Drought

[dt34715]

I have my 1600 lb bull in an acre lot and there is no pasture left due to the drought.

How much feed should give him per day?

 

[Caustic Burno]

I have my 1600 lb bull in an acre lot and there is no pasture left due to the drought.

How much feed should give him per day?

None, with today's slaughter bull prices haul him to the barn.
Pocket the money to fight another day.

 

[Lee VanRoss]

I have my 1600 lb bull in an acre lot and there is no pasture left due to the drought.

How much feed should give him per day?

45-50 lbs per day with at least a 10 % protein value. Allow at least10 cents per lb for feed and $2 a day for your time.
So figure about $6 a day in feed, maintenance and labor. Quite honestly I think you knew the answer before you asked
the question, and if not, the result. Good Luck!

 

[DCA farm]

If I wasn't using him. And our prices here are At $0.70- $1.08 I'd let somebody else figure out how much ti feed him.

 

[Brute 23]

Does he have access to a round bale or are you on straight feed?

I know this wasn't part of the question but I will add some grey to the black and white answers here. How long until you will need him again?

There are people far better at feeding cattle than me on here but I would suggest if you don't have a bale you might look in to one. I've held bulls in small areas with a round bale and some feed a couple times a week. Even with high hay prices, a good quality bale would save on quite a bit of labor and, imo, keep forage on his mind. If you don't make it a day or two with feed he will be fine.

When you are hand feeding daily, you better be there every... single... day.

 

[greybeard]

Does he have access to a round bale or are you on straight feed?

I know this wasn't part of the question but I will add some grey to the black and white answers here. How long until you will need him again?

There are people far better at feeding cattle than me on here but I would suggest if you don't have a bale you might look in to one. I've held bulls in small areas with a round bale and some feed a couple times a week. Even with high hay prices, a good quality bale would save on quite a bit of labor and, imo, keep forage on his mind. If you don't make it a day or two with feed he will be fine.

When you are hand feeding daily, you better be there every... single... day.

and good water every day, Hand feeding and poor or minimum water can turn toxic real quick.

 

[faster horses]

Water is the MOST important nutrient.

 

[TexasBred]

Standing around doing nothing he needs little except all the water he can drink, a shade tree and some low quality hay.

 

[Lee VanRoss]

I have my 1600 lb bull in an acre lot and there is no pasture left due to the drought.

How much feed should give him per day?

You may receive a more precise response if you can tell us more about any plans for the bull
and the rest of your herd, if any. In any case at 1600 lb I would guess him to be a young bull
and that you would want to keep him in good condition.

 

[Katpau]

You did not ask whether you should feed or sell, so I am not sure why you are getting so much advice in that area. That would be a more complicated question that would depend on many factors. It seems to me that the people who recommend selling have made a number of assumptions that may or may not be correct. You wanted to know how much to feed, so I'll provide my recommendations. It may not be right in your situation, but it is what I would do.

One of the first to answer suggested 45-50 pounds per day. To me that seems extreme. I suppose if you're letting him eat free choice on a round bale, that might be correct. He would likely make a bed out of as much as 50% of that, so that might be reasonable, but with the high price of hay now, there is no way I would feed free choice. I am going to assume you have the ability to feed daily, so you should feed just what they need. There is no point in letting anything go to waste at these prices. I have panels where the cattle reach in and eat off a cement floor. There is no waste at all, and I can keep 1300-1400 pound dry cows' in good condition in winter on about 20-22 pounds of dry matter per day. (hay)

I have a chart I use to help me plan my feeding. According to that chart a 1600-pound bull will need 26.5 pounds of dry matter with a TDN of about 48.4% and with at least 6.9% protein, fed daily to maintain his weight. To gain 1.0 pound per day he will 29.7 pounds of dry matter with a TDN of about 55.8% and with at least 7.3% protein, fed daily. To gain 1.5 pound per day he will 30.4 pounds of dry matter with a TDN of about 59.7% and with at least 7.4% protein, fed daily. The chart also indicates other needs, such as calcium, phosphorus and Vitamin A. I always test my hay and supplement where needed. Find out what your hay is providing nutritionally with an inexpensive test from somewhere like "Dairy One". Plan how you will feed using that test.

I have never fed any of my bull's grain other than rye grass screening pellets. Screenings are very similar in nutrition to decent hay and they were cheap. I heard the price has skyrocketed this year because there was too much rain at harvest and the rye grass seed crop was severely limited. My bulls will likely get only hay this year. I have never had an issue with young bulls not growing well, or getting thin when out breeding cows. I understand that cattle in the Midwest get grain because it is the least expensive means to balance their ration, but I don't give grain to cows or bulls that are used for reproduction. Grain is what you use to finish cattle for slaughter. I think it can cause more harm than good, when fed to bulls or mama cows. That is just my opinion and I am sure others may argue that point. All I know is that in this area, cows have no problem calving at two, reaching a decent mature weight, and staying in the herd producing calves into their teens without ever tasting grain.

 

[dt34715]

I usually turn my bull out wit the cow around January 1st.

He has good water from a gravity flow spring. (Surprised it's still running)

I am feeding around 6 lbs of 14% feed and a little bit of hay. Maybe 2 blocks out of a 50lb square bale. I'm doing this every morning.

Should I do more or less?

 

[Hippie Rancher]

what kind of hay? I would think a bull should get half to nearly a whole 50 lb bale per day.

 

[Son of Butch]

I usually turn my bull out with the cow around January 1st.
He has good water from a gravity flow spring. I am feeding around 6 lbs of 14% feed and a little bit of hay. Maybe 2 blocks out of a 50lb square bale. I'm doing this every morning.

Should I do more or less?

He must be eating plenty of grass if all he wants to eat is 2 blocks of a small square bale of hay. I'd give him 2 more blocks in the evening and see if it's cleaned up when you feed him in the morning and adjust from there. Maybe 3 blocks a day is all the hay he wants for now. I assume he has access to salt and mineral.

edited to add: You should be doing more.
Just saw that he's a growing 1600# bull with no pasture access
1600 lbs x 2% = needs 32 lbs of dry matter per day
50 lb bale at 14% m = 43 lbs of d.m. per bale
6 lbs of grain (5 lb dm) + 27 lbs of d.m. hay = 32 lbs of d.m.

he should be eating 2/3 of a small sq bale daily aka 4 bales every 6 days
(with waste) in a month or two he should be going through 5 bales a week

 

[TexasRancher]

None, with today's slaughter bull prices haul him to the barn.
Pocket the money to fight another day.

......or spend money like crazy and fight everyday. Whatever you decide don't punish your hungry-thinning bull if you can't afford to keep him.

 

[greybeard]

According to that chart a 1600-pound bull will need 26.5 pounds of dry matter with a TDN of about 48.4% and with at least 6.9% protein, fed daily to maintain his weight.

This is the part a lot of people, especially in drought times, winter, and 'not quite as experienced' people miss.
Nutrition for maintenance at current condition.

Growing a bull or keeping him in top condition during a heavy breeding season will usually require more.