For Immediate Release:

Contact: Dallas Mount, UW Livestock Extension Educator, SE Wyoming

57 Antelope Gap Rd.

Wheatland, WY 82201

Phone: (307) 322-3667

July 15, 2002

Planning for a Winter Feed Shortage

If you haven’t sold your livestock and are planning on trying to feed them through this winter you definitely have your work cut out for you. Already the hay market is seeing record high prices due to the dry conditions in our area as well as our neighboring states. Making it through this winter, and remaining profitable, will definitely take some creativity in finding some economical feed for your cattle.

I encourage you to be diligent, creative and open minded in looking for potential feeds. It is not too early to start planning now for what you are going to do this winter. If you can find feed at a reasonable price, get a nutrient analysis of that feed; then see how that feed can fit into a winter ration for your cattle. I can assist you in developing a balanced, least-cost ration using any feeds you can find to meet the nutrient requirements of your livestock.

Pricing potential feeds according to their nutrient content is an easy way to compare feeds. For example: if corn grain is priced at $90 per ton and the TDN (energy content) is 90% then each unit of TDN is $100 ($90 / .90 = $100). To compare this to alfalfa hay that is $100 per ton and 50% TDN you are paying $200 per ton of TDN in the alfalfa. On an energy basis it is easy to see that the corn is the better buy. To use this method, determine what nutrient is lacking from the diet and price the feeds by units of that nutrient.

This example brings up the question of: How much grain can I safely feed to my cattle? In times when hay is expensive, substituting grain for hay presents an opportunity to reduce winter feed costs. Roughly, for each pound of grain you feed to your cows, you should be able to feed 2 lbs. less hay. So how much grain can you feed? University studies have demonstrated that, under intense management, up to 90% of the dried ration for mature cows can come from corn grain. However, in most situations, I would not recommend feeding grain at a level over half the dry matter in the diet. At this level, the substitution of grain for hay can present some great economic opportunities for wintering cattle in years like this.

Another opportunity that may be an option is using winter annual grasses such as triticale or wheat as supplemental forage. If we get some late summer or fall precipitation, these forages can be drilled earlier than the wheat grown for grain to produce forage for grazing in fall, winter and spring. Cattle grazing these forages generally show high levels of performance, and increased stocking rates can be achieved with low levels of energy supplementation.

These are just a few of the available options to help you make it through this year. Probably the most important thing to do is to determine what it will cost you to feed your livestock this winter, determine their present value and the added value of keeping them. In many situations, it makes more sense to sell now and take the present value for your animals rather than trying to feed them this winter. Whatever you decide remember your University of Wyoming Cooperative Extension staff is here to help you find answers. Please contact me with any questions or requests for more information on these topics.