Young calves will eat a little more and heavier cattle will eat a little less. For example, a 600 pound calf will eat 15-18 pounds of dry matter (2.5-3% of body weight) and a 1000 pound calf will eat 20-25 pounds of dry matter per day (2-2.5% of body weight).
How much grain should you feed a 500 pound calf?
Unless indicated by the person you purchased the calf from, cattle should be adapted gradually to growing rations rather than abruptly put on high-grain diets. When the calf starts on feed, first provide high-quality grass hay for free choice consumption (3% of body weight; 15 lbs per day for a 500 lb calf).
How much feed does a feeder steer eat?
The steer will consume roughly 15-20 pounds of hay per day or 2 percent of his body weight . Grain is added to the diet three months before taking the steer to the processor. The amount of time on feed can vary from 60-150 days.
How much corn do I need to feed a 500 pound calf?
This rule will apply only if supplemental feed is limited to 0.75 percent of body weight . For example, if 500 pound calves were fed 3.75 pounds per day of corn (500 x 0.75 percent), expect about 0.09 pound gain for each pound of supplemental corn.
How much grain should a 400 lb calf eat?
It takes about 1.1 to 1.3 pounds of a 40 percent protein supplement per head daily to supplement the corn silage intake of 400- to 500-pound calves (Tables 2 and 3). However, 1 pound of soybean meal appeared to be adequate for corn silage used in Kentucky studies with 400-pound steer calves.
How much grain should I feed my 600 lb calf?
Young calves will eat a little more and heavier cattle will eat a little less. For example, a 600 pound calf will eat 15-18 pounds of dry matter (2.5-3% of body weight) and a 1000 pound calf will eat 20-25 pounds of dry matter per day (2-2.5% of body weight).
How many pounds of grain does a cow need per day?
Cows will voluntarily consume about 2 percent of their body weight or 24 pounds per day. The 24 pounds is based on 100 percent dry matter. Grass hays often will be 7 percent to 10 percent moisture.
How much grain should I feed my beef cattle?
The amount of grain necessary for each cow will depend on the initial condition of the animal and the quality of the roughage. From 3 to 4.5 kg (6 to 10 lb) of grain is suggested, with poorer conditioned animals receiving the higher amount.
How much should a steer gain per day?
Both steers are gaining an average of 3.5 pounds per day (1.59 kg/day). Over time, we measure that Steer A consumes an average of 21 lbs (9.53 kg) DM per day, which equates to a 6:1 feed to gain ratio.
How much grain should I feed my 700 pound steer?
The main goal for steers hand fed between 700 pounds through the finishing phase is three pounds per day , Weaber said. “To make that goal, the calf needs to be fed six pounds of feed for one pound of gain so about 2.1 tons of feed during that phase,” Weaber said.
How many pounds of grain does it take to finish a steer?
10-15 lbs. per day of corn, oats or barley fed to grazing cattle is a good finishing ration. This fed to a 900-1000 pound steer for 3-4 months should will you a nicely finished animal. If you do not have access to pasture or if you are finishing during the winter, you might increase the amount of grain to 15-18 lbs.
What is the ideal weight to butcher a steer?
Buy Standard to Good feeder grade steers weigh- ing 600 pounds and full feed a finishing ration until they yield a slaughter grade of Good. This may be 800-900 pounds , depending on gain rate and feed conversion.
What is the best weight to sell feeder calves?
In general, the value of gain on 300-400 pound calves tends to be higher than for 500-600 pound calves. Use the light-weight feeder steers as a base to view the price differences as you add weight to various endpoints. This measurement is commonly used by stocker operators.
Can cows eat too much corn?
Because it’s not natural for cows to eat large quantities of corn , animals raised on it are more likely to suffer from health issues. The most common include bloat, or possibly fatal amounts of excess gas, and liver abscesses.
Can you feed cattle whole corn?
Even though corn can be fed whole with satisfactory results , cracking or rolling prior to feeding will increase digestibility by 5 to 10 percent. In most instances, grinding or rolling corn will not markedly improve average daily gain, but proper processing will improve feed conversion efficiency.
How much does a 500-pound calf eat a day?
Cattle can consume up to 30 percent of their dry matter intake of whey without reducing performance. This would represent an intake of 50 to 60 pounds daily of liquid whey for a 500-pound steer. Whey can supplement hays for protein, calcium and phosphorus.
How much weight does a feeder calf gain per day?
Calf Rations
Usually gains will range from 1.5 to 2.5 pounds per day. Hay-based ration with limited concentrates(grain).
When should I stop feeding my calves grain?
In early weaning systems calves need to begin eating some grain by 2 weeks of age to allow enough rumen development to occur before weaning at 5 or 6 weeks of age . If we do a good job of managing grain intake, it is possible to wean calves at 6 weeks, even when milk feeding rates are high.
What do you feed a 300 pound calf?
1) Rations use high-quality feeds: The rumen of this weight of calf is small. so there is a need for high-quality feeds to keep the calf growing. Feeds like corn, oats, distillers grains, corn gluten feed, soy hulls, high-quality hays, high-quality protein source can be used.
Should cattle be fed grain?
Corn, oats, and barley are the primary grains fed to cattle . Oats, which has a lower energy value due to its high fiber content, is considered the “safest” grain in regards to potential digestive disturbances.
Can you feed a cow too much grain?
Adult cattle accustomed to heavy grain diets may consume 30–45 lb (15–20 kg) of grain and develop only moderate illness, whereas others may become acutely ill and die after eating 20 lb (10 kg) of grain.
What is the most feed efficient cattle breed?
Among straightbred cows producing calves of the same breed, two separate groups could be identified: Red Poll, Braunvieh, Limousin, Pinzgauer, Charolais, and Gelbvieh were the most effective in converting feed energy resources to a marketable product (Table 3).
How many bushels of corn does it take to feed out a steer?
Corn production requirements
Depending on the size and weight of the cattle, the amount of forage available for growing lighter calves, access to low-priced byproducts and other factors, 50 to 80 bushels are typically required to finish one steer.
Can you over feed cattle?
Over-eating a forage will likely not hurt the cow, but will increase feed costs . Cows over-eating grains is not a good situation. This will usually result in acidosis, founder, reduction in performance, and sometimes death of the animal.
