Limit-grazing of winter pasture is an effective way to provide supplemental protein, while stretching the forage. But how much protein do cattle get from limited grazing? Noble Foundation workers in Oklahoma used mature steers to estimate consumption by cows. In grazing periods of 15, 30, and 45 minutes, consumption of dry matter was 1.68, 2.49, and 3.22 lb. Crude protein intake was 0.45, 0.67, and 0.85 lb. This equates to the amount of crude protein in 1.18, 1.76, and 2.24 lb of a 38% CP supplement or 2.25, 3.35, and 4.25 lb of a 20% CP supplement. It doesn't take much time on winter pasture to consume useful amounts of protein.
WHAT'S MORE IMPORTANT, EPD OR ACCURACY?
Expected Progeny Difference is being used by more and more producers as a tool for genetic selection. There are two parts to EPD, the value and its accuracy. EPD is an estimate of true genetic transmitting ability of an individual in relation to other individuals in a breed. Accuracy is a measure of confidence that the EPD value is the true genetic value. So, if you want to make big changes in a trait, go for large differences in the EPD value. But if predictability is what you need, then look for high accuracy.
WHEN DO FED CATTLE MARBLE?
"Feed ‘em another 30 days", is a comment often made by a fed cattle buyer to a feeder. Why? As cattle are fed longer they get fatter, so carcass dressing percent goes up. But most packers trim excess fat these days, so dressing percent is not as important as it once was. What about another fat, the marbling in the ribeye which is the primary determinant of quality grade? Idaho researchers fed Limousin-Angus cross heifers for 120 days. Heifers started at 750 lb and finished at 1214 lb. Using ultrasound for ribeye fat to estimate marbling, the following was found: after 84 days on feed, 20% of the cattle would have graded Choice; after 120 days, Choice went up to 85%. So, if a similar pattern is true of all cattle, then feeding longer means more Choice, and there is a big change in Choice over not much time somewhere in the feeding period.
COW/CALF PROFITS
According to Cattle-Fax TM , from 1981 through 1986, yearly losses in cow/calf enterprises ranged from about $25 to almost $75 a cow. From 1987 through 1993, yearly profit was around $30 to $60. Then yearly losses were approximately $10 to $90 from1994 through 1996, when cow numbers started declining. Over 1997 through 2000, yearly profit was a little over breakeven to around $80 last year. Projected yearly profit from 2001 through 2005 is about $85 to $110. If so, that would be nine straight years of profit, unprecedented for cow/calf operations. Have you been making money, especially the last two years? If not, you might want to take a close look at your production and financial picture. If projections for the next four or five years are right and you don't make a profit during that time, you probably never will.
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