2011 Creep Feeding?

[Till-Hill]

Yes sir. Just wanted people to know that we are feeding alot of water and 700 lb cattle are not eating a 100 lb or whatever intake ya know! Why I listed the moisture content.

 

[TexasBred]

Yes sir. Just wanted people to know that we are feeding alot of water and 700 lb cattle are not eating a 100 lb or whatever intake ya know! Why I listed the moisture content.

True and not 20% "As fed" at 50% moisture. Now that would be rocket fuel. Don't stand behind them. :lol2:

 

[Till-Hill]

Ration ends up being 11.78% crude protein, 21% ADF, 31%NDF, and .58 NE (MC/lb). Has an energy to protein at 4:1. Feeding 2.44% of Body Weight, and as fed it's 64.9% moisture. I'd like moisture around 50% but what can I do. Try and get haylage and ryelage around 50-55% moisture this year......

 

[Amo]

Dumb ? energy to protein ratio @ 4 ta 1? Your backgrounding or feeding calves...right. A dairy ration I could see way more energy than protein. Just wondering what Im missing here.

 

[Till-Hill]

Amo I don't know what you are missing. It is a heifer grower ration. Never had a fat heifer at breeding time. NEVER. It's been working awesome for me for past 8-9 years. Stop in NE Iowa and I will show ya the heifers.

 

[TexasBred]

Ration ends up being 11.78% crude protein, 21% ADF, 31%NDF, and .58 NE (MC/lb). Has an energy to protein at 4:1. Feeding 2.44% of Body Weight, and as fed it's 64.9% moisture. I'd like moisture around 50% but what can I do. Try and get haylage and ryelage around 50-55% moisture this year......

Nothing wrong with that ration. You'll just have to live with the moisture which is really not that excessive. 50% moisture would actually be a little low to get the proper ensiling you're wanting. Once it's cut and processed you pretty much have a finished product. They'll do well on it and the protein is more than adequate as is the energy for a diet of all forage

 

[Till-Hill]

Thanks texas bred. Even you just beef guys, putting up high quality forage=saving money,more growth and just better doing cattle. It's not hard to see. My beef cows once bred as heifers only get hay/pasture and mineral. Usually just first crop bales and corn stalks and a protein/mineral lick tub in winter.

 

[TexasBred]

Thanks texas bred. Even you just beef guys, putting up high quality forage=saving money,more growth and just better doing cattle. It's not hard to see. My beef cows once bred as heifers only get hay/pasture and mineral. Usually just first crop bales and corn stalks and a protein/mineral lick tub in winter.

If your location and climate will allow it that's the way to go. Afterall cattle do love grass. ;-)

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Till-Hill - when you get a chance, would you please click User's Control at top of page & fill in your location. That way we all know where each other is located. Thanks.

 

[Amo]

OK I miss typed. You had down a energy to protein ratio @ 4:1. I stated it backwards. What Im asking is if your growing something out, I would think you would need more protein and not so much energy. Im pretty green at all this TMR stuff. Untill 2006, I fed the calves a 14% protein corn/ alf dehey mix and the best hay I got. So Im still learning the ration stuff.

 

[TexasBred]

OK I miss typed. You had down a energy to protein ratio @ 4:1. I stated it backwards. What Im asking is if your growing something out, I would think you would need more protein and not so much energy. Im pretty green at all this TMR stuff. Untill 2006, I fed the calves a 14% protein corn/ alf dehey mix and the best hay I got. So Im still learning the ration stuff.

You need a high quality feed with an adequate energy level. That usually means a lot of corn and/or added fat. Think in "calories". Energy is measured in calories. Meet the animals maintenance needs and excess calories go to gain. They'll gain on the mix you fed but more slowly due to it's lower energy content.

 

[IL cow man]

I'm definitely not an expert, but most of the creep rations discussed are using corn. Corn is high in starch. Creep rations are fed on pasture( I assume). I would look more at feeding a soyhull pellet or a oat type product or any product which has more of a cellulose fiber/energy source. On forage the rumen will be full of cellulosic bacterial digesters instead of starch digesters. I assume, the more you switch the rumen to starch digesters the less benefit you are getting from the forages being fed. The same applies to distillers or gluten being high in starch.

 

[Amo]

Ya my grain mix was post weaning. When I crept it was a wheat mid/soy hul type of product. My calves still got fleshy on that. My ave cow wt is around 12-1300. I think thats what bit me the most on creeping. Not enough frame to be getting grain at that time. Plus I don't calve till mid march. Grain mix is cheaper, but does just what you said.

Ya I know megacal. So the ration that Till-Hill says....whats that megacal? I backgrounded my calves on a ration this year which ran from 42-28. Ya I know thats green, but in my country if you push em too hard they dock the heck out of you. It was a cheaper ration than using a lot of corn. They didn't gain like you say because of not a lot of energy, but they paid the bills. It just supriesed me when I read that sounded like lots and lots of energy. I assumed that you got more " muscle growth" out of protein, than corn. The ratio just sounded weird. When you mention to overcome maitnence I can see 4:1 I guess.

 

[TexasBred]

I'm definitely not an expert, but most of the creep rations discussed are using corn. Corn is high in starch. Creep rations are fed on pasture( I assume). I would look more at feeding a soyhull pellet or a oat type product or any product which has more of a cellulose fiber/energy source. On forage the rumen will be full of cellulosic bacterial digesters instead of starch digesters. I assume, the more you switch the rumen to starch digesters the less benefit you are getting from the forages being fed. The same applies to distillers or gluten being high in starch.

There should definitley be some roughage in the diet to maintain proper rumen health for digesting the grains and roughages and in extremely high grain diets buffers are often used to maintain rumen ph. , but when someone says "creep" (as coming from a bag) don't assume it has a lot of corn. Most don't. Corn gluten feed and distillers actually contain very little starch as it's removed during processing.