how much hay is too much?

[mikecoen]

can I be giving my pregnant and lactating cow and her 4 month old heifer calf too much hay? It seems to me that it is way more than 30 pounds of loose hay per day. Then, if I give them some bales from two years ago so they have ample volume for my being gone 2 days, they go right after it but then they leave a lot of it on the ground, picked through. they like it at first and go right to it, then half of it is just trompled on and they are waiting like they have nothing to eat when I return. So, it is wasted as they are waiting for me to feed them some new stuff and they really go after it like they are hungry and eat up a huge pile of loose hay. I tried calling their bluff a couple of times and making them eat what is already scattered around but they seem to be hungry. I also supplement with some mineral and 3 or 4 pounds of shredded corn and cobs from what field corn I grew last year. I can keep throwing in the loose hay but I am worried they'll get too fat.

 

[herfrds]

If they are wasting the hay you are feeding them too much. Cut it in half and see how they do.

 

[jhm47]

Are you just throwing it on the ground, or do you have a hay feeder? Throwing hay on the ground will encourage waste, and you can quickly pay for a good hay feeder through less waste. It's doubtful that they will get too fat from hay.

 

[Royd Wood]

A good hay feeder is a must - you will save a fortune.
We use round bales and one bale lasts 4 days between 9 head but recently because of the thaw, snow then rain I couldnt get to the feeder so just dropped it on the ground and it was gone in a day - most of it trampled into a cozy bed

 

[clarmayfarm]

No, you cannot give them too much...hay is what balances their rumen and the bugs (good ones) in their belly. Free choice hay is a good thing.


If you give them too much, they will waste it...a hay ring or manger is a good idea.

Good luck!!!

 

[mikecoen]

thanks to you all for the sound (and consistent) advice. My normal feeder is a modified tractor tire and they do waste very little compared to the times I leave 2 days worth of hay (2 bales total for cow and calf), so the feeder does seem to help. A few more days and they will be turned out on the pasture that is greening up just now. I'd like to see the pasture 6 inches tall first - does that sound about right?

 

[WildRoseBeef]

thanks to you all for the sound (and consistent) advice. My normal feeder is a modified tractor tire and they do waste very little compared to the times I leave 2 days worth of hay (2 bales total for cow and calf), so the feeder does seem to help. A few more days and they will be turned out on the pasture that is greening up just now. I'd like to see the pasture 6 inches tall first - does that sound about right?

I'd go for ten, depending on the type of grass you've got growing in there. But yeah, between 6 and 10 is good to toss them out for grazing.

 

[mikecoen]

I got several good answers from you all and I appreciate that. Today the first-calf heifer and calf decided for themselves. I had them penned into a 30 x 100 foot section of the pasture and was leaving the hay in the tractor tire feeder that they preferred not to eat. I thought they should clean that up better before giving them more (they like the hay from another pile I have instead of the bales which are 3 years old but have been kept dry). Well, the grass is greener as we say and they decided to crawl through or under the temporary pen fence and are in the 1 acres pasture of 2 to 3 inch grass. I wasn't ready to put them on that grass for at least another week but it is now done. I have that pasture divided in two for some rotation but had not quite finished the electric fence there so they crawled through it also and are roaming freely checking out their new digs. I just got this 2 year old and her 5 month old calf about a month ago. They are quite tame already and let me brush and rub them when they eat the ground corn/cob mix I make for them. I have been giving them 2 or 3 pounds of that twice a day and the calf now likes it as much as the cow. I gave them some of their more preferred hay in this new arrangement and they went right to it so they were hungry. I thought I had better be sure they eat hay and not try to fill up on the short grass or maybe hit the green stuff too hard without some transition. So, any thoughts . . . like should I try to pen them up again or just go with it now. The grass should grow faster than they can eat it and should be great nutrition.

 

[jhm47]

One acre of grass won't feed a cow and calf unless you supplement.

 

[mikecoen]

True, especially dryland in Colorado. I have another acre that I'll water, mow, rake and stack and yet I'll have to buy probably 3 or 4 tons of hay. I also raise corn for supplement and I feed the stalks. I did it once for raising an angus steer but I only had him from April to November, so he didn't eat much hay in the fall as he was being finished on more corn. It will cost me maybe $500 a year in feed and supplements and I'll get two calves a year to sell if all goes very well. Once in awhile we'll raise a steer for meat and otherwise sell the belted galloway calves, bulls or heifers, to finance this hobby. If that sounds misguided, I do welcome your input and I'll be around on byh I'm sure.