1. Pasture-Based Nutritional Considerations for Beef Cattle Lawton Stewart Grazing School September, 2010

3. Developing a Feeding Strategy 1.Understand your production system – Fall Calving – Spring Calving – Continuous 2.Understand your forage system – Pasture – Conserved forage 3.Develop an economical supplement

4. Reproductive Efficiency The most important factor affecting profitability Highly dependent on proper nutrition

5. Nutrient Priorities 1.Maintenance 2. Growth (Heifers) 3. Lactation 4. Reproduction

6. Brood Cow Nutrient Requirements

7. Separate Cows Based on Stage of Production Over feeding = FAT COWS Underfeeding = LOSE CONDITION

8. Body Condition Scoring??? 1-9 – Assess the energy reserve status of a cow. BCS-1BCS-9

9. Body Condition Scoring??? 4 5 Kunkle et al., 1998

10. When to BCS?

11. Available Forages Hay produced – Storage – Testing – Inventory L. Stewart, UGA Extension TEST FORAGES!!!! Hay Cutting Production Phase 1.CP 14%Dry Cow TDN 60% 2.CP 10%Late Gestation TDN 55% 3.CP 6%Early Lactation TDN 47%

12. Supplementation Strategies 1.Winter Annuals 2.Commercial Feeds 3.Liquid Feeds/Tubs 4.Byproducts

13. Winter annuals Warm-season perennial grasses Winter annuals (small grain/annual ryegrass

14. Lick Tanks, Tubs, and Blocks Advantage: 1.Convenient 2.Reduced Labor 3.Additional minerals and vitamins Disadvantage??? 1.Intake? 2.Adequate nutrients? 3.Affordable?

15. Do they work miracles? “They’ll eat the old hay from last year if I use liquid feed”

16. Using a Lick Tub for CP PoorHay 7% CP, 46%TDN Fair Hay 10% CP, 50%TDN

17. Using a Lick Tub for Energy Poor Hay 7% CP, 46%TDN Fair Hay 10% CP, 50%TDN

18. RUMEN Microbial Crude Protein Production Nitrogen “Mortar” Energy “Bricks” Crude Protein Energy SMALL INTESTINE

19. Byproduct Feeding What's available Price – Evaluate on DM basis – Look at $/nutrient Handling / Storage Minerals

20. Potential Byproducts 1.Grain Corn gluten feed Distiller’s grains Soy Hulls Wheat middlings 2.Cotton Whole seed Gin trash Hulls 3.Sugar and starch production Cane, beet & corn molasses Salvage candy 4.Vegetable Cull vegetables

21. SMALL INTESTINE RUMEN Sources of Energy FiberStarch

22. Effect of Increasing Corn on Hay Intake and Digestibility Corn, lbs/day None2.24.46.6 Hay DMI lbs19.318.014.111.2 DOMI, lbs7.58.47.17.3 Hay OM Digest, %36.535.123.618.9 Oklahoma State, 1987 JAS 65:557

23. Effect of Increasing Soybean Hulls on Hay Intake SH, lbs/day None2.24.46.6 Hay, OMI, lbs21.422.321.619.9 DOMI, lbs10.611.812.312.7 OM Digestibility, %45.846.246.648.6 Oklahoma State, 1990 JAS 68:4319

24. Byproduct Feeding What's available Price – Evaluate on DM basis – Look at $/nutrient Handling / Storage Minerals

25. Byproduct Pricing Ingredient$/ton% DM% CP% TDN$/lb CP$/lb TDN SBM 48 $ 350.00904887 $ 0.405 $ 0.223 $/ton / % DM / % nutrient / 2000 lb = $/lb of nutrient

26. www.ugabeef.caes.uga.edu/tools

27. Byproduct Handling/Storage

28. Byproduct Minerals Supplement Ca to for proper Ca:P ratio – Avoid urinary calculi Monitor sulfur levels – Avoid polioencephalmalacia – Cu deficiency N and P excretion – Environmental impact

29. How much do I feed? Stage of Production/ Requirement Poor Forage, 7% CP, 48% TDN Average Forage, 10% CP, 50% TDN Excellent Forage, 13% CP, 56% TDN --------------------------lb supplement-------------------------- Dry Pregnant 7% CP, 48% TDN Peak Lactation 12% CP, 60% TDN Late Lactation 9% CP, 55% TDN -50:50 mix of corn gluten feed and soyhulls ?

30. How do I balance my ration? Balancer Programs: Taurus (UC Davis)$400 – animalscience.ucdavis.edu/extension/Software/taurus/ animalscience.ucdavis.edu/extension/Software/taurus/ BRANDS (Iowa State Univ.)$200-475 – www.iowabeefcenter.org/content/software_software_brands.html www.iowabeefcenter.org/content/software_software_brands.html Evaluator Programs: Cattle Grower Ration Balancer (Univ. of Arkansas) – www.aragriculture.org/livestock/beef/nutrition/spreadsheets/ www.aragriculture.org/livestock/beef/nutrition/spreadsheets/ OSUNRC2002 (Oklahoma State Univ.) – www.ansi.okstate.edu/software/ www.ansi.okstate.edu/software/

31. How do I balance my ration? “Those are too difficult!” “I want something for free that will balance basic rations” COMING SOON: UGA Basic BalancerCONSULT WITH YOUR COUNTY EXTENSION AGENT BEFORE FEEDING!!!!!

32. How much do I feed? Stage of Production/ Requirement Poor Forage, 7% CP, 48% TDN Average Forage, 10% CP, 50% TDN Excellent Forage, 13% CP, 56% TDN --------------------------lb supplement-------------------------- Dry Pregnant 000 7% CP, 48% TDN Peak Lactation 15.511.55.8 12% CP, 60% TDN Late Lactation 7.65.80 9% CP, 55% TDN -50:50 mix of corn gluten feed and soyhulls

33. Take Home Message Understand changing nutrient needs throughout production cycle. Know your forages. Use economic strategies when supplementation is needed.

34. Record Keeping Is it worth it?

35. Why? Help producer make more informed decisions Improved marketing capability Export Markets?

36. Identification Many feedlots utilize Electronic ID tags in their record keeping system Helps producer get data back on their animals Contributes to traceability (age and source verification) Export markets “South Korea says it will impose a beef tracing system on imported beef, effective December 21, 2010.” - BEEF magazine

37. Loss in profits from 0% NAIS participation Export Market Loss (%) Export market loss ($/hd sold) 10%(7.31) 25%(18.25) 50%(36.47)

38. What records to keep? 1.Animal ID - animals must be uniquely identified 2.Cow age? 3.Sire information 4.Detailed calving records 5.Treatment records 6.Record all cattle sales

39. How to record? www.ugabeef.caes.uga.edu/tools

40. Computer Based Records

42. Thank You! Questions?