Experts say producers should avoid filler feeds
As producers start to make winter feed choices, it is important to make sure the herd’s nutritional needs are being met appropriately.
Even with adding supplemental feed, producers can be underfeeding their animals and not providing proper nutrition. Truly understanding livestock’s feed needs can help producers avoid underfeeding and keep their animals at optimum condition.
Understanding Calories and Total Digestible Nutrients
Dr. Shane Gadberry, livestock nutritionist with the University of Arkansas Extension, explained how producers can ensure adequate calories for their animals and avoid providing filler, therefore underfeeding.
“When it comes to feed knowledge, I think the calorie is least understood because it is the one thing you don’t find on a feed tag,” he said. “We’re familiar with calories because human food labels report calories and percent of daily value (based on a 2,000 calorie diet).”
Cows, for example, he continued, need to consume a certain amount of calories per day for maintenance. Additional calories are needed above maintenance for reproduction and milk production. When cows consume more calories than needed they gain body condition and when they don’t get enough calories, they lose body condition. Nutritionist will often use total digestible nutrients as a proxy for calories. If a feedstuff is high in total digestible nutrients, it’s high in caloric value. If a feedstuff is low in total digestible nutrients, it’s a filler.
“The problem with fillers is not only having a low caloric value but also cows cannot eat as much of a filler type diet to help compensate for the diets low caloric content,” Gadberry said.
It can be appealing to buy solely “filler” feeds because they are cheap. Things like chicken litter and hulls from peanuts, cottonseed and rice are quite inexpensive, but producers will end up paying for it later when their stock are underfed and not at optimum performance.”
Understanding Livestock Nutritional Needs
Knowing where animals are in their production cycle, and factoring in age, weather, etc., will help producers make effective feed decisions.
“One of the largest variables that comes into play on the animal side is the production stage of our breeding herd. Right now, fall calving cows are near the peak of their protein and energy requirements for the year, while spring calving cows are closer to the bottom of their needs,” Andy McCorkill, livestock field specialist with the University of Missouri Extension, said.
An animal’s energy level during the winter will play a factor in a producer’s feed management to avoid underfeeding.
“Cold weather and precipitation also come into play where energy is concerned,” McCorkill said. “Adding about 1 percent to their daily energy needs for every degree below the critical temperature is needed. Critical temperature varies with degree of hair coat and precipitation, from as high as 59 degrees for those with a wet coat to as low as 18 degrees for animals with a dry, heavy winter coat,” McCorkill explained.
Producers can do some self-evaluation of their nutritional program to see if they are feeding their animals appropriately.
“There are two simple observations that can give you an idea as to how you’re doing nutritionally,” McCorkill said. “The first is to look at the manure they are leaving. We like to see manure that stays relatively flat and doesn’t pile up as it signifies a high fiber content, leading to slowed digestion and suggesting low nutrient density of the ration. The other is evaluating body condition, the amount of fat cover on the cow’s body.
“If our cows are losing condition, that’s a sure-fire indicator that their energy needs aren’t being met. You shouldn’t be able to see more that a faint outline of a couple of ribs at most. Cows that get too thin are also cows that are less likely to get bred back in a timely manner, taking a toll on the operation’s bottom line.”
Making Proper Feed Choices
Evaluating the feed program will help producers avoid underfeeding and make appropriate purchases.
“My advice with forage-fed livestock is start with a pasture and forage inventory,” Gadberry said. “Only go to fillers if there isn’t enough forage, and average or better hay can’t be easily sourced. Both average quality hays and fillers are going to need additional feeds that are high in caloric value to balance out their shortfalls. Protein will also need to be addressed along with other nutrients.”
Producers will need to balance the needs of their herd along with the books.
“Raising livestock is a business, as such, pricing of various feed ingredients or blends should be considered as a first priority,” McCorkill said. “Getting the right amount to the right animals is also an important factor in livestock feeding economics. Splitting herds allows ‘fine tuning’ of the feeding. The first splits to consider should be keeping replacement heifers separate from mature cows, then look to splitting spring and fall calving groups. Splitting beyond this level is a luxury many operations can’t make work; if you can however, old thinner cows could also be separated from younger cows that are in better flesh.”
