What's in your minerals?

[genebo]

I use a combination of trace mineral blocks and loose minerals. The blocks change with the seasons. 1 bloat block and 1 pass-thru fly block during the lush pasture months, Hi-Mag and fly block during the summer and always a selenium 90 block available to the cattle.

I feed loose minerals mixed with a small amount of feed. It's the only method I've found that works for me. Every morning each cow and each bull gets 1/2 pound of feed and 1 ounce of loose mineral.

Here's the mineral I use:

www.southernstates.com/catalog/p-9962-southern-states-cattlemans-pride-weathershed-beef-breeder-mineral-with-otm-50lb.aspx

Calcium (CA)             12.25% - 14.50%

Phosphorous (P)          6.00%

Salt (NaCl)                16.50% - 19.50%

Magnesium (Mg)        10.00%

Sulphur (S)                 0.50%

Potassium (K)             0.50%

Iodine (I)                  60 ppm

Copper (Cu)          2000 ppm

Cobalt (Co)               75 ppm

Selenium (Se)           52 ppm

Zinc (Zn)              4000 ppm

Manganese (Mn)  3,400 ppm

Vitamin A        300,000 IU/lb.

Vitamin D          30,000 IU/lb.

Vitamin E               300 IU/lb.

The selenium content is high for a loose mineral. I need that here, where my soil is so deficient.

The calcium content is not as high as I would like it to be, but it's the best I can find.

I'm glad to have the copper content, for a few of my cattle showed a symptom of copper deficiency (pale eyelashes), before I started using these minerals.

Southern States keeps a nutritionalist on staff. I asked him to come check me out. He did. He walked my pastures and examined the cattle. He looked for harmful plants. He took samples back to the lab to be tested. Total cost was zero.

He ended up sending 2 pounds of Thiamine to my local store. I bought and used it to correct a deficiency in my goats.

He pointed out one variety of fern that I should eliminate and told me what herbicide to use.

Then he recommended the mineral plan that I have been following since for my cattle and goats.

I thought that was a great thing to have happen. I'm loyal to Southern States because of it.

[Deleted]

I just use a trace mineral block. I dont trust the fly block. Fedding something to cows that causes magnets to die when layed in the manure. I dont trust that and dont want it in my cows. I did try a loose mineral last summer that was high in iodine in hopes it would help the pinkeye outbreak we were having. the cows loved it but I cant say if it helped the pink eye issue. I have used the hy mag blocks in the past but dont any longer. They seemed to make the cows loose weight probably do to all the wall painting they were doing. If they are getting enough salt content it should not be an issue.
I was going to get some new blocks the other day and the ones they had sis not have selenium. We are not in selenium deficient area but I still like to have some in there just to make sure.

[lonecowhand]

dexterfarm Mike, could you explain the magnet in the manure part, please?

[Deleted]

ya auto correct that should have said maggots.

basically the cow licks the block and the result is that when flies larva hatch in the manure it kills them.  

[wvdexters]

We keep the Cattleman's Weathershed Beef Breeder Mineral (from Southern States) available free-choice; except in the spring when we offer hi-mag blocks instead. I've had 2 neighbors tell me about problems they have had with newborn animals not being able to stand to nurse; One a calf the other a goat. So we try to make sure we cover with the selenium.