gallowaygirl":13o38cnq said:
Bez+":13o38cnq said:
Where are you located?NW Washington
How many cows?Two now, three in a week or two
Weather conditions? It rains, ALOT
Cow condition?BCS 4.5 on one cow, and my heifer is about a 5.5
Feed available in woods?Not much, but I switch them to a different pasture for the day every day or so (both halte-broke, I just lead them there. There is a lot of grass in that field, but the fence isn't hot, so they don't get to spend the night
Types of shelter?smallish lean-to, they fit just fine, and are only in there when they want to eat, plus there are a lot of big trees
Eating snow or drinking water through the winter?Water mainly, snow doesn't last long around here
All important questions that need to be taken into consideration before a decent answer can be given.
Grain may be required and more importantly it may NOT be required. Better to spend as little as possible.
I can tell you that if you are talking small squares, they need a lot more per cow than a 1/4 bale. Throw a bunch of hay out there - when it is almost all cleaned up - that is the right amount. Suspect there is very little loose hay lying around after you feed your animals.I was only giving a 1/4 a bale because they had grass, now I am giving them about 1/2 a bale a day, plus two flakes of nice second cutting horse hay. They are also getting about 7 pounds of grain a day (3 pounds alfalfa pellets, 1.5 pounds all stock, 2.5 pounds cattle developer (grower/finisher/maintenance grain)
In my area we plan on using 10 round bales (6 footers) per cow per winter. So you can see that there are many variables to your question - more info please.
Bez+
Thanks!!
Sounds to me like they might be hungry for hay. Cows like to be full.
You ever put pour on over them for parasite control? If not, do it - they will do better for it.
You up that hay amount and you might be able to get rid of the grain feed - it is a big expense. Depends on your goals.
Feeding for killing or feeding for breeding.
My cows would have thought they died and gone to heaven with all that grain - but I figure they eat almost 40 pounds of hay per day per animal when they are on full winter feedyard hay.
You will be using 21 pounds of grain a day pretty soon - a big expense. That horse hay is not cheap either.
We tend to test our bales. The lowest quality stuff gets fed out first, then we feed out the middle quality - last trimester (we calve in the spring) we feed the good stuff. Hay generally runs around the following: First feeding period - 7-8% / Second feeding period - 9-10% / Last feeding period - 11% or better. Much more and they just p!ss it all out on the ground anyways.
Good quality hay in a healthy normal cow and the grain can go down the road for all but exceptionally cold conditions.
We do not grain at all - well almost never. We used to but the return did not justify it as prices dropped. In fact we toss anything that needs to be grained on a steady basis now. If a cow cannot raise her calf on good hay until pastures come up she no longer stays. Genetics is key to this. Do not fall in love with them - if they are poor doers and need lots of TLC - well , there is a pasture in the sky specifically designated for them.
You might try feeding in a hay ring or as we call it - a round feeder - free choice. Consumption will go up dramatically initially but eventually will level off.
And you might run a wire around the field that has good grass in it. One strand will do it for quiet animals - over the long run it will be far cheaper than buying grain and horse hay.
You are on site and only you can know for sure.
I bet your costs are over $2.50 per day per animal - maybe even more than $3.00.
Fine if it is a hobby and you do not mind spending the money - but you need to throw a pencil on your paper and ask yourself if there are ways to do it better and cut costs while maintaining herd health.
Lots of other folks here have raised animals in your part of the world and done real well - but for the most part I would say they free choice the hay when there is no grass - I am sure they will chime in if I am wrong.
Just some thoughts for you to consider.
Bez+