Feeding ration to cows pre calving

BeeDI

Following on from Leg Wax thread on how much fertilizer, lads use per acre / cow/ etc, I have been thinking a bit about that kind of subject with a while.
I have begun to think, it might make a lot of sense to make and feed a lot less silage, if it could be safely replaced with increased levels of concentrates, and not cause calving difficulties.
Before getting into the fine detail, of cost benefit if any, do you fellas think any level of pre calving feeding if concentrates is safe from ease of calving point of view?
I'm thinking half a silage bale per day for 15 cows plus x amount of a suitable concentrate.
Any opinions??

reilig

BeeDI wrote: »

Following on from Leg Wax thread on how much fertilizer, lads use per acre / cow/ etc, I have been thinking a bit about that kind of subject with a while.
I have begun to think, it might make a lot of sense to make and feed a lot less silage, if it could be safely replaced with increased levels of concentrates, and not cause calving difficulties.
Before getting into the fine detail, of cost benefit if any, do you fellas think any level of pre calving feeding if concentrates is safe from ease of calving point of view?
I'm thinking half a silage bale per day for 15 cows plus x amount of a suitable concentrate.
Any opinions??

It can be done, but you need to control it. It has to be a fairly exact science. In winter 2009 we were very short of silage and i supplemented it with cheap enough concentrate. I had 6 cows per pen and i made a round bale of silage last them 5 days. They got 2kg of meal each, morning and evening. (4kg per cow per day).

They got no meal for 6 weeks prior to calving.
We noticed no more difficulties than usual for calving that spring. We did have a deficiency issue the following spring which saw a lot of cows repeat in heat and pushed out our calving interval, but we managed to control this with supplements. However, I believe that deficiency problems were caused by the poor quality of silage obtained in 2009.

However, i do have to question the economics of your plan. It doesn't make a lot of sense with current silage prices. In 2009, bales of silage were making €40 each around home. I bought meal at €200 per ton delivered. (Just a simple 3 way mix). It was madness to buy silage when meal could be bought at that price. The tide has turned big time since then. Grain prices are high and very unpredictable because of fluctuating world supplies and markets. Silage is at an all time low. You can buy silage at below the cost of production and store it. its difficult to buy grain at a cheap time and store it until you need it as you will need to have exceptional facilities. Cattle numbers are way down this year too so you could buy silage off the stem at a very keen price!!

flatout11

id agree with reilig there is a surplus of silage around at a low cost,
substitution with concentrate is not really an option this year

49801

consider feeding straw every 2nd day instead so the diet becomes 50% silage 50% straw. think i'd go to ad lib rather than restricted acces though.

I kept suck cows out on stubble well into december in 2010 doing this and I belive they were far fitter with the extra excersice when calving came around.

BeeDI

Well, I don't know about other areas, but I'm finding silage quality in general in wrapped bales has gone down over the past three of four years. That includes my own bales.
I'm concluding it's coming down to the fact that pretty much all contractors in my area are using big mowers with groupers.
Big heavy swaths of grass just do not wilt:mad: Even tried using two extra layers of wrap this year, and noticing some damage even still.
My experience in buying in sialge in the past, is that it's just one big gamble Too much waste. Pig in a bag type of scenario.
That as much as anything is making me think, along the lines I'm thinking.

Reilig, I was not thinking about going as low as you had to with silage feed per cow. More like reducing silage consumption per cow by say 30% or so and supplementing with concentrates.

reilig

BeeDI wrote: »

Reilig, I was not thinking about going as low as you had to with silage feed per cow. More like reducing silage consumption per cow by say 30% or so and supplementing with concentrates.

Me having to go as low as I did with the silage feed was a forced situation. I suppose it just goes to prove that it can be done.

I wonder if trying to improve silage quality would be an option??
I don't have the same situation with silage quality. In the past i have detailed on boards how i try to wilt to improve silage quality. I suppose a balance has to be found between cost of production of silage and reducing costs.

Muckit

reilig wrote: »

I suppose a balance has to be found between cost of production of silage and reducing costs.

I think this is the key thing to bear in mind with all things farming

Better quality feed/animals could be turned out by adopting doing things differently.... but at what cost? Does the means justify the end?

leg wax

yes i have been looking at this too ,on the english boards site a lot of lads are feeding straw, two ideas that caught my eye and i am looking in to are pot ale syrup or molasses with straw,and is it urea or ammonia treated straw,now this year i have fed 50/50 silage/straw to the spring calvers ,straw one day and silage the next[would love a diet feeder] but with the sheds full of straw down this side and lads mad to empty them i am looking at ways to get more cheap straw into my dry cows.

BeeDI

leg wax wrote: »

yes i have been looking at this too ,on the english boards site a lot of lads are feeding straw, two ideas that caught my eye and i am looking in to are pot ale syrup or molasses with straw,and is it urea or ammonia treated straw,now this year i have fed 50/50 silage/straw to the spring calvers ,straw one day and silage the next[would love a diet feeder] but with the sheds full of straw down this side and lads mad to empty them i am looking at ways to get more cheap straw into my dry cows.

What do you class as cheap straw? By the time straw gets to my yard, it's often €18 or more for round bale:mad:

leg wax

BeeDI wrote: »

What do you class as cheap straw? By the time straw gets to my yard, it's often €18 or more for round bale:mad:

8-10 delivered