Hay's not just for Horses

[lonecowhand]

Howdy Pardners, I know most of you back East have to feed hay and grain (and minerals) during your long winters, when the pastures are inaccessible for months. My question is two- fold:

Do your animals lose condition during these periods due to the nutritive value of hay, verses when they are out in the pasture on grass? So are the cattle getting adequate nutrients from a non- pasture diet?

Do you have an idea how much hay is consumed per animal in a given time period? I would like to calculate what it will cost per month to bring animals through our drought periods (which is every Summer). We average 5 months of dry no rain (june thru oct), Then It Rains.

I anticipate irrigating pasture for summer, but that will be limited by conditions, well water depth, and state or county legislation. Its the "Fail Safe" I want to prepare for. 

Thanks for your thoughts, Bill

[genebo]

Your conditions out west are so different from ours! Water is the defining factor in the difference. We take it for granted. Our hay grows without our help, it just grows better with help.

I would suggest that you ask for information closer to home. Here is a link to the University of California's Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources: ucanr.edu/

The site has a list of all the county offices: ucanr.edu/County_Offices/

I use my County Agent for so much. It's all free, here. I get my soil tested to determine what minerals are deficient. I also have hay samples tested to see which minerals are deficient. I'm currently having my well water tested for everything. That costs $50, but it is subsidized by the State, It is $300 worth of testing.

They know a lot, themselves and know where to send me for things they don't know. I depend upon them.

They also offer lots of courses. I go to all those about growing forage. I love going on the pasture walks they sponsor and seeing how other people do things. I belong to the Graziers Club that they formed and go to there functions and lectures. Quite often seminars are offered that include free meals. I went to the one this year that featured all locally grown food products. I went to the one that featured farm raised catfish. I went to the goat seminar, where they served goat stew.

If yours are like ours, they are great people.

[Deleted]

I do not feed grain. Mine do not loose condition on hay but they do gain at a slower rate is especially noticeable in young animals that their rate of growth slows down while on hay. If you are milking you will get significantly less milk when on hay. Mine do loose condition after calving when heavy milking if on hay or grass this is normal.
I should ad that some times the hay quality will surprise you. Last year when I pulled my milkers off of pasture and put them on late harvested fescue mixed hay. I was not expecting much milk but the production doubled going from fresh grass to hay that is not usually the case.

[lonecowhand]

Those are good leads, thanks Gene , and I'll check them out, and I'm wondering how your Dexters fare through the winter on hay, and the average amount your dexters eat, since most cattle out here are giants. The locals will not know much about Dexters! Do you feed grain as well as hay? And isn't it Wonderful, that rain just falls out of the sky for you guys!?!

Thanks Mike, Is there a rule of thumb for the amount of hay they consume during their off pasture time? I am considering storage capacity as well as volume of hay consumed. I realize hay cost is local and conditional, but volume should be constant. As a matter of fact, they grow fine hay around here, but short season, and no second cutting! From what you mention about calves and condition, I should try and time for fall calves, so they can have grass forage all winter!

Please others chime in! Bill

[genebo]

My Dexters fare so well at all times that I don't even have an idea exactly how much they do eat. As I enter winter, I try to fill my equipment shed with round bales. I get 600 lb. bales, from the previous year's crop, from a neighbor. The hay tests low in quality, but I figure they will make up for it in the amount they eat. I can usually pack 24 to 28 round bales into the shed. That makes about 15,000 pounds to feed about 10 Dexters for 150 days. You do the math.

I feed my Dexters 6 pounds of mixed feed with loose minerals every day. The 6 pounds is shared by the herd, so nobody gets very much. It's the minerals I'm trying to get them to eat.

Then I bale small, 40# square bales of native grass. A mixture of everything that grows around here including blackberry, clover, bermuda, fescue, rye, vetch, honeysuckle, you-name-it. I had it tested and was told it was low in TDN. So what? I put out one bale where they get their ration with minerals every day, as long as they will clean it up. I put out another bale near they barn and if they clean that one up, I'll put one somewhere in the field. If they don't clean it up it makes good mulch and compost next summer.

Meanwhile the grass that grew so well during the warm months is still available to them. It lasts at least into January. This year has been so wet that the grass will probably last through most of the winter. I'll probably have a lot of hay left over in the spring.

So my Dexters don't get fed like yours probably will. Mine get so much to eat, but it's low in quality, so they just eat and eat and eat.

Maybe in the first month after calving, I may see a little loss of condition in Bambina, but She puts it back on right away. Right now she's a butterball and isn't due until January.

Life is simple on Paradise Farm. There is plenty of grass and plenty of hay and if there is too much hay left at the end of cold weather I'll sell it. No worries, mate!

[Blessings Farms]

We pasture as much as possible feed 1 bale per 4 cow and 1 calf twice a week just to
add. Grain for treat only when on pasture. Planning on 5% body weight for hay in winter
ea. and grain for lactating cows. We currently rotate to new area once a week now.
Minerals free choice by water. Everyone seems happy and no visual problems yet (knock
on wood) goats, muscovys ,chickens and dexters all together.

[lonecowhand]

It's a Wonderful Life! Thanks Gene and Mike and Dave!

Good Going , Dave! All critters happy and rotating together. How long before they are back on the same forage area? Are they chompin' down to about that 3 inch height in a week?

[Blessings Farms]

I am just lucky this year all the moisture and now heavy dews every night has
kept the grass growing strong. Its more luck than common sence right now. I have
no idea what I am doing it is just happening.