Family cow feed?

[WildRoseBeef]

I found some 5x5 round bales of wheat for sale locally. Would that be good feed for her plus a mineral block/tub?

Definite no! That hay is all fibre and very inadequate amounts of protein and no energy. A really poor choice for feeding a Jersey cow, for any cow. This hay is primarily straw, best for bedding than for hay. You need to find hay that has a great percentage of legume (i.e., alfalfa, clover, trefoil, lespadenza, etc), as in around 70 to 95% legume, and the rest good quality grass like timothy or orchard grass. Yes it'll be expensive but it's the best quality hay you can get (and will NEED) for your cow. Usually the cheaper the hay, the poorer quality it will be. Usually...

If, however, you do want to feed the cow that straw hay, you will need to supplement with a high-protein supplement such as cotton-seed meal or canola meal plus cracked corn to add energy. This means you still need to spend a lot of money on feed, and is really defeating the whole purpose of you trying to decrease feed costs for your cow, if that's what you're trying to do. If you want to decrease feed costs, invest in some excellent quality hay. Your cow will thank you.

 

[Arkantex]

Ok. So we are going to stick with alfalfa then. So, in addition to alfalfa we need a mineral/protien block? How much alfalfa are we going and how much mineral/protien are we going to need in a month? I know this will be a rough estimation. I just want to half way know what we need to have on hand before we get her here.

 

[WildRoseBeef]

You should try to feed alfalfa hay free-choice. You will need to maybe test the hay you get to see the protein and nutrient content of the hay to determine what is needed in terms of mineral/protein supplementation. How much protein supplementation you feed in a month or per day depends on what's already in the hay and how much more is needed--as well as the kind of protein supplement you get. Estimate around 10 lbs of protein supplementation--plus or minus a bit--to feed to her per day. That's around 300 lbs per month.

ETA: Keep in mind she may want to eat or will eat a lot more than that. If she hasn't been on mineral before limit feed her, breaking up feedings a twice a day. Also, cows tend to eat a lot more feed with mineral and protein, and eat more mineral when they don't have access to salt--though certain minerals can limit palatability. Providing salt free-choice will decrease her mineral consumption.

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

SuburbanFarmChic, We have been saving milk jugs for a few weeks now and we have a huge freezer. With 2 young boys who drink milk before every nap and bedtime, we go through about 2-3 gallons a week. It would be more than that, but we only buy organic milk. Since the organic stuff is so expensive, my wife and I have cut way back on how much we drink.

What equipment do we need to filter the milk? We haven't bought any equipment yet.

With two in milk plan for around 30 to 50 gallons a week.

 

[Arkantex]

I don't plan on having both of them in milk at the same time.

 

[Arkantex]

Whitemountainsranch,
Will they not do on demand production? In other words, once we get the calf weened will the cow still produce x number of gallons every day or will she only produce as much as we are milking from her? Start out milking her down twice a day and then slowly cut back on how much milk we are taking from her until her production equals our usage?

 

[SuburbanFarmChic]

Ok with using 2-3 gal of milk a week and wanting to freeze some, you could keep 4 dairy goats for far less than the cost of those two cows.

And even if you only have 1 cow in milk. You will get at least that much a day.



And please know that absolutely NO ONE here is trying to dissuade you from owning livestock. We're just trying to help match your needs up with the animals supply and it's needs. I know we're knocking down a bunch of your ideas and conceptions of what would work and how it would go, but please know we're just trying to save you head ache later.

 

[WildRoseBeef]

And please know that absolutely NO ONE here is trying to dissuade you from owning livestock. We're just trying to help match your needs up with the animals supply and it's needs. I know we're knocking down a bunch of your ideas and conceptions of what would work and how it would go, but please know we're just trying to save you head ache later.

That's exactly right, Arkantex. What may seem good on paper may not work out when it's put into practice. We don't want you to have any unpleasant surprises when you start the whole raising cattle process.

 

[Arkantex]

Oh I know everyone is just trying to watch out for us, and I don't take any offense to everyones comments. I appreciate them. This is how we learn!

Goats aren't an option really. Mainly because they freak my wife out. Don't know why but she has a strong dislike for goats.

We have always wanted cows. My wife grew up with a best friend that raised cattle and she has been in love with them ever since. I guess I should also mention that our milk usage is going to go up once we actually have a milking cow. My wife wants to make our own cheese and eventually make all our dairy. We also have a few other families that are wanting fresh cows milk but don't have the land to raise thier own. They will be chipping in on the feed bill, helping out around the place, and things of that nature.

 

[Arkantex]

Well a little update... We went and picked up Flower on feb 16th. Everything is going well. She was basically a pasture cow, only being around the PO in the morning whe he would feed them in the morning. We on the other hand, are out there with her numerous times a day between feeding time, snack time (she loves apples!), building the barn/milking parlor, and working on the fence for the other pastures. So, she is adjusting and becoming more comfortable with being around humans and other animals. She is getting to where she will let us pet and scratch on her. Still working on getting a halter on her. She isn't really sure about all that.

We have been feeding her free choice alfalfa hay, mineral block, and protien block and then oats and sweetfeed twice a day. My wife is looking into getting set up for individual mineral powders and letting her pick and choose as she needs it rather than going with the mineral blocks. The only problem with that is the wind blows so bad out here. It will have to be in the barn and then still have some kind of cover that we remove once a day to give her access to it. We are really enjoing her and looking forward to her calfing in the not to distant future.

Getting her haulter broke and getting the stanchion built are the next things on the list. I would like to have her comfortable with boht before the calf gets here.