Many producers resort to feeding grain when forage is in short supply. While there is a significant amount of energy in grain, it can reduce the digestion of fiber from forage in the diet, thereby reducing overall energy supply. “Grain is digested rather quickly which lowers pH in the rumen,” Mark Robbins, Research Manager for Ridley Block Operations said. Lower pH kills off a certain percentage of the microflora that digest fiber in the rumen. A significant amount of forage is still being fed with the grain, and now the cow is not able to utilize that forage as well because fiber digestion has been impaired. As a result, the cow’s total energy intake is actually lowered. In extreme conditions when you are out of forage or forage is cost prohibitive, limit-fed high grain programs may need to be considered. These programs can be difficult to manage. Producers considering this option should consult a nutritionist for details on how to best implement these programs.

Dr. Evan Titgemeyer at Kansas State University conducted a research study to determine the effect of different supplementation strategies on intake and digestion of lower-quality prairie hay (Crude Protein = 5.7%, Neutral Detergent Fiber = 72%).

To show which supplement option was most effective, Dr. Titgemeyer and his team of researchers conducted an intensive digestion trial with beef steers. They compared free-choice intake and digestibility of a low-quality prairie hay for steers given no supplement, four pounds per day shelled corn, or one pound per day of CRYSTALYX® BGF-30.^TM

Results of this trial indicate that BGF-30^TM increased digestible neutral detergent fiber (NDF) intake 21% compared to the control, whereas the shelled corn treatment reduced digestible NDF intake by 19% compared to the control. BGF-30^TM also had the highest dry matter digestibility and highest dry matter intake.

The KSU trial shows that instead of feeding grain as an energy source you can feed a small amount of protein. “Supplementing with CRYSTALYX^® BGF-30^TM or other CRYSTALYX^® protein supplements can greatly increase the utilization of energy that’s in your forage,” Robbins said. “And that can make a significant difference in herd performance and profitability.”

Urea and other forms of non-protein nitrogen have over the years taken some unwarranted hits, based largely on high-profile wrecks.

Non-protein nitrogen, or NPN, offers a valuable tool for squeezing every penny out of your supplement investment when formulated at appropriate levels and delivered by a foolproof proven method.

Naturally efficient

Research during the last decade has continually shown that cattle on low-quality forage, whether standing or harvested, perform better when they’re given a source of rumen-degradable protein—in other words, protein that is first broken down by the rumen through fermentation and then passed onto the lower gut as a more usable form of protein called microbial crude protein. “Feeding the rumen” with that form of protein increases the amount of fiber cattle eat as well as the digestibility
of that fiber, especially on low-quality, low crude protein diets.

The problem: Protein, actually nitrogen, is one of the most expensive nutrients to supplement. However, researchers found long ago that feeding the rumen with relatively cheap forms of nitrogen—like urea—could easily replace up to 60 percent of the protein in some applications before cattle started turning up their noses at it.

Taking advantage of ruminant’s natural adaptability and digestive architecture can substantially reduce supplement costs. The downside—as discovered by those unfortunate producers who overapplied NPN through uncontrolled freechoice feeding—is that under those conditions that allow the rumen to convert urea into ammonia too quickly, the ammonia is absorbed from the rumen and enters the blood, where it can, at best, reduce growth and reproductive performance, and at worst, kill when toxic levels are reached.

Low moisture blocks offer two proven methods to safely maximize utilization of urea. First, by controlling intake of the urea containing supplement, and, second, by the simultaneous intake of fermentable energy with the urea.

The benefits without the problems

To ignore such a profitable advantage of the ruminant’s digestive system because of the risks, would be to the cattleman’s loss. New, more reliable supplement formulations vastly reduce, if not eliminate entirely, the traditional problems associated with misused non-protein nitrogen:

• Unreliable intake limits. Blocks like CRYSTALYX^® Brand Supplements control consumption physically, rather than by the less-reliable high-salt method or by the more labor-intensive daily delivery. Cattle typically consume less than a pound of CRYSTALYX^® Brand block daily, far below the amount necessary to create any urea toxicity. Plus, because there’s no high salt level to encourage salt-naive cattle to load up, you don’t need to acclimate cattle to them as with traditional salt-based urea supplements.

• Infrequent intake. Urea supplements also cause problems when cattle don’t eat the same amount daily. Because CRYSTALYX^® Brand Supplements are highly palatable, animals consume them on a regular, but controlled basis that keeps the rumen environment acclimated to urea, and its incorporation into microbial protein.

• Unrestricted intake. Urea-containing blocks and liquids that permit cattle to consume large amounts of supplement at one time increase the chances of toxicity. The physical properties of CRYSTALYX^® blocks do not permit them to be bitten or chewed.

• Insufficient supply of energy or microminerals. Research has found that a generous supply of energy in the ration that is available for microbes to ferment, and supplemental minerals—particularly cobalt, zinc and a sufficient nitrogen-to-sulfur ratio—are necessary to reduce the chance of urea overdose. CRYSTALYX^® Brand Supplements deliver all those nutrients in appropriate daily doses, and are completely blended so no separation can occur during feeding.

Quick Summary

• Providing rumen-degradable protein supplement is critical to stretch the value of low-quality forage.

• Non-protein nitrogen is the cheapest source of rumen-degradable protein, and vastly improves efficiency when provided in a formulation you can trust to control intake and deliver supplement across the entire herd.

Past research has shown that supplementing low-quality forage with grain can lead cattle to eat less forage—and also digest it less efficiently. On the other hand, feeding a protein supplement increases both the intake and utilization of low-quality forages.

Research has demonstrated that you don’t necessarily have to give up the economic advantage of grain-based supplementation. A series of studies from Oklahoma State have shown it’s possible to use the relatively cheap energy source in corn and other high-starch supplements without wasting forage, as long as your supplement balances protein based not on crude protein, but instead on the degradable-intake protein requirements of the animals. Degradable intake protein is the particular class of protein that’s digested in the rumen, to fuel the rumen process.

The Oklahoma State researchers supplemented growing heifers and steers eating standing bermudagrass and prairie hay, respectively, with 0.42 percent of their body weight daily in high-starch pelleted supplements. That amount was equivalent to levels in past research that caused a decrease in forage intake.However, because they made sure to provide sufficient degradable intake protein—from one-half to three-quarter pound per head daily—they did not see the drop in forage intake or digestibility of those previous studies.The authors suggest many of those past studies removed oil-seed meal as they added corn in re-balancing the supplements, thus starving the rumen of the degradable protein needed to create ammonia necessary for efficient forage digestion.

Don’t ignore undegradable protein

A study reported earlier this year from the University of Nebraska serves as a reminder that paying attention to the level of protein that escapes breakdown in the rumen—or “undegradable intake protein”— is also important, especially in developing females. The study found that heifers supplemented to meet their “metabolizable protein” requirements, which takes into account their need for undegradable intake protein rather than simply their crude protein requirements, weighed nine pounds more and had a higher pregnancy rate at a two-year-old preg check, and lost less body condition pre-calving and at first-calf weaning. All told, the improvements added $13.64 to the value of each bred heifer.

Source: Journal of Animal Science, March 2003.
 

Now is the time to start planning your winter-feeding program. Adequate nutrition is vital for both the calf and cow in terms of health and productivity. Thin cows are harder to breed back; produce less milk and wean lighter calves. However, on the flip side, it is important to supplement only what is necessary without wasting feed or money in order to remain profitable.

General Cattle Nutrition

In order to make informed decisions regarding supplements, it is necessary to understand the basics of cattle nutrition. Cattle require proper amounts of energy, protein, minerals, vitamins and water in order to thrive and achieve maximum production and efficiency.

Energy is the first limiting nutrient in a cow’s diet and represents a major portion of a cow’s needs. Energy is the “fuel” that allows a cow to function. Energy needs are typically expressed in terms of total digestible nutrients (TDN). Most of the energy needs of cattle are met through the fermentation of forages and roughages in the rumen. Other energy sources include carbohydrates (primarily supplied by grains), sugars (from sources such as molasses) and fats.

Protein is composed of amino acids, which the body uses as “building blocks” for body tissues. In ruminants, the bacteria and protozoa in the rumen actually digest forage protein and convert it into microbial protein. These microorganisms are capable of converting non-protein sources of nitrogen (NPN) such as urea, into the same microbial protein under normal conditions. Since the cow cannot differentiate between the microbial protein produced from natural forages and that produced from NPN, urea is often added as a way of economically increasing effective protein levels in supplements.

Minerals and vitamins are also essential to proper nutrition. Since mineral and vitamins levels vary in forages and feeds, always provide free choice access to a complete mineral and vitamin supplement containing salt to avoid deficiencies in your cattle. Avoid use of plain white salt blocks or trace mineralized salt blocks.

Water is often overlooked as a nutrient but is vitally important for cattle nutrition. Clean water is most important to young, growing calves. Inadequate water consumption will limit feed intake and reduce growth and performance.

How Do I Know if I Need a Supplement?

During winter months, most cattle producers rely primarily on hay as their main feed source. Good to high quality hay is an excellent feed source for cattle. However, hay quality varies greatly from year to year or even cutting to cutting. Environmental factors adversely affects hay quality, as well as man-made factors like improper fertilization and harvesting.

Because hay represents such a large portion of a cow’s diet and quality varies so much, it is strongly recommended that you chemically analyze your hay source(s) for nutritional content. This service is modestly priced and will save you money in the long run. By testing your hay, you will know its exact nutritional content and will allow you to make better management decisions. Knowing the nutritional content of your hay will allow you to more efficiently allot hay according to cattle needs. Knowledge of forage nutritional content will also allow you to save money by purchasing the correct supplements to meet the needs of your cattle – no more, no less.

This spring and summer’s hot dry weather has been hard on pastures. If you were fortunate to get enough rain that you could turn your cattle out on pasture, the grass is now dry and mature. There are several things that can be done to help under current drought conditions.  One of the first but not always the easiest is to wean the calves earlier than normal.

1.     The available grass is not adequate to meet the protein and energy requirements of the calf.

2.     The calves’ needs could be better met with a bunk ration.

3.     The cow will not be eating to produce milk.

4.     The calf will not be eating grass that could be feeding the cow.

5.     The calf is getting older but not gaining when grass is this short.

The requirements for a dry cow are considerably lower in both energy and protein than for a lactating cow. Weaning the calf will allow us to retain as much body condition as possible until we get the fall rains. It is expensive to put body condition back on a cow once she has lost it. It is cheaper to do what we can to keep condition on the cow.

What can we do to help the cow get more out of the grass left in the pastures? The dry mature grass will be lower in TDN and can be limited in protein content. Feeding limited amounts of corn, hay or grain by-products are some of the ways to get more energy and some protein into the cattle. Delivery costs, in addition to the cost of the extra feed, may be higher than necessary. And it may actually be negative to the digestibility of the remaining grass. 

Providing a self-fed limited amount of protein and energy will improve the digestibility of the grass and get more energy into the cow. A Crystalyx^® protein tub can deliver a controlled amount of self-fed supplement at an economical cost.  The following study at Kansas State University showed improved digestibility when a Crystalyx^® supplement was compared to a limited amount of corn. The amount of corn fed provided the same amount of protein as the Crystalyx^® supplement.  Neutral Detergent Fiber (NDF) is a measurement of the grass fiber digested by the beef animal.

The depression of NDF digestibility by the starch in the corn shows a very negative effect on digestion. Even when the amount of grass is not limited, the last thing we want to do is lower digestibility. The rumen microorganisms that use starch grow much more rapidly than the microorganisms that digest fiber. And the byproducts of their growth depress the growth of the fiber microorganisms. When just a little too much corn (or other starch) is fed, then the fiber digesting microorganisms (rumen bugs) cannot grow fast enough to digest the fiber before it leaves the rumen.

Fiber bugs have energy and protein requirements for growth which are easily met when grass is green and growing. It is a different story when grass matures. Mature dry grass is lower in readily available energy and protein making it more difficult to digest. Crystalyx^® protein tubs provide readily available energy and protein in small amounts allowing the bugs to use them to effectively digest fiber. Small multiple Crystalyx^® meals allow the bugs to use the nutrients instead of having the rumen overwhelmed by a single big meal (range cubes or grain byproducts). The easily available small amount of rumen degradable protein (RDP) provided by urea can be easily used by the bugs as a protein source. If there is no RDP then the bugs have to break down the grass protein or supplemental natural protein to use as a protein source for their growth. The same situation exists for energy. The molasses in the Crystalyx^® protein tub provides small amounts of easily digested energy used by the bugs to help digest the grass fiber. A University of Nebraska trial demonstrates using a combination of RDP and natural protein to supplement mature grass. They compared no supplement (Control) to an energy (ENG) supplement to a RDP (very soluble protein) supplement to a combination RDP/natural protein (RDP/EP) supplement.  The cows were nursing summer calves when these measurements were taken in late September.

The cows receiving the combination of protein sources gave the most milk and did not lose weight. Their calves and the calves from the cows receiving RDP gained the most weight. If the calves had been weaned then the energy and protein used for milk production would instead be used to maintain or improve body condition.

1. Forages may be deficient in nutrients that can limit animal performance whether it be cow reproductive efficiencies, calf health, and growth or stocker gains.

2. Stocker cattle and replacement heifers can easily gain up to 10% more on grass if provided a feed additive such as Rumensin^®, Bovatec^® or GainPro^®. There are a number of free-choice delivery methods available that have FDA approval for use in stocker cattle and replacement heifers.

3. A variety of free-choice supplements provide EPA approved delivery of feed-through fly control larvacides or insect growth regulators that can help reduce losses in particular with the presence of horn flies. Some compounds have additional fly specie approval including, stable flies, house flies and face flies.

4. Recent cattle market prices in combination with high grain prices have increased the urgency to get as much gain on forage-based programs as possible prior to cattle arriving in the feed yard. Supplements can greatly assist stocker operators in achieving aggressive weight gain to optimize pasture resources.

5. Free-choice supplement may be strategically located in pastures to help improve forage utilization by getting the most out of your land and forage resources.

6. Early in the growing season, Grass Tetany conditions can result in sudden death losses in mature lactating beef cows. Providing consistent delivery of a readily available Magnesium supplement can help prevent losses from Grass Tetany.

7. Drought conditions, late in the growing season and especially with stockpiled winter pasture, protein content of the forages will most often drop below animal requirements and performance will be reduced. Small additions of protein supplement will improve forage digestibility and prevent animal performance losses.

8. Mineral and vitamin supplementation on pasture is critical for maximizing animal performance and providing nutrients required for maintaining animal health.

9. Organic or chelated forms of trace minerals can be beneficial where there are extreme deficiencies or levels of antagonizing minerals that interfere with the use of trace minerals required for optimum animal performance. Organic  forms of Copper and Zinc in a mineral supplement will help overcome mineral antagonists that can be present in certain regions of the country or water sources.

10. High-producing purebred herds will require additional supplemental inputs to ensure that they perform to their genetic potential and maximize reproductive efficiencies.  Herds with greater than commercial market value are much more of an investment to protect and ensure that they have every opportunity to pass on their traits whenever possible.