Feeding Area

[ClinchValley86]

I despise the thought of a feedlot, but here I find myself in the early stages of running one. Lol. What do you do...

I've got 4 metal feed troughs on the top of a hill by my house. I think I am about to build a fenceline setup so I don't have to tromp in the mud. That, or pour a concrete pad to feed them on. Or a combination of both. This mud is getting to me already. Am headed out now to scrape it clean.

I'm curious what kind of setup you all are doing. Pictures would be appreciated if anyone felt compelled to share some.

Would like to be able to do 15 at a time, but be able to make it longer when the time comes.

I'm liking the concrete J bunk feeders. Also thought about building a shed against the fence line. Put feeders on the back wall and be able to feed from inside the structure. Animals on the outside back wall.

I would like to be doing grass finished, but have headed the other direction. Just don't have the time or money to go that route. Nor the demand. Might try with a couple this summer.

Wish I could find a way of keeping them on a good daily grass rotation and still give them the corn. But thatd be a pain in the arse I already know.

Just curious how yall are doing it.

Merry Christmas to everyone!

 

[Stocker Steve]

Fence line is good.
Just a single hot wire if you can move them periodically.
Graveled lanes if you seldom move them,
Year-round operations pour a cement lane for the TMR and a cement strip for the cattle.

 

[Mountaintown Creek Ranch]

I built a corral with a covered area, calf pen, feed room, chute, feed bunks, creep feeder and water tank in it.
It is high and drains well.
I keep the hay ring a couple minutes walk away from there. Also on a high spot.
I do my best to keep them out of the death mud.

 

[wbvs58]

I built a corral with a covered area, calf pen, feed room, chute, feed bunks, creep feeder and water tank in it.
It is high and drains well.
I keep the hay ring a couple minutes walk away from there. Also on a high spot.
I do my best to keep them out if the death mud.

Looks well done.

Ken

 

[wbvs58]

Anything with a fence between you and them is good. They don't respect you when food is on the table especially dangerous if your boots are stuck in the mud.

Ken

 

[Ky hills]

We have a barn lot fixed with filter cloth, and graveled with a dense grade gravel mix on top. It sets up pretty hard and can be scraped off. Keeps us from having to walk in deep mud with the feed, and can fasten the cattle out until ready to feed them.

 

[Dave]

I tried to find pictures of the set up I had on the coast but I must not have saved any. I had feed panels set up with concrete on the cattle side. The concrete went out 24 feet. There was a simple roof that went out 10 or 12 feet on the cows side and 5 feet on the feed side. I stayed on the feed side. It was an old ancient gravel bar from the river with lots of rock. The mud on my side never got more than a inch or two deep. Lacking that I would have just rocked it or poured a concrete lane.

The pictures are what I have here. Mud isn't an issue here. It doesn't rain here and there is serious rock about 1 inch down. There is concrete that sticks out 6-8 feet on the cows side. It is concrete under the feed bunk. I could feed grain in it but the calves there now are too small to reach the bottom so I use the homemade troughs.

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

Nice set up Mountain Creek Ranch.

 

[Mountaintown Creek Ranch]

Thanks guys .
It works really well.
The lumber came from the woods we cut down. We didn't process it ourselves. But it was still cool to use lumber from the woods we cut down.
It wasn't really too expensive if you don't count the chute.

 

[ClinchValley86]

Thanks guys .
It works really well.
The lumber came from the woods we cut down. We didn't process it ourselves. But it was still cool to use lumber from the woods we cut down.
It wasn't really too expensive if you don't count the chute.

Very nice. Very Very nice.

 

[ClinchValley86]

@Dave That sounds like about what I've got in mind. Going to let this current group pay for some type of setup.

Gravel or concrete is my hang up. Will be scraped by machine for sure.

How much room do you guys/gals allow per animal at the bunk. 3 or 4 feet per animal sound about right?

 

[ClinchValley86]

Anything with a fence between you and them is good. They don't respect you when food is on the table especially dangerous if your boots are stuck in the mud.

Ken

I almost was clobbered two nights ago. It's dark this time of year when I get to feed them, morning and evening. With 12 in there, it's nerve wrecking. Eventually I will get hurt if I don't get something proper.

 

[sstterry]

Here are some ideas from the Ky Ext. Service.

 

[BFE]

I built a corral with a covered area, calf pen, feed room, chute, feed bunks, creep feeder and water tank in it.
It is high and drains well.
I keep the hay ring a couple minutes walk away from there. Also on a high spot.
I do my best to keep them out of the death mud.

Durn that's too pretty to run cattle in!

 

[gizmom]

I built a corral with a covered area, calf pen, feed room, chute, feed bunks, creep feeder and water tank in it.
It is high and drains well.
I keep the hay ring a couple minutes walk away from there. Also on a high spot.
I do my best to keep them out of the death mud.

Very nice set up

 

[gizmom]

The boss built a new feed pen at the home place this year. We develop our bulls and our freezer beef program at this location. He used geo textiles sheeting covered with recycled asphalt in the pen the drive area is recycled concrete. It is working great has eliminated the mud hole

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

Awesome setup mom.

 

[Mountaintown Creek Ranch]

Excellent setup.
What are the cattle standing on ? Looks very clean !

 

[Ky hills]

Here is our setup. It's been a while since it was cleaned off, but having a rock bed underneath makes walking a lot easier. It is set up where I can let cattle in from 3 different fields. A lot safer to put the feed out and then let them in to eat. I've got some bred heifers in a far field that I have to walk through to feed, it can get hairy walking through them and mud. Will be bringing them back over here soon.

 

[Nick Wagner]

@Dave That sounds like about what I've got in mind. Going to let this current group pay for some type of setup.

Gravel or concrete is my hang up. Will be scraped by machine for sure.

How much room do you guys/gals allow per animal at the bunk. 3 or 4 feet per animal sound about right?

Two feet on average, horned or large cattle need more. Allow room for expansion. Eight head will fight over six spaces.