OT cattle minerals

petetx · Nov 13, 2009

anybody else notice your cows consuming what i think is a lot of free choice minerals? 75 head consume 100 lbs. every 3 to 4 days this has always lasted 5 to 6 weeks in past years
pete in texas

Pair-a-dice farms · Nov 13, 2009

I keep loose salt out along with my minerals. Sometimes they are wanting the salt instead of the mineral and salt is a lot cheaper.

KYfarm · Nov 13, 2009

I always keep a trace mineral (mostly salt) block out along side the mineral.

Jerry/MT · Nov 13, 2009

That"s roughly 5 to 7 ounces a day per head. That doesn"t sound excessive to me. They must have a need for it.

BOWTIEIH · Nov 13, 2009

Never like those blocks, figured it would be like trying to lick sandpaper. tongue would get sore before I got all I wanted

David from Kansas · Nov 13, 2009

Usually the sack will tell you what the recommended daily comsumption should be. If it exceeds the recommendation, mix in some salt. They tell me that cattle only consume mineral for the salt, they have no craving for minerals. In some of our pastures cattle cosume more mineral than in others so we try to regulate it by adding more salt to prevent over consumption.

olgentdc · Nov 13, 2009

FYI 2-3 0unces a day is all a 800 -1350 lbs cow needs , that Comes from Cargil Spokesman,, He also stated that We have bought in to heavily to BIG monster hay eating cows ... trouble is a 850 lb cow will wean a 450 lb calf and a 1300 lbn cow will wean a 480lb calf ,,, The bigger cow will eat 2 more round bales per year than its 850 lb sister ,and only produce 30more lbs of calf ... Keeps guys like us busy gathering and toting hay around to keep Big Bessie FAT And HAPPY ... And we (the dummys)ain't making any money doing it .. ...

Anonymous-0 · Nov 14, 2009

DO YOU MOO ALSO, cattle will only eat the quantity they require, I have a mineralised block in the paddock, I have seen them chewing bones which I think would be a lack of calcium.

hayray · Nov 14, 2009

Some of the companies mix in a palatable source I think so the cattle over-consume. When I use Kent mineral they eat the hell out of it, way over the 2 to 3 ounces per day so I switched to a general mineral that the local feed meal mixes with the feed and now my cows won't touch it, they are just going after the salt. So I like the idea of mixing the salt with it, however I always told that salt was mixed with it to keep them from over-consuming it, but in my case maybe the other way around.

Jerry/MT · Nov 14, 2009

2 to 3 ounces per day per head is probably some sort of average. Cows will eat all the mineral they want when it is available. A lot depends on how deficient their normal feed is in the various trace minerals.

I seriously question anyone who states with absolute certainty that a given cow or set of cows will consume 2-3 ounces a day. The initial poster says his are eating more than that. Guess they didn"t talk to Cargill.
I agree that most breeding cattle are too big to be profitable. In our country, 1600 lb cows are weaning 775 lb steers and everybody thinks that"s great because their gross income is large. Those 1600 lb cows eat a lot of expensive winter feed and take a lot of acres during the grazing season to wean those kind of weights. If those folks don"t figure those costs they"ll slowly go broke and wonder why. Me, I"m happy with 1200-1300 lb cows that wean 650 lb calves on grass and hay with no supplements.

petetx · Nov 14, 2009

in reply to my original post should have said these cows also have free choice salt bendee asked a vet once about cows chewing bones he said they were phosphorus deficient. thanks for all the replies

railhead · Nov 14, 2009

My man I don't know that I have ever weaned a 650 lb calf (i don't cut the bulls), you are doing something right, keep it up. I do agree that the big fatso's eat you out of house and home while the smaller cows don't and they wean just as nice calf.

Jerry/MT · Nov 14, 2009

We"ve got strong grass and good cattle in the Mission Valley and we irrigate. I know you"ll think this is windy, but I have a friend who has 20 specially selected black hided Angus cows that wean at ~950 lbs. I"m not sure that these 205 day weights because I think these guys run "em a bit longer (maybe a month or so) but its not untypical around here. I have another friend who sold his cow herd two years ago that had the same kind of weights when he weaned. Course he"s not in the cow/calf business anymore and he pulled a few calves in his time! He"s runing stockers now "cuz I think he"s plum wore out from pulling!

railhead · Nov 14, 2009

I grew up and live in the wrong part of the country......us poor [email protected] pretend farm here compared to places I have seen and I drive a truck and see a lot of country....

OT cattle minerals

petetx

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Pair-a-dice farms

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KYfarm

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Jerry/MT

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BOWTIEIH

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David from Kansas

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olgentdc

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Anonymous-0

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hayray

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Jerry/MT

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petetx

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railhead

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Jerry/MT

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railhead

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