dairy steer feed consumption/$/day

Dave from MN · Jun 6, 2008

Ok, I have (4) 8-9 month old dairy steers which I beleive are in the 750-800# range, maybe less maybe more, any way, they are consuming an average of 16# of feed/day, which is for me a feed cost of $2.22/day each. 16 pounds a day seems kinda light doesnt it. They are fed 7am, noon, and 5-6pm. I am setting up a new system so they can have free choice( i havent been feeding free choiuce because of the rain and the open feeder=trough of slop). What should they be eating, I thought I heard 4% of their body weight, which is about twice what I have been giving them. So if they will eat twice as much,32#, my daily feed cost will be $4.44/day, which means with current market(600-800#-$.70-$78/#), these critters would need to gain 5.5#/day each just to pay for their feed, right?? At the 16 pounds they would need to gain 3-3.5#/day. Any one have any advice /corrections/or wisdom on which way to go?

IaGary · Jun 6, 2008

Are they eating all they want now or will they eat more?

What I am asking is are they on full feed?

Get them up to full feed before going free choice.

Holsteins will gain fast but they eat more to do it.

If they are 8 months and 700+ pounds, I would say they are doing good.

The bigger they get the faster they will gain also. At the rate they are going they will be ready to butcher in 4 months or so.

Gary

John (C-IL) · Jun 6, 2008

Your steers should be eating 3% of body weight unless they are getting pasture or a fair amount of hay. At the current prices for carn based cattle feed of $320/ ton your feed cost per head per day would be about $3.84 per head per day. I think I could come up with some lower priced corn based programs, but not much lower.

If you could find some gluten or DDGS you could lower your feed cost a little. Dry pelleted gluten is $108 per ton FOB Decatur, IL. You could feed 25% dry gluten, corn and a balancer with mineral and get you cost closer to $3.00 per head per day

Dave from MN · Jun 6, 2008

They clean up what they are fed each time and are anxious to at the next feeding, they would eat more in a day I believe. They get very little hay if any the rest is a feed mix of 1000# of ground corn with 100# feed lot finisher pellets. To get to full feed should I just increase what they get by 5# or so every other day until they are not cleaning up the feed, then just keep it full? Am I hurting them by letting them each have a small slice of grass hay each per day??

IaGary · Jun 6, 2008

That much hay will not hurt them and may be enough to keep them from eating the barn or any other wood they can get a hold of.

I would add just a couple of pounds about every 3 or 4 days to get them up there to full feed.

Gary

Anonymous-0 · Jun 6, 2008

2% of body weight should be about average consumption on a grain ration, so 15-16# should be about right for 750-800#. 1-2#/day, of hay is enough to keep the rumen working. I like to give them a clostridium nnalert, helps with overeating and going off feed, which can happen the weather gets funky or the feeder goes empty too long

Anonymous-0 · Jun 6, 2008

Dave, I just sold a 3 year old Herford Heifer fed only, mothers milk, grass and hay, no grain. She weighed 1350# and I only got 60 cents a pound for it. Try giving your steers grass and see how they do. The way I look at it is grass is free. Just dont get them to fat like I did, or so the bidder thought.

dairy steer feed consumption/$/day

Dave from MN

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IaGary

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John (C-IL)

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Dave from MN

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IaGary

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Anonymous-0

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Anonymous-0

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