protein tub

[libertygarden]

I've been feeding hay to 20 head and the protein tub is half full going of 3 weeks. So either the cows don't like it or they are getting enough protein from hay.

I stay away from tube that contain fly control. I used them once in June and didn't make dent and are a lot more expensive. Plus, they also kill earth worms.

 

[callmefence]

I've got tubs out right now but I'm not feeding any hay. The cows are on dry grass stockpile with some winter grass.
tubs are for saving labor. That's it. Supplementing plentiful but low caliber grazing. If your setting hay out every day you might as well feed a better and cheaper supplement while you're out there. I'm sure alfalfa is ok but I'll go with cottonseed.

 

[Brute 23]

I've been feeding hay to 20 head and the protein tub is half full going of 3 weeks. So either the cows don't like it or they are getting enough protein from hay.

I stay away from tube that contain fly control. I used them once in June and didn't make dent and are a lot more expensive. Plus, they also kill earth worms.

Do you read the labels on the tubs for how much per head per day a cow should consume?

I'm not advocating using the tubs with fly control but it not an instant deal when you put one out. You have to keep the tubs out on a regular basis so the cow is constantly taking it in for it to work.

 

[CowboyRam]

The cold is why many in the intermountain west feed alfalfa. Many on here mock the use of alfalfa . But alfalfa hay has many documented advantages over grass type hay's. But I think the one that gets overlooked the most is the speed at which the energy is available to cattle. Alfalfa is digested and available in half the time as grass type feeds . It also has many more nutrients that aren't available in grass type hays. This is very important to pregnant cows. Alfalfa Leeds to better vigor in newborn calves as well as higher percentage of breeding back sooner.
Tubs have their place. They are cost effective in the fall/early winter if you have a lot of standing forage with low nutrients levels. Tubs will increase consumption of standing dry forage .
But in cold weather alfalfa is far more cost effective.

Alfalfa is all I feed.

 

[libertygarden]

@Brute 23 I used the fly control tubs continuously the spring and summer of 2020. Didn't see much of an impact, and I only had 5 cows. Then, I read about the impact on soil life and gave up the practice all together. Ironically, the flies weren't much of an issue on 21 and 22.

 

[Allenw]

Tubs are a tool, just because they're for sale and the cows eat them doesn't mean you need them.

 

[rocfarm]

The cold is why many in the intermountain west feed alfalfa. Many on here mock the use of alfalfa . But alfalfa hay has many documented advantages over grass type hay's. But I think the one that gets overlooked the most is the speed at which the energy is available to cattle. Alfalfa is digested and available in half the time as grass type feeds . It also has many more nutrients that aren't available in grass type hays. This is very important to pregnant cows. Alfalfa Leeds to better vigor in newborn calves as well as higher percentage of breeding back sooner.
Tubs have their place. They are cost effective in the fall/early winter if you have a lot of standing forage with low nutrients levels. Tubs will increase consumption of standing dry forage .
But in cold weather alfalfa is far more cost effective.

That's spot on. Tubs are not cost-effective options. They are for convenience. If the cows are out on grass/stockpile and you can't cube them 3x a week or put out hay but you need extra protein to keep their rumen bacteria going so that they can eat more grass, you use tubs. I use the 30% protein cooked tubs and my cows eat about 1 lb per day. The added protein has been a good supplement to the forage and has worked well for me. This past summer tubs enabled my cattle to gain BCS even during the drought. Also, it allows me to forgo feeding hay for at least most of the winter and use stockpile/natural winter grass growth in my area that probably only adds up to only about 7% protein, which is also a big time cost savings (coming up on January and I still haven't put out hay once yet).

But I don't think I'd use tubs for stockers. They are growing and need at least 12 to 14% protein content I'd think.

Cows only need 8% protein to maintain condition and many here in Texas will gain condition fine on 10 to 11% protein…

 

[rocfarm]

@Brute 23 I used the fly control tubs continuously the spring and summer of 2020. Didn't see much of an impact, and I only had 5 cows. Then, I read about the impact on soil life and gave up the practice all together. Ironically, the flies weren't much of an issue on 21 and 22.

Nonissue in central Texas. My cows manure was dry within about 2 days because of the heat and drought. No place for the flies to reproduce.