How much meal do ye give weanlings per day

20silkcut

I give 1kg per head per day of weanling crunch. I wonder is it enough? Are there cheaper alternatives? Anyone give chopped beet to weanlings?

Reggie.

20silkcut wrote: »

I give 1kg per head per day of weanling crunch. I wonder is it enough? Are there cheaper alternatives? Anyone give chopped beet to weanlings?

I give 1kg of bull Finisher ration

orm0nd

was feeding 1.5 kgs of 20% rearer nut,

on better silage now and getting ready for sale (or turn out for our own) so reduced to 1kg of 18%

weanlings need protein for growth and frame development

tismesoitis

Heifers 1.5 kgs and Bulls 2kgs of an 18% p ration. Reggie do you find weanlings might be a touch beefy or butty on bull nut? Those in the know would tell us to use 16+ p ration. Would be handy if 1 ration did all mind you!

Who2

Autumn calves on 1.5 kg of 16% ration, bull weanlings on 2kg, friesan stores on 1kg and replacement heifers on 1 kg until bulled. Autumn calves get an odd shake of soya thrown in every once in a while.

Reggie.

tismesoitis wrote: »

Heifers 1.5 kgs and Bulls 2kgs of an 18% p ration. Reggie do you find weanlings might be a touch beefy or butty on bull nut? Those in the know would tell us to use 16+ p ration. Would be handy if 1 ration did all mind you!

Well the ration a use is 16% protein. It's called bull finisher where I get it.

jfh

Give them just over 1kg of 18‰protein. They'll be off it by end of Jan

50HX

1.5kg of nut plus 0.25kg of soya bean/hd

first year trying the s bean....dunno if i'm right or wrong

grassroot1

Mine were on 3kg of 16% rolled barley/soya bean mixed plus minerals and second cut baled silage. They are doing .68 of a kg a day.
I have since cut them back to 2kg of 16% weanling ration to save me a bit of time. They will be cut off a forthnight or so before grass in early Feb.

CloughCasey1

1.25kg soya hulls and barley plus 0.3kg soya bean meal.

_Brian

2kg of bull beef 19% nut, silage is grand, didnt test this year though.

Farrell

_Brian wrote: »

2kg of bull beef 19% nut, silage is grand, didnt test this year though.

Is that Lakeland?
From what age do you start them?

Muckit

_Brian wrote: »

2kg of bull beef 19% nut, silage is grand, didnt test this year though.

Didn't test what, the silage or the nut? Sorry I'm being a bit tongue in cheek.

I was at a talk one evening given by a merchant on winter feeding. Really he was there to peddle his wears and give out about all the farmers that don't test their silage, yet give out to him when the ration they buy off him doesn't do the trick.

I was going to say does he test his rations? Or what I'm saying, is it just as important for us farmers to test the quality of the rations we buy rather than taking it as gospel that it has the energy or protein content that the merchant says it has?

Mad4CHX

Muckit wrote: »

Didn't test what, the silage or the nut? Sorry I'm being a bit tongue in cheek.

I was at a talk one evening given by a merchant on winter feeding. Really he was there to peddle his wears and give out about all the farmers that don't test their silage, yet give out to him when the ration they buy off him doesn't do the trick.

I was going to say does he test his rations? Or what I'm saying, is it just as important for us farmers to test the quality of the rations we buy rather than taking it as gospel that it has the energy or protein content that the merchant says it has?

Where do you get your ration tested?

J.O. Farmer

Muckit wrote: »

I was going to say does he test his rations? Or what I'm saying, is it just as important for us farmers to test the quality of the rations we buy rather than taking it as gospel that it has the energy or protein content that the merchant says it has?

I think we should buy recognised brands off a reputable merchant and trust them. It's up to regulatory bodies or such to audit the lab of the manufacturer and indeed the whole manufacturing process.

If you go down the supermarket and buy a loaf of bread for your kids and you see nutritional information on the packaging you don't send it off for testing but you trust that there is regulation some where in the supply chain.

As farmers we have bord bia audits. It would make a mockery of the system if the bord bia auditor was taking note of the ration you are feeding cattle but nobody was auditing the ration.

Muckit

No l didn't get mine tested but thinking about it as l am sending off silage sample soon anyway. More for my own info rather than lack of trust though.

Tis just something l thought l'd throw out there. Of course there needs to be trust in the system. A relationship without trust won't work.

Muckit

J.O. Farmer wrote: »

As farmers we have bord bia audits. It would make a mockery of the system if the bord bia auditor was taking note of the ration you are feeding cattle but nobody was auditing the ration.

The bord bia guy couldn't give a fidders what protein, energy or minerals are in a ration so long as it is fit for animal consumption.

Even at that you'd wonder. He doesn't check whether silage you are feeding is mouldy

J.O. Farmer

Muckit wrote: »

The bord bia guy couldn't give a fidders what protein, energy or minerals are in a ration so long as it is fit for animal consumption.

True but if he's happy it's fit for animal consumption it means he's happy it's made by a reputable company and what's on the docket or bag in terms of ingredients is correct and that those ingredients were of a standard fit for animal consumption. If that much is correct the rest should be too.
After that it's up to the farmer how much protein or minerals are in there and what the sources are.

Muckit

J.O. Farmer wrote: »

After that it's up to the farmer how much protein or minerals are in there and what the sources are.

That's exactly what I was saying! I'd be just testing for nutritional content (protein/energy) , not whether stuff was made from ingredients suitable for livestock consumption! I'd take that as a given!

J.O. Farmer

Muckit wrote: »

That's exactly what I was saying! I'd be just testing for nutritional content (protein/energy) , not whether stuff was made from ingredients suitable for livestock consumption! I'd take that as a given!

You know your probably right. There probably is nobody checking these things similarly to those horsey burgers.
Let us know how you get on. Are the values on the docket or bag correct.

Danzy

J.O. Farmer wrote: »

I think we should buy recognised brands off a reputable merchant and trust them. It's up to regulatory bodies or such to audit the lab of the manufacturer and indeed the whole manufacturing process.

If you go down the supermarket and buy a loaf of bread for your kids and you see nutritional information on the packaging you don't send it off for testing but you trust that there is regulation some where in the supply chain.

As farmers we have bord bia audits. It would make a mockery of the system if the bord bia auditor was taking note of the ration you are feeding cattle but nobody was auditing the ration.

Taking things on face value is a part of life but it pays to be a bit more cautious in Ireland about it.

For all we know the local mill might be putting out product below what it sells it at but because he is a solid party man, sure didn't he drink pints with Charlie type, it might not be an issue.

That still goes on.

Trust but verify.

Limestone Cowboy

Two bundles here. One getting silage and 3kg, the other on rough grazing getting 4.5.

_Brian

Farrell wrote: »

Is that Lakeland?
From what age do you start them?

Heifers are April May born, bought in November/December straight onto slats and meal, meal stops six weeks before turnout.

Base price

Muckit wrote: »

That's exactly what I was saying! I'd be just testing for nutritional content (protein/energy) , not whether stuff was made from ingredients suitable for livestock consumption! I'd take that as a given!

Interesting reading -
http://www.agriland.ie/farming-news/36-of-animal-feed-tested-not-up-to-departments-standards/

Reggie.

Interestingly enough I was getting meal this morning froma the mill and was asked to fill a bag with a sample from my bin. Was told it was for bord bia so they could test it for compliance

Bass Reeves

Reggie. wrote: »

Interestingly enough I was getting meal this morning froma the mill and was asked to fill a bag with a sample from my bin. Was told it was for bord bia so they could test it for compliance

Not for Board Bia as they would have no rights to request it. It is for department in case of of any contamination this is how the last feed score was found all fast and proved to where it came from

Bass Reeves

Reggie. wrote: »

Interestingly enough I was getting meal this morning froma the mill and was asked to fill a bag with a sample from my bin. Was told it was for bord bia so they could test it for compliance

Not for Board Bia as they would have no rights to request it. It is for department in case of of any contamination this is how the last feed score was found all fast and proved to where it came from

Reggie.

Bass Reeves wrote: »

Not for Board Bia as they would have no rights to request it. It is for department in case of of any contamination this is how the last feed score was found all fast and proved to where it came from

Thought that myself but that's what the man said and it was the first time I had to do it