Storing cattle over winter

Hershall · 20-10-2020 8:55pm #1

I normally finish a few cattle for the winter but this year i bought lighter cattle and will turn them out again in march. They will be getting 1 kg of nuts and nice silage. Would they want minerals as well and if so which product and is it expensive? Thanks.

Bass Reeves · 20-10-2020 9:55pm

Cattle need about 20 grams/100 kgs LW per day. I often find that a bit high as most silage will have a certain point of minerals in it naturally. If cattle are on a kg of ration/day depending on percentage of mins and vits. At 3% there is 30grams in a kg of it's 2% it 20 grams/kg.

I feed no ration to stores, but I do feeds minerals. I average about 15grams/100kgs. .I buy the general purpose mineral from dairygold. I generally give cattle a break for 10-14dsys over Christmas for there system go clean out.

Anto_Meath · 20-10-2020 11:11pm

Hi Bass what do you think of just keeping a calf to beef mineral bucket under their nose, that is what I tend to do and I am happy enough with it. My brother feeds no minerals and would never really bother with lick buckets either, the odd salt lick & his cattle seem to do ok too, so I sometimes wonder am I wasting money on the lick buckets.

20silkcut · 20-10-2020 11:51pm

I had a problem one time with hair loss around the eyes in weanlings that was solved by mineral lick buckets over the course of a month to six weeks. So they are not a waste of time. In my opinion.
I never use them out in the field because of TB risk badgers love licking them. Only ever leave them in the shed or the yard during winter.

lalababa · 21-10-2020 5:52am

Cattle thrive much easier in the winter with a small bit of minerals. Hundreds of years ago in their Natural environment they'd be out in the winter (getting some sun!) on a very varied grass/other vegetation diet And have the wherewithal to source natural salts & minerals & water courses.
So yeah a 'little bit' of minerals.
But most nuts contain minerals (as said in previous post)

whelan2 · 21-10-2020 6:07am

Everytime I see this thread title, I think of cattle being put in a safe security box or something

_Brian · 21-10-2020 7:58am

whelan2 wrote: »

Everytime I see this thread title, I think of cattle being put in a safe security box or something

Yea.
We used to buy a box of apples in Armagh store them wrapped in newspaper over the winter.

Bass Reeves · 21-10-2020 8:19am

I forgot to put price if it, the Dairygold general purpose I think is 17-18 euro/25kg bag. On a 450kg store with no ration @15/ grams/ 100kg it's about 4.5c/ day or about 5 euro/ head for the winter

893bet · 21-10-2020 8:34am

Bass Reeves wrote: »

I forgot to put price if it, the Dairygold general purpose I think is 17-18 euro/25kg bag. On a 450kg store with no ration @15/ grams/ 100kg it's about 4.5c/ day or about 5 euro/ head for the winter

How is this fed to the animals?

Bass Reeves · 21-10-2020 9:24am

893bet wrote: »

How is this fed to the animals?

Sprinkle it across top of silage, my pens have two bar gates at the back and I also sprinkle it on the ground at the back

Hershall · 21-10-2020 4:04pm

Bass Reeves wrote: »

I forgot to put price if it, the Dairygold general purpose I think is 17-18 euro/25kg bag. On a 450kg store with no ration @15/ grams/ 100kg it's about 4.5c/ day or about 5 euro/ head for the winter

Thats very cheap compared to other costs. Well worth.doing im sure it will be very good for them

jntsnk · 21-10-2020 4:33pm

Gives them Agrimin all trace bolus. 2 per animal, about €5 a head. Nothing else just silage over the winter

Hershall · 22-10-2020 6:33pm

Bass Reeves wrote: »

Cattle need about 20 grams/100 kgs LW per day. I often find that a bit high as most silage will have a certain point of minerals in it naturally. If cattle are on a kg of ration/day depending on percentage of mins and vits. At 3% there is 30grams in a kg of it's 2% it 20 grams/kg.

I feed no ration to stores, but I do feeds minerals. I average about 15grams/100kgs. .I buy the general purpose mineral from dairygold. I generally give cattle a break for 10-14dsys over Christmas for there system go clean out.

So Bass if I was to give approx 100 grams to a 550kg bk would thst sound right? They will be getting 1 kg nuts mid nov to mid feb should i give minerals for all this period with as you say a 2 week break around Xmas

Bass Reeves · 22-10-2020 8:23pm

Hershall wrote: »

So Bass if I was to give approx 100 grams to a 550kg bk would thst sound right? They will be getting 1 kg nuts mid nov to mid feb should i give minerals for all this period with as you say a 2 week break around Xmas

I feed bullocks that heavy ( I seldom have any that weight) about 80-90 grams. If you are feeding a kg of ration check the inclusions rate in the ration generally it will be 2 or 3%. That is 20 or 30 grams. You subtract that from you 80-90 so you would be feeding about 50-70grams. If you are buying the ration in bulk you could see if the mill will give you a ration with 8% mins and feed it that way. Yes I stop feeding mins for two weeks mid winter.

You not see any benefit of feeding a kg of ration to that weight cattle. It's about 7% of there dry matter intake.

Cavanjack · 22-10-2020 8:48pm

Bass Reeves wrote: »

I feed bullocks that heavy ( I seldom have any that weight) about 80-90 grams. If you are feeding a kg of ration check the inclusions rate in the ration generally it will be 2 or 3%. That is 20 or 30 grams. You subtract that from you 80-90 so you would be feeding about 50-70grams. If you are buying the ration in bulk you could see if the mill will give you a ration with 8% mins and feed it that way. Yes I stop feeding mins for two weeks mid winter.

You not see any benefit of feeding a kg of ration to that weight cattle. It's about 7% of there dry matter intake.

Would you notice the difference in the spring after giving minerals verses cattle without them?

Hershall · 22-10-2020 8:58pm

Bass Reeves wrote: »

I feed bullocks that heavy ( I seldom have any that weight) about 80-90 grams. If you are feeding a kg of ration check the inclusions rate in the ration generally it will be 2 or 3%. That is 20 or 30 grams. You subtract that from you 80-90 so you would be feeding about 50-70grams. If you are buying the ration in bulk you could see if the mill will give you a ration with 8% mins and feed it that way. Yes I stop feeding mins for two weeks mid winter.

You not see any benefit of feeding a kg of ration to that weight cattle. It's about 7% of there dry matter intake.

These are big framed cont bks like to have them in reasonable condition going out be killing end of july

Bass Reeves · 22-10-2020 10:44pm

Hershall wrote: »

These are big framed cont bks like to have them in reasonable condition going out be killing end of july

I bought 6 of them types CHx from dairy stock in Aug2019. 2X 440kgs, 2X405kgs, 2X370kgs. They were on grass until housing Nov2019.I killed 4in mid August and two in early Sept. They killed 2byO+ avg 348kgs 3byR= 385kgs, and 1byU-3=410kfs, they were all3-/= FS.

Now they were all touching 30 months when slaughtered. Now the O+'s could have been carried to R grade although I taught the grading was hard on them. They got ration at about 3kgs/day for 12 weeks pre slaughter. Early summer was tough on me as grass was very tight from late April until early July.

It probably. Cost them about 20kgs+ of live weight gain. I could have separated them and fed them more but I run my cattle as two bunches for the summer, stores and a finishing bunch. I put them in with the finishers early in the year. They averaged about 310kgs LW gain in 12 months. I have had friesians averaged that. I am going to hit 170kgsN/HA so carrying animals beyond time has implications. They were in the shed 20-20days longer last spring. That was another 20 kgs LW gain

They averaged 1440 Euro at selling and cost 765/head in fees.

Donegalforever · 23-10-2020 8:22pm

jntsnk wrote: »

Gives them Agrimin all trace bolus. 2 per animal, about €5 a head. Nothing else just silage over the winter

I agree.
I use Agrimin All-Trace Bolus to be very good and handy.

Hershall · 23-10-2020 10:25pm

Bass Reeves wrote: »

I bought 6 of them types CHx from dairy stock in Aug2019. 2X 440kgs, 2X405kgs, 2X370kgs. They were on grass until housing Nov2019.I killed 4in mid August and two in early Sept. They killed 2byO+ avg 348kgs 3byR= 385kgs, and 1byU-3=410kfs, they were all3-/= FS.

Now they were all touching 30 months when slaughtered. Now the O+'s could have been carried to R grade although I taught the grading was hard on them. They got ration at about 3kgs/day for 12 weeks pre slaughter. Early summer was tough on me as grass was very tight from late April until early July.

It probably. Cost them about 20kgs+ of live weight gain. I could have separated them and fed them more but I run my cattle as two bunches for the summer, stores and a finishing bunch. I put them in with the finishers early in the year. They averaged about 310kgs LW gain in 12 months. I have had friesians averaged that. I am going to hit 170kgsN/HA so carrying animals beyond time has implications. They were in the shed 20-20days longer last spring. That was another 20 kgs LW gain

They averaged 1440 Euro at selling and cost 765/head in fees.

They done really well. Brother in law gave 1100 for continentals in August 19 got 1730 in July.
You had a very small outlay

Bass Reeves · 23-10-2020 10:56pm

Hershall wrote: »

They done really well. Brother in law gave 1100 for continentals in August 19 got 1730 in July.
You had a very small outlay

Generally I buy a lighter possibly you could say even the poorer type of store. Last year my stores cost on average 575 euro/ head. I have about 60% 40 cattle on the hook averaging slightly over 1200/head. I have 12 to go over the next 2-3 weeks. There will be 16 to slaughter around Christmas/NY. Stores are costing me approximately 50-60/head more this year. Will have only one Charley though.

I expect the cattle off grass to average at or near 1200euro. The cattle that will be slaughtered out of the shed will be mostly Fr's and all will be over 30 months.

Storing cattle over winter

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