In the land of make-believe, a little man named Rumpelstiltskin had the
magical ability to turn heaps of straw into piles of shimmering gold.
In the real world, cow-calf producers who are using straw to stretch
scarce feed supplies should not expect miracles from their herds, say
beef experts. Straw can be used as a low-quality feed substitute in
lieu of pasture grass and high-quality forages, but producers must know
its limitations and should not expect windfall results.
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Bryan Doig, a cattle agrologist with Saskatchewan Agriculture in North
Battleford, said poor pasture conditions in many parts of central and
northern Saskatchewan are forcing cow-calf producers to find
inexpensive feed alternatives.
Cereal straw is an option, but overuse and insufficient protein levels
can lead to a variety of health problems, including poor conditioning
scores for cows, poor conception rates, low birth weights the following
spring, digestive problems and, in severe cases, death due to impaction.
“We’ve been getting a lot of calls lately on straw rations,” Doig said.
“Everybody’s in the same boat out there. Most beef producers have very,
very slow pastures and a lot of the producers are targeting a 30-day
window. If they can get through the next 30 days with the feed
resources that they have on-farm, that will reduce grazing pressure on
their pastures and allow the grasses to come.”
Doig said there are many factors to consider when feeding cereal straw
to lactating cows.
Cows’ nutritional requirements are at their highest in the late spring
and early summer.
“We have cows that are in full lactation at this point and they’re also
at the point where producers are wanting to have them recycling and
rebreeding,” he said.
“If the cows aren’t receiving adequate energy, protein, Vitamin A and
phosphorus, they’re going to give that up in their body. It’s going to
start affecting their estrus or their cycling, and it could pose
problems next year at calving time ….”
Cereal straw is a low-energy, low-protein feed source.
A straight straw ration doesn’t have enough protein to keep the
microbes in the cow’s rumen functioning properly. If enough straw is
consumed, unfermented material is forced from the rumen through the
cow’s digestive system and can cause a blockage in the third stomach.
This potentially fatal condition, known as impaction, can be avoided by
adding energy and protein supplements.
Feed additives such as grain or manufactured pellets can provide
adequate energy. Common protein sources include liquid or dry protein
supplements, canola meal, alfalfa pellets, lentil screenings and pea
screenings.
“Straw alone doesn’t wing it,” Doig said.
Devising an economical ration that includes straw can be a challenge.
For example, if a cow’s diet consists of pasture grass and free-choice
straw, it is difficult to determine how much fresh grass is being eaten
and what portion of a cow’s nutritional requirements must be filled
through energy and protein supplements.
As opposed to offering free-choice straw on pastures, some producers
are feeding their herds at home in a small paddock or dry lot with
straw, water and protein supplements all in one location, Doig said.
This option takes pressure off the pasture, allowing grass more time to
become properly established.
Others have their cattle on pasture and are feeding free-choice straw
along with pellets in a mobile feed bunker.
Doig said manufactured pellets are a popular option among many cow-calf
producers because they provide sufficient protein and energy and
include precise amounts of calcium, phosphorus and vitamins.
“By feeding a pelleted product, you can have a very consistent feed
that carries with it all the things that the cows need.”
Grant Lastiwka, a pasture specialist with Alberta Agriculture, said
pasture conditions are desperate in that province, particularly in
eastern areas.
Sparse rainfall last year and excessive grazing have placed pastures
under enormous stress, and dwindling on-farm feed reserves have forced
producers to put their cattle on spring pasture despite the lack of new
growth.
“Although some areas received moisture this spring, the land still has
to recover from what was done to it last year,” Lastiwka said.
“And because of the cool and late spring … the pastures everywhere
are about three weeks behind in this province. No pasture conditions in
the province are good, but some are extremely poor.”
Lastiwka said many producers are culling their herds heavily while
others are grazing their herds on spring-planted or fall-planted
annuals.
Producers with no other options are feeding low-quality roughages, but
encouraging cows to eat adequate amounts can be difficult.
“At this time of year, cows eat poor-quality feed worse than ever,
simply because they want the green grass and they can see little bits
of it here and there,” Lastiwka said.
Research at Agriculture Canada’s research center in Lacombe, Alta.,
showed that cows would only eat 14 pounds of straw in the winter, he
said.
“So certainly at this time of the year, given the lack of palatability
of straw, it wouldn’t even be that high.”
Adding raw molasses to straw will encourage consumption, but the
practice is not recommended.
“Molasses itself is a low-protein, medium-energy additive,” Doig said.
“It’s a sweetener, so it doesn’t improve the ration in terms of
nutrition, other than adding a little bit of energy. Most cows like the
taste of molasses, so it makes it (the straw) more palatable, but it
doesn’t increase the digestibility.”
Doig said some enhanced liquid molasses mixtures offer crude protein
levels between 24 and 32 percent.
They can be poured over straw or injected into bales before feeding,
but producers should monitor protein content carefully.
Grinding straw in a tub grinder will also make the feed more palatable,
but it will not increase digestibility.
Cereal straw bales are also more palatable after they’ve aged for a
season or two, but producers should be wary of potential dangers caused
by moulds and toxins.
“There’s a lot of people that are digging up old straw stacks that are
two, three, four years old and some of that is very
weather-deteriorated,” Doig said.
“Most moulds are visible. You’ll get white powder or very dusty feed
and you can smell the very sharp, pungent odour of the moulds present
…. At that point, I would advise against using that feed for
lactating and cycling cows because of the potential problems.”
