion of the diet as long as a long-stem forage is fed. They are good protein and energy source for cattle. I wouldn’t feed more than about 30-40% of the diet as wheat midds.”
Ranchers need to pay attention to the 2:1 calcium phosphorous ratio when feeding wheat midds, especially when fed with any type of grain hay. Wheat midds are high in phosphorous and grain hay can also be high in phosphorus. Van Emon said, “the best advice I can give is to make sure they have a good Ca:P ratio. We can see some P problems when feeding grain hay and wheat midds especially in the last trimester.” Supplementing with calcium to help offset the high phosphorous in the grains and wheat midds is recommended; also, consulting with your local veterinarian is vital. Alfalfa is high in calcium so feeding it with wheat midds can help maintain the 2:1 Ca:P ratio.
For more information on balancing rations, please contact the Powder River Extension Office at 436-2424.
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