The single largest cost in cow-calf production is the cow's feed bill. So what better place to start cutting costs? There are a number of ways to reduce that cost; some rely on cheaper ration ingredients such as pasture or byproducts, but what about reducing the actual feed requirement? This is an option that deserves a second look.

Reducing Requirements

Reducing feed requirements is different than reducing dependence on stored feed. Strategies such as extended grazing seasons and shortening the period on stored feed have received deserved attention, but those are still not the same as reducing requirements. Reducing requirements means that on any given day while on stored feed, the cow or herd needs less of the same feed to get by. This can be achieved in several ways over the long term.

Production system change: A winter calving season requires more stored feed for cows simply because of the demands of late pregnancy and lactation. Moving this calving date makes use of cheaper pasture at that peak intake time. This is a bit of a shell game in reality, but it can affect stored feed use and cost.

Cow frame size and maintenance: All things being equal, the bigger cow eats more, because intake is a function of animal weight. Does a 1600 lb. cow really produce one-third more calf to justify her greater feed bill than does the 1200 lb. cow? Could that bigger calf be achieved with a terminal sire? Breed also plays a role; generally speaking, continental breeds and especially those of high milk production need five to 10 per cent more feed for maintenance, even as dry cows.

Reducing wind and mud stress: The extra feed energy required in a windy wet lot is much higher than in a dry, wind-sheltered lot. For example; a clean British breed (thick-skinned) cow in a sheltered wintering yard with 1 mph winds at -12C (10F) needs;

• five per cent less feed than the same cow in a 10 mph wind

• 11 per cent less feed than the original cow with a wet, matted coat

• 26 per cent less feed than the same cow with a wet, matted coat in a wind of 10mph

• 34 per cent less feed than a wet, windy dairy-type cow with thin hide

In practice, that means cows exposed to these conditions will need grain, or condition must lost because they can only eat so much hay. Alternatively, these examples can be used to put some dollar values on the extra feed used in those critical two to six weeks of winter where conditions are like this, or worse.

Manipulating Body Fat Levels

The most immediate way to reduce maintenance requirements is by manipulating body condition score (BCS: 1 to 5, Canadian system). Ideally a cow should be at a BCS of 3.5 at calving. Bringing a 1300 lb, March 1 calving cow from a condition score of 2.5 at weaning to 3.5 requires extra feed one way or another which is equivalent to around 450 lb. decent quality hay or 250 lb. corn. Imagine the savings if that condition recovery can be done on pasture and cheaper corn stalks!

The timing of increasing her BCS from that weaning-time low can make a difference in terms of saving feed too. The extra insulation associated with that 3.5 condition score can reduce heat loss come the windy cold of late January and February.

This effect is probably more important in cattle with thin hides, such as the continental breeds. Less heat loss means less feed required. Putting on the extra condition now versus trying to do it in January may reduce the feed required per day in that period over and above the extra feed just to move up a score.

Using cheap fall pasture and corn stalks to fatten up the cows October through December can pay dividends in lower winter-feed bills on yet another level. The extra fat a cow puts on going to a
condition score 4 not only helps to insulate her, but provides some extra energy she can tap into during the cold of winter. That condition score 4 cow can actually afford to lose a little weight coming up to a March 1st calving. That can allow some more feed savings.

Action Plan

Start looking at the things you can do now. Take a second look at the cows you are culling, and the breeding decisions you are making. Will your replacements help you save feed in the future? Can you reduce the wetness and wind stress on your cows this winter? Windbreaks planned or built now will certainly help, as can a drier yard. But the fastest option is to start building up the BCS of your herd on cheaper feed now to reduce feed requirements this winter.

- Christoph Wand, OMAF Beef Cattle and Sheep Nutritionist
and Nancy Noecker, OMAF Cow/Calf Specialist
Reprinted with permission from Ontario Beef Farmer, 2004.

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