The key to getting a cow/calf enterprise through dry conditions is to have a management plan. Develop strategies that deal with indirect economic and biological effects of to many animals for the available feed resources as well as direct effects of reduced water supply for plants and animals. Trying to feed the whole herd through a period of dry conditions with purchased feeds can be financial suicide, especially if the condition last for an exrtended period of time. Many strategies can be used to reduce forage demand. Management strategies can be subdivided into three categories: livestock inventory; use of existing forage resources; and alternative feeding programs.
Adjusting livestock inventory to reduce and balance total forage required with available forage supply usually is the most economical alternative. Individual production records come in handy to identify low producing females. Cull late calving cows, older cows, and less productive cows. Cull early to avoid selling when prices are low because everyone else is selling. Consider culling females that are in the bottom 15% to 20% of production for two to three years in succession. These females may be telling you that they don’t “fit” for some reason. If there is a time when individual records are valuable in management decisions, this is one.
Remove yearlings from pasture early and sell or drylot. One of the advantages of having a yearling enterprise along with a cow/calf enterprise is if pasture becomes limited, yearlings can be sold or moved to the feedlot and the calf making factory can be kept in tact.
Usually in extended dry conditions late in teh summer, early weaning calves is more effective than creep feeding. Data from the University of Illinois indicates early-weaned calves are efficient at converting feed to calf gain. If calves are early weaned, consider retaining them to take advantage of the efficient gain. Another reason to consider retaining early-weaned calves is they are light at weaning and, if sold right off the cow, usually don’t generate enough dollars the cover annual cow costs. There is a body of data that indicates that early weaned calves exposed to high energy diets have a high propensity to grade USDA Choice or better (Table 1). So know your annual cow/calf enterprise production costs and determine when calves should be marketed for the greatest potential profit. With the current prices of light-weight calves, this must be thought through carefully. Finally, data would suggest that for every 2.5 days that a calf is weaned from the dam, there is one more day of grazing available for the cow. Data collected at the University of Nebraska indicate that 250 to 350 pound calves will consume about 5 pounds of grass daily on a dry matter basis. There is also a saving in forage intake between a lactating and nonlactating female. Bred cows can get by on minimal forage if not suckling calves.
Use existing forage resources efficiently. It seems that the greatest benefit of cross-fencing pastures and having a rotational grazing system occurs in managing through drought conditions. Grazing systems don’t have to be extensive, but allowing pastures to have a rest period in drought condition aids grass persistence.
Additional forage supplies can be developed. These options, though, must be chosen with great care because they may be expensive relative to other alternatives, such as de-stocking. Following are some forages feeding opportunities. Cut winter wheat for hay instead of grain, especially if low grain yields are expected. Plant oats as early as possible for grazing or hay. Oats use spring moisture very efficiently to produce forage. Use alfalfa for pasture instead of hay. In this situation, other winter feed supplies will be needed. Protect cattle from bloat. Green chop alfalfa or hay meadows and feed daily instead of grazing or harvesting as hay. This minimizes losses and stretches feed supply to its maximum, but it can be expensive. Plant summer annual forage grasses like sudangrass and millets. These plants are drought resistant but will need some summer moisture for economical growth. Always test summer annuals for nitrates. If nitrates are high, mix with low nitrate feeds and adapt cows.
If there is grass still available in the pasture, then supplementation with grain such as corn is not recommended to extend the pasture. Supplementing corn will actually reduce forage digestibility. Also, supplementation with a protein cube will not reduce forage intake, actually it will increase forage intake and therefore not extend the pasture. Because of the dry conditions, grasses tend to produces a seed-head earlier than usual, quality is likely lower than anticipated. To extend existing pasture, consider feeding alfalfa hay because it provides some protein and energy, but also fills the rumen and reduces pasture intake. Basically, alfalfa is being substituted for pasture. If pasture is available and you want to extend the pasture, feed 4 to 6 pounds of alfalfa per head per day. Alfalfa could be fed three times a week to save on fuel and labor. Grain co-products are feeds to consider when trying to extend existing pasture. Grain co-products don’t appear to reduce digestibility of forages, so feeding them in a diet that is primarily forage will not have any negative associative effects.
Author : Dr. Rick Rasby, Professor of Animal Science
Animal Science, University of Nebraska - Lincoln, Lincoln, NE