HatCreekCattleco
Well-known member
Im interested to know how do all of you winter your dry, spring calving cows? How many winter them on only good hay? If you do supplement, what and how much do you feed?
Winter rations
- Thread starter HatCreekCattleco
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Silver
Well-known member
Ours get hay. Oat hay, oat baleage, dry hay and haylage. No supplemental feed. Started letting them have water a few years ago. I don't know if it did them any favours but it did make me feel better.
SBMF 2015
Well-known member
I have a spring and fall herd. They run on corn stalk residue all winter. They get 25lbs corn silage/ryelage, free choice grass hay, and free choice Purina wind and rain with avala.
Dave
Well-known member
Hay. Salt block and loose minerals. 2 years ago 83 head got 2 3x4x8 bales of grass hay a day. Twice a week one of those grass bales got substituted by an alfalfa bale. Worked out to about 28 pounds of hay a day of which 4 pounds is alfalfa.
Josher
Well-known member
This winter our cows are getting about 14 lbs hay 8 lbs S01 oats and 10-15 lbs oats straw and free choice mineral.
Sold some oats to a guy who's been feeding just oats and straw for 25 years.
With the drought hay prices have sky rocketed making one of the more expensive feeds.
Sold some oats to a guy who's been feeding just oats and straw for 25 years.
With the drought hay prices have sky rocketed making one of the more expensive feeds.
HatCreekCattleco
Well-known member
Water is a good filler I reckon
SBMF 2015
Well-known member
Hay is always one of the greatest expenses.
Hay, primarily brome, and a little over 3.5 lbs. 20% range nuggets/cubes daily.
Mine are strip grazing on stock piled sudex and what volunteer rye they can pick up. I did buy some 37% cubes and plan on giving them some a couple of times a week, about half of what I normally feed them. The strip grazing wasn't planned but the swather broke down, moving and the wife getting sick that's how things ended up being.
kenny thomas
Well-known member
Except for some trade cows and 30 weaned calves mine are still on stockpile fescue.
HatCreekCattleco
Well-known member
Are the cows on stockpile dry or do they have any calves on them?
kenny thomas
Well-known member
About 1/2 have small calves. Hope they all calve before I finish the stockpile.
kenny thomas
Well-known member
Read back on some topics of Stockpile Fescue. Normally my stockpile fescue is better protein than my hay.
chaded
Well-known member
Mine will graze fescue during part of the winter, some years better than others. Other then that they get hay, some is good and some is just ok but that is what I have. They can like it or lump it.
faster horses
Well-known member
Only hay and loose mineral. Not supplements and not much alfalfa hay. Some years no alfalfa hay. We give them plenty of it, enough there is some for them to clean up in the afternoon as our hay is dryland hay, mostly crested wheat. 9-10% protein. They have done fine on it for 25 years. We do make sure they have plenty. Our temperatures in winter could be very cold, plus
wind is a factor. The cows had good protection but it was still cold. Grass hay keeps them warmer than feeding straight alfalfa. We had artesian wells so they always had access to warmer water.
wind is a factor. The cows had good protection but it was still cold. Grass hay keeps them warmer than feeding straight alfalfa. We had artesian wells so they always had access to warmer water.
Jeanne - Simme Valley
Well-known member
Biggest difference is location.
I have 2 calving groups. The majority calve Jan/Feb. Small group calve Sept/Oct.
Start feeding baleage usually in Nov. thru April to both groups and replacement heifers.
Heifers also get whole shell corn. 5#/hd/day.
All free choice loose mineral and water.
Baleage is 1st cutting grass and little clover, 15-16% protein.
So both groups are raising calves most of winter.
Have some 2nd cutting big dry bales.
I have 2 calving groups. The majority calve Jan/Feb. Small group calve Sept/Oct.
Start feeding baleage usually in Nov. thru April to both groups and replacement heifers.
Heifers also get whole shell corn. 5#/hd/day.
All free choice loose mineral and water.
Baleage is 1st cutting grass and little clover, 15-16% protein.
So both groups are raising calves most of winter.
Have some 2nd cutting big dry bales.
Jeanne - Simme Valley
Well-known member
I will add that our heifers get corn thru the winter, outside all winter with no wind breaks. In April they are bred and get turned out on grass with the herd. No more corn.
HatCreekCattleco
Well-known member
This is what we've done this winter. Have fed very little feed compared to other years we were feeding cubes every other day. Cows look great still. That's what got me to asking, I think I've wasted a lot of money years past.
HatCreekCattleco
Well-known member
I agree location plays a huge part. Fescue and rye grass has done well here so far this year.
