Riding Out The Winter With Limited Hay Supplies?

This year’s grazing season will be a challenge for most beef producers. Those who live in areas affected by drought earlier this year will have limited hay supply and less area for grazing. If that sounds like the producers you work with, Beef Magazine has useful tips that will help your market ride out this winter season.

First off, you can suggest that they swap hay for high-energy feed. In general, the starchy feed is frowned upon in cow-calf operations as feeding corn can inhibit voluntary forage intake. However, it can help producers ride out the storage. You could create a feeding program to keep in line with your client’s performance objectives.

Limited feeding is another option. When feeding a nutrient-dense yet limited diet, the cows may appear gaunt. Body condition must be monitored constantly as the goal is to maintain the mass of cows that score well. You may also ask them if they would consider using ionophores. This is a feed antibiotic that can alter the microbes in the rumen. It then generates higher-energy metabolites. These help improve feed efficiency.

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Rick Pascual, CPC/ PRC • Dairy and Beef Recruiter