Drought prompts feed options

CLARESHOLM, Alta. – Cattle producers facing drought this summer are urged to think about alternative feeding plans.

“Remember, you are in survival mode,” Bill Chapman of Alberta Agriculture told a drought meeting in Claresholm June 16.

Greenfeed barley or oats are options when pastures run dry. Producers are encouraged to check with crop insurance to decide when the crop can be grazed.

“Salvage growth early before plants wilt so you can graze them,” Chapman said.

If it starts to rain again, producers can seed a winter crop such as triticale or fall rye.

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It is important to wait until the crops have headed out for more energy and nutrition. It takes 63 to 69 days to get a head on the crop, which should be at the milk or dough stage of development. Feed will have to be supplemented if there are no heads.

“A lot of people go in there and cut that greenfeed without any heads or energy in it,” he said.

More producers are also trying winter crops. Triticale is a hardy plant with an extensive root system that yields better than winter wheat. If it was seeded last September, it should be headed out now and kernels would be at the milk or dough stage, providing nutrient value.

“We have a number of growers who are using winter triticale as a rotation crop and can graze it in the fall or early spring to give perennial pastures a chance to start growing,” Chapman said.

“Winter cereals are a key thing to look at as an option.”

Producers who graze their cattle on a winter seeded crop should also offer straw so cattle have an alternative source of fibre.

Winter triticale could be seeded after the salvage crop is removed because there is still a chance for grazing.

Plant at a lower rate so there are about 10 plants per sq. foot to get green growth.

However, it must rain before producers reseed.

If producers are buying hay from elsewhere, they should feed livestock in one area and away from shelterbelts to prevent the spread of weeds that may have hitched a ride with the purchased feed.

Alberta Agriculture beef specialist Pat Ramsay said this is also a good time to look at feeding and culling practices.

Producers could send yearlings to the feedlot earlier and cull the low end of the heifers sooner.

Another alternative is creep feeding calves by supplementing them with grain to provide relief to the cows.

“If the milk or pasture is poorer, weaning weights can be substantially improved,” he said.

Giving calves that extra bit of feed can increase weaning weights by an average of 40 pounds. A calf may consume about 200 lb. of creep feed during the summer, which can save 150 lb. of forage.

Calves that eat from the creep feeder for several weeks before weaning will be accustomed to eating grain. They will also be less dependent on cows for milk.

Early weaning and retained ownership of calves may also earn a higher return.

If calves are weaned at 150 days instead of 205 days, that extra time benefits cows as well.

“A weaned cow uses 30 percent less nutrients than a lactating cow,” Ramsay said.

Calves should be fed with the cow herd a few days before weaning. Feed them along the fence line or from bunks to make sure they are eating.

Cows should be condition scored to assess body fat. A cow in good condition may have improved fertility and need less winter feed.

Condition scores are a point system of one to five.

One is a bag of bones while five is a butterball. Cows should score between 2.5 and three with not too much fat felt around the spine and ribs.

Thin cows should be fed separately or offered a better winter diet. Producers should test feed, monitor vaccines and provide parasite control.

Feed testing and ration balancing provide the proper nutrient balance. Help is available from nutritionists or by using Alberta Agriculture’s Cow Bytes program.

Another option is for producers to pregnancy check early and sell their old and open cows as soon as possible.

Merle Good of Alberta Agriculture said cattle producers used to survive drought when cattle prices were decent by selling some of their cows.

This time, however, higher debt loads and poor markets may prompt some to leave the industry.

“At what level are you willing to retain the cow herd?” Good said.