Mineral

[partimer]

Well yesterday I put out a 50 pound bag of good mineral and it was gone in a few minutes...Guess I better get some more out today. I may look into the moormans since my brother is a dealer. Also, about this calving season, I have been around pigs and sows and showing them all my life and there is a certain time to breed, but for my cows we just keep the bull on them all the time. How do I know when theyre in heat? When theyre pregnant? I have 2 heifers that I think should be close to having some?

 

[RICHARDL]

Ha Ha , i though i was the only one that did things that a way, Yea, my bull stays with them all the time also, So far 2 calves from him & 2 of my heifers, 2 more on the way. The only problem i had was from a Reg. cow i bought preg. It didn't make it. I know they go thru a 250# mineral tub pretty quickly Its 1/2 gone after 2 weeks and thats only 6 momma cows 1 bull. haven't re-checked the mineral feeder in a few days. I don't really think they like the purina wind & rain very much. :cowboy:

 

[Angus Cowman]

Ha Ha , i though i was the only one that did things that a way, Yea, my bull stays with them all the time also, So far 2 calves from him & 2 of my heifers, 2 more on the way. The only problem i had was from a Reg. cow i bought preg. It didn't make it. I know they go thru a 250# mineral tub pretty quickly Its 1/2 gone after 2 weeks and thats only 6 momma cows 1 bull. haven't re-checked the mineral feeder in a few days. I don't really think they like the purina wind & rain very much. :cowboy:

Why??
I have used it for several yrs and have triedother brands and I always go back
Do you not think they are eating enough
If I recall correctly they should only average about 1/4 lb per day -1/2lb per hd per day sometimes mine eat more and sometimes they eat less

 

[dun]

We tried the purina once when I couldn;t get vigortone. After a month when the vigortone came in they still hadn;t touched the purina. They cleaned up the first 100 lbs of vigortone in a week once I got it back out.

 

[Angus Cowman]

We tried the purina once when I couldn;t get vigortone. After a month when the vigortone came in they still hadn;t touched the purina. They cleaned up the first 100 lbs of vigortone in a week once I got it back out.

mine won't touch the Vigortone tried it a couple yrs ago because I don't have a purina dealer close by and thought I would try what was convenient that backfired gave 1000lb of the Vigortone to a neighbor and I think he still has alot of it in his barn

 

[RICHARDL]

I just need to find something they like, i mixed the purina in when i feed them. and if there is to much in some of the piles, they won't touch it. so now i just throw it on top of the mineral tub. and they are slowly finishing it off. after this bag i doubt i get more. purina. May see what else everyone is selling most of, or what most are using. Or maybe they just don't need it???? Hmm doubt it . Maybe I'll try the vigortone?? :cowboy:

 

[TexasBred]

I just need to find something they like, i mixed the purina in when i feed them. and if there is to much in some of the piles, they won't touch it. so now i just throw it on top of the mineral tub. and they are slowly finishing it off. after this bag i doubt i get more. purina. May see what else everyone is selling most of, or what most are using. Or maybe they just don't need it???? Hmm doubt it . Maybe I'll try the vigortone?? :cowboy:

This does happen. No need to encourage excessive consumption. I'd think a good evaluation of your operation will let you now if things are working well or not.

 

[RICHARDL]

WELL, i guess overall. its been, out of poor, fair, good or excellent. i'd have to say GOOD. I bought my first pair of heifers in July 2 years ago. the only problem i had was from a (purchased) reg. Angus 5 yr. old preg. cow. we lost her calf after 4 days. other than that. they all have good coats. I have 3 calfes, 2 from heifers, 1 from a Angus heifer 1 from Brangus heifer 1 from a 5 yr.old Angus 7 head total. All heathy. I don't feed a whole lot. because i don't have any way to purchase feed in bulk. Working on that now. All relatively calm cows except for one brangus heifer. She just a Witch w/a B but great looking heifer soon to be a momma cow. But she doens't give me any problems. But that all with me mixing the purina in with the food or mineral tub. :cowboy:

 

[bandit80]

Vigortone makes a quality mineral. I stopped using that last year and started using Vita Firm. It has amaferm in it, which increases digestibility of the forage. It really helps in the fall and through the winter with the digestibility of forages.

 

[jedstivers]

SO WHAT brand of mineral do yall use. I 'm using a mineral tub right now, sup-a lix? 25% and i have loose mineral in "Duns" mineral feeder. Purina wind n rain. but i'm not sure they are touching the wind & rain. they definetly use the tub & the trace mineral/salt block :cowboy:

I'm using a custom mix made for what we are grazing this winter made by Sunbelt Minerals in Sulfer Springs TX.

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

That Vita Ferm is good stuff Bandit80. Been using it for awhile now.

 

[TexasBred]

Vigortone makes a quality mineral. I stopped using that last year and started using Vita Firm. It has amaferm in it, which increases digestibility of the forage. It really helps in the fall and through the winter with the digestibility of forages.

Hey there Bandit..good to see you again. I've fed the Vitaferm mineral in the past but then store quit handling it....have used the Amaferm in mixes for years and can tell you "it is good stuff" and worth every penny it costs. Used to give every dairy cow a couple of Amaferm bolus' when they calved and would use the paste on every bottle calf.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

studies have proved that cattle can not tell how much, or what kind of mineral they need. most mineral companies put salt in with the mineral so the cattle will eat the mineral. almost always they limit the salt, so the cattle will eat more mineral than they need to sell more mineral

Please show me one of the studies.
The salt is used as a limiter and hides the taste of other minerals such as phosphorous which they would not eat at all without the salt. If the salt was put in so they would eat more then it would be gone in a short period of time. I think molasses would work a little better.
It is the opinion of most experienced cattle operators that the cattle will consume quite a bit of mineral when first put out. The amount they consume becomes less until they reach the point of maintenance.
gabby; Maybe you should have had your cattle that died autopsied instead of assuming it was the mineral.

Years ago (maybe still) there was a mineral that you put out as seperate minerals, and the cows were supposed to PICK the ones they needed and as much as they needed.
There were studies proving cows did not KNOW what ones they needed more than others. But, cows definately eat mineral at different amounts/levels depending on the food source/quality.
We put salt in our mineral (I believe its about 23%).
Gabby - I also think you should have checked other sources than the mineral.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

For the one that posted that the only thing they could SEE was that their hair coat was better. If their hair coat is better, than they were lacking something that is in the mineral and I would bet you it was "helping" more than the hair.

 

[novaman]

For the one that posted that the only thing they could SEE was that their hair coat was better. If their hair coat is better, than they were lacking something that is in the mineral and I would bet you it was "helping" more than the hair.

I was thinking the same thing. Unfortunately, far to many must SEE the improvements to agree there actually is improvement in performance. I've been told with minerals the first aspect that takes a hit is immune function and reproduction. As the cow becomes more restricted on mineral intake the growth and physical appearance start to decline. So, even though you don't physically see improvements in your cattle, if they are consuming mineral, odds are there is improvement in the health and performance of the animal.

 

[BILL CLAYLAND]

We have a local mill near the house, they sell grain, feed and fertilizer.
I get 50 lb bags loose mineral. On the label it say HI-Mag Beef. the store tells me its what all the beef producers use.

They did ask if i had dairy cows and since i have Hereford x she said, Hi Mag. Ill have to post the ingredients.

Funny is the cattle seem to eat it but, they are hoping its grain.

Bill

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

"Usually" the only time we need High Magnesium in our mineral would be in the flush of spring, when there is a chance of --- oh shoot --- can't think of what it's called --- someone out there, help. Cattle can die from it, usually when you turn out for the first time on lush grasses. Not bloat. Duh, senior moment (moment heck - all the time!) :banana:
Anyway, beef cattle should have a higher phospherous over calcium - like 2 P : 1 C, whereas dairy cattle usualy need just the opposite. Because beef cattle get (or should get) all their nutrition from grasses or hay which is high in calcium. And dairy cattle get the majority of thei nutrition from grain.

Oh, Oh, I remember!! Grass tetany!!! yahoo - old brain kicked in. :banana: :banana:

 

[gberry]

For the one that posted that the only thing they could SEE was that their hair coat was better. If their hair coat is better, than they were lacking something that is in the mineral and I would bet you it was "helping" more than the hair.

I was thinking the same thing. Unfortunately, far to many must SEE the improvements to agree there actually is improvement in performance. I've been told with minerals the first aspect that takes a hit is immune function and reproduction. As the cow becomes more restricted on mineral intake the growth and physical appearance start to decline. So, even though you don't physically see improvements in your cattle, if they are consuming mineral, odds are there is improvement in the health and performance of the animal.

I was the one that posted it. We have scales that help us "see" how the calves are performing and it's even easier to "see" the ones that don't get bred. What I'm saying is claims made by Vigortone of improved reproductive performance and 40 lb increase in weaning weights did not occur on our place. It could have been due to using the wrong mineral, but we used the only one the Vigortone rep in our area carried. I'm sure it's a good mineral and I'm not really badmouthing the company, it just didn't work for us. We've had better results with Moorman's and even though it's more expensive per bag, the cows only average about 2oz per head per day so it ends up being cheaper.

 

[TexasBred]

gb , some minerals are formulated for a 2 oz consumption....some at 4 oz. IF the consumption rate is said to be 2oz per head per day, the guarantees on allthe vitamins and mineral should also be about double what the guarantees are for the mineral with the 4 oz consumption recommendation.

Jeanne...beef cattle get along well with a 1:1 cahos ration or even a 2:1 cah ratio but not a 2:1 phos:cal ration. You might use that type mineral in a dairy dry cow program if you were also using anionic salts. Also dairy cattle do get a lot of grain BUT also must have an equal amount of roughage. A good dairy ration might contain 28-30 lbs. of what we would refer to as a "grain mix" ....corn, by-products, protein source etc and and equal amount of grass hay, alfalfa, grazing, etc. Grain alone is never a good ration in any situation.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

I just pulled out mineral mix formula (custom blend) and I correct my salt % - it's 15.8 dry matter.
Our calcium is 5.4 & phosphorus is 10.2
Sorry, I didn't mean to imply that dairy cattle only received grain. Just that their diet is high in grain compared to beef cattle.