I am starting in a couple months to background some steers. I will be feeding hay and grain and or they might be in the pasture grazing if at all possible. I want to know what would be a good grain/ grain mixture to accomplish what i want to be done, gain weight.
Feed Diet
- Thread starter gto05
- Start date
Backgrounding?
Cheaper the better - pasture and no inputs other than salt and mineral will probably be just fine.
Every ton of grain / hay you buy / every input you purchase / every trough or staple or nail or wire you buy / eats into your profit.
Simple math. Average 2 pounds per day growth on pasture for a 550 pounder. Cost of grain broken down to cost per pound - if you get another pound of gain per day - then how much have you gained?
You feed any 10 cows 5 pounds of grain per head per day - do they all get 5 pounds - nope. The aggressive eater gets 7 and the quiet eater gets 3. Unless of course you separate them - not efficient nor always easy. What is the cost of grain in your area? The cost of hay?
You have to figure the price you will receive when you sell them - how's your crystal ball gazing? - unless it is an agreed upon price in advance to a buyer.
Cost of pasture - even if it is yours there are costs - taxes / fertilizer / fences / weed control / mortgage if any / and so on.
Remember - you have to figure in time, fence fixing, hauling, feeding and so on. Lots more costs - equipment? Fuel? Supplies? Vet? etc ....
In the end in this part of the world if you have good pasture, water, some mineral and salt, the returns are actually better than throwing them in a lot and buying feed.
If you are doing this as a hobby and throwing home earned money at it - well, then the sky is the limit on what you might spend. And any good feed rep will be glad to help you spend your money.
Sharpen that pencil, break out the calculator and hope like heck the gods smile on you - lose a couple to disease / accident or whatever and you are now in the hole - no matter how sharp your pencil is.
Maybe different where you are, but I suspect not much. Good luck - hope you make a dollar.
Spend NO money that is not TRULY necessary to graze the animal.
Otherwise we can all sit down and tell you the best way to put weight on an animal. Lots of grain, free choice good hay, lots of clean water, 100% safe confinement, regular vet check for herd health, good shelter, and so on. That all costs.
So to close out - yup, weight gain is important and you wanted to know what to feed. In the end it should be your local ag rep, successful farmer neighbour, calculator and pencil that will tell you. But only after you research the potential input costs and have an accurate guesstimate on the price you will get for them when you sell them.
Long answer and not being snippy - keep them fed and they will grow. Have a great day.
Regards
Bez
Cheaper the better - pasture and no inputs other than salt and mineral will probably be just fine.
Every ton of grain / hay you buy / every input you purchase / every trough or staple or nail or wire you buy / eats into your profit.
Simple math. Average 2 pounds per day growth on pasture for a 550 pounder. Cost of grain broken down to cost per pound - if you get another pound of gain per day - then how much have you gained?
You feed any 10 cows 5 pounds of grain per head per day - do they all get 5 pounds - nope. The aggressive eater gets 7 and the quiet eater gets 3. Unless of course you separate them - not efficient nor always easy. What is the cost of grain in your area? The cost of hay?
You have to figure the price you will receive when you sell them - how's your crystal ball gazing? - unless it is an agreed upon price in advance to a buyer.
Cost of pasture - even if it is yours there are costs - taxes / fertilizer / fences / weed control / mortgage if any / and so on.
Remember - you have to figure in time, fence fixing, hauling, feeding and so on. Lots more costs - equipment? Fuel? Supplies? Vet? etc ....
In the end in this part of the world if you have good pasture, water, some mineral and salt, the returns are actually better than throwing them in a lot and buying feed.
If you are doing this as a hobby and throwing home earned money at it - well, then the sky is the limit on what you might spend. And any good feed rep will be glad to help you spend your money.
Sharpen that pencil, break out the calculator and hope like heck the gods smile on you - lose a couple to disease / accident or whatever and you are now in the hole - no matter how sharp your pencil is.
Maybe different where you are, but I suspect not much. Good luck - hope you make a dollar.
Spend NO money that is not TRULY necessary to graze the animal.
Otherwise we can all sit down and tell you the best way to put weight on an animal. Lots of grain, free choice good hay, lots of clean water, 100% safe confinement, regular vet check for herd health, good shelter, and so on. That all costs.
So to close out - yup, weight gain is important and you wanted to know what to feed. In the end it should be your local ag rep, successful farmer neighbour, calculator and pencil that will tell you. But only after you research the potential input costs and have an accurate guesstimate on the price you will get for them when you sell them.
Long answer and not being snippy - keep them fed and they will grow. Have a great day.
Regards
Bez
Say I have hay already,(brome) put it in a bale ring and put them on 3-5 acres and supplement them with a little grain. Good fence, dont have to worry about fertilizer, no weed control, some rent to pay. Fuel, hauling is taken care of. Maybe a vet visit or 2. What would be the problem with that? Any suggestions on this situation?
No probs - small acreage - so pehaps a couple of animals - sell them as local beef grass finished - would probably pay if you get lucky. But in the end if you break even be happy. You can put a side or a whole animal in your own freezer and be way, way ahead on that account - sell the other to cover the cost of your own animal.
I'm figuring three animals maximum - until I get more input from you.
Divvy up the ground into two sites with a single hot wire and you will probably be able to get away with minimal inputs. And the grass lasts longer. Keep the hay in storage if the grass is good - it may come in handy down the road. Sometimes grass runs short - it's nice to have the hay available.
A coffee can of grain for each animal every couple of days while on grass is all they need - low cost - low cost - low cost.
Keeps them coming to you when you call them - very nice - especially if they ever get out. Once they get onto it, they'll come on the run for it.
What is your location and what is the growing season like?
In the end, once you figure what it will cost you to buy the quality of meat you get - there should be enough room to make a couple of bucks.
If you factor in the enjoyment of raising and eating your own - well, that in itself is darned near priceless.
If the location and the weather and the timing is right. And you can find the right animals - then you might even get away with no animals to keep over the winter - BONUS!! Winter keep is all cost and no cash flow.
But guaranteed - if things go right - you will eventually want to breed a couple of your own - prices go up again!
Try to barter away the rent with meat provided your rent is low enough. If it is not, then you are going to be in the negative situation right from the start.
If landowner wants land kept up and is not worried about a small amount of money - then it is in his/her interest as well to have a couple of animals on the ground. You do all the things to keep the land in good shape and the fences in one piece and so on.
Trust me - margins are low in this business - otherwise everybody would be doing it.
Stay small - be cheap and have fun. People will buy your beef - just tell your friends and neighbours and family. Grass finished is good and people like the natural taste.
Stay well,
Bez
I'm figuring three animals maximum - until I get more input from you.
Divvy up the ground into two sites with a single hot wire and you will probably be able to get away with minimal inputs. And the grass lasts longer. Keep the hay in storage if the grass is good - it may come in handy down the road. Sometimes grass runs short - it's nice to have the hay available.
A coffee can of grain for each animal every couple of days while on grass is all they need - low cost - low cost - low cost.
Keeps them coming to you when you call them - very nice - especially if they ever get out. Once they get onto it, they'll come on the run for it.
What is your location and what is the growing season like?
In the end, once you figure what it will cost you to buy the quality of meat you get - there should be enough room to make a couple of bucks.
If you factor in the enjoyment of raising and eating your own - well, that in itself is darned near priceless.
If the location and the weather and the timing is right. And you can find the right animals - then you might even get away with no animals to keep over the winter - BONUS!! Winter keep is all cost and no cash flow.
But guaranteed - if things go right - you will eventually want to breed a couple of your own - prices go up again!
Try to barter away the rent with meat provided your rent is low enough. If it is not, then you are going to be in the negative situation right from the start.
If landowner wants land kept up and is not worried about a small amount of money - then it is in his/her interest as well to have a couple of animals on the ground. You do all the things to keep the land in good shape and the fences in one piece and so on.
Trust me - margins are low in this business - otherwise everybody would be doing it.
Stay small - be cheap and have fun. People will buy your beef - just tell your friends and neighbours and family. Grass finished is good and people like the natural taste.
Stay well,
Bez
