A late, wet spring put a double whammy on beef producers who rely on winter feed. Most producers used up most — if not all — of their hay carryover, so are starting with no reserves.
Plus, the weather-delayed, and in some cases, prevented hay from being harvested. All of which makes winter feed planning even more critical this year.
There are many ways to approach winter feed planning, but a simple one is to calculate feed needs versus feed available. Start with an inventory of all the cattle that you plan to winter, including replacement heifers, backgrounding calves and bulls, in addition to the main cow herd.
You’ll also need approximate body weights to use in calculating feed needs. Next, inventory the feed resources available, approximate weights, dry matter, and quality.
To calculate feed needs, multiply the number of animals times their weight. A general assumption is that cattle will eat 2.25% to 2.5% of their body weight in dry matter per day, so bodyweight times 2.5% times the number of days gives you approximately the amount of feed needed.
Read more:https://www.beefmagazine.com/hay/how-much-hay-do-you-need-winter
