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    Isu Uw

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    Brittany Etheridge
    This document provides suggestions for cattle feeders on how to slow the growth of cattle during the COVID-19 pandemic when cattle markets are depressed and packing plants have reduced capacity. It recommends maintaining daily gains of at least 2.5 lbs by feeding diets with 50-55 Mcal of NEg/CWT dry matter. Simple methods to reduce energy include increasing forage in the diet by 7.5-10% or limiting intake to 90% of current ration amounts. Feeders are cautioned against holding cattle too long, as excessively heavy cattle are more susceptible to heat stress and yield grade discounts.

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    Isu Uw

    Uploaded by

    Brittany Etheridge
    19 views2 pages
    This document provides suggestions for cattle feeders on how to slow the growth of cattle during the COVID-19 pandemic when cattle markets are depressed and packing plants have reduced capacity. It recommends maintaining daily gains of at least 2.5 lbs by feeding diets with 50-55 Mcal of NEg/CWT dry matter. Simple methods to reduce energy include increasing forage in the diet by 7.5-10% or limiting intake to 90% of current ration amounts. Feeders are cautioned against holding cattle too long, as excessively heavy cattle are more susceptible to heat stress and yield grade discounts.

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    ISU UW

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    ISU UW

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    This document provides suggestions for cattle feeders on how to slow the growth of cattle during the COVID-19 pandemic when cattle markets are depressed and packing plants have reduced capacity. It recommends maintaining daily gains of at least 2.5 lbs by feeding diets with 50-55 Mcal of NEg/CWT dry matter. Simple methods to reduce energy include increasing forage in the diet by 7.5-10% or limiting intake to 90% of current ration amounts. Feeders are cautioned against holding cattle too long, as excessively heavy cattle are more susceptible to heat stress and yield grade discounts.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    19 views2 pages

    Isu Uw

    Uploaded by

    Brittany Etheridge
    This document provides suggestions for cattle feeders on how to slow the growth of cattle during the COVID-19 pandemic when cattle markets are depressed and packing plants have reduced capacity. It recommends maintaining daily gains of at least 2.5 lbs by feeding diets with 50-55 Mcal of NEg/CWT dry matter. Simple methods to reduce energy include increasing forage in the diet by 7.5-10% or limiting intake to 90% of current ration amounts. Feeders are cautioned against holding cattle too long, as excessively heavy cattle are more susceptible to heat stress and yield grade discounts.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 2

    1

    Considerations for Slowing Feedlot Cattle Growth due to the COVID-19 Pandemic

    Iowa State University Extension Beef Specialists, Iowa Beef Center


    University of Wisconsin Extension Livestock Program Educators, and University of Wisconsin
    Department of Animal Science Faculty

    The COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt cattle markets. Cash sales for the week of April 13-17 were
    depressed as packing plants operated at reduced capacity or shuttered their doors due to labor issues spurred by the
    Covid-19 pandemic. Having a market that will take finished cattle at a suitable date has become a concern. In
    addition, the current live market prices, and limited sale opportunities for fat steers have left many cattle feeders
    searching for solutions to reduce their economic loss.

    In times of depressed markets many cattle feeders lean towards the “hold and hope” method of selling fed cattle,
    where they retain their cattle longer than is ideal with the hope of waiting out the down turn in the market.

    The strategy to hold cattle longer will depend on the goals of the operation and the stage of feeding of the cattle. The
    good news is that cattle are adaptable to a variety of feeding systems and programs, and their growth can be
    programmed in a very predictable way through changing the net energy of the ration or using “programmed feeding.”

    For cattle ready or near ready for market it may be best to sell these cattle when opportunities present themselves
    even if prices are not ideal. Cost of gain and maintenance is high for animals at this stage of growth. Modeling of
    recent closeouts suggests that incremental feed conversion of cattle beyond today’s market weights of 1400-1500
    lbs. may exceed 10-11 pounds of feed dry matter per pound of gain. It is important to keep in mind the costs (feed
    and yardage) of owning the cattle longer and the potential losses from discounts due to oversized carcasses, high
    yield grades, and potential death loss.

    It is unrealistic to expect a group of cattle on feed to achieve zero gain while waiting for the market to regain
    ground. However, reducing the rate of gain and holding condition may be possible if done properly.

    The following are suggestions and guidelines to think about while deciding on marketing decisions. These are
    costly strategies but would allow cattle to be held until they can hopefully be assigned a harvest date within a
    reasonable time frame. Keep in mind, longer holding periods do not guarantee demand and better prices for fed
    cattle due to uncertainty within the present market and an unknown timetable for return to normal business.

    Maintain a daily gain of at least 2.5 lb. per day to maintain marbling deposition. This would require a diet that is at
    least approximately 50-55 Mcal of NEg/CWT dry matter. Many feeders may choose a more moderate approach of
    providing 55-58 Mcal/Cwt with or without slightly limiting feed intake.

    It is important to keep in mind that holding beef type cattle versus Holstein steers can look very different. Holstein
    steers can be fed high energy rations for a longer period of time compared to beef type cattle without having
    negative effects on their fatness. Overall weight will still need to be monitored to ensure steers do not incur carcass
    weight discounts.
    2

    Simple methods to reduce energy are to increase forage in the diet by 7.5%-10%. This step down can happen
    abruptly by feeding an increase in clean corn stover, dry hay, haylage, corn silage, etc. with no negative impact on
    rumen health. Cattle feeders could feed up to 40% corn silage or 15% dry hay in the ration that would allow cattle
    to gain around 2.5 lbs. per day while still maintaining sellable condition and quality grades. Of course, a higher
    forage diet will be associated with lower dressing percentage.

    It may be beneficial to step back the potency of your implant program or even consider skipping the terminal
    implant on cattle that are about due for it to help limit rate of gain and reduce negative impact on quality grade if a
    lower energy holding ration will be fed to animals within 100 days of harvest.

    If using limit feeding as part of the process to slow cattle down, one option is to allow the cattle on feed to only
    consume 90% of their current ration. Any use of limit feeding will only work effectively if there is adequate bunk
    space for the entire group to step up to eat at the same time. This method should not be used in a self-feeder
    situation as dominant cattle will continue to consume their share while imposing a greater feed intake limitation on
    the more submissive cattle in the same group. Whichever option fits your situation, please work with your
    nutritionist to ensure balanced diets are being fed.

    Feeders should be mindful of intentionally feeding cattle to excessive weights by holding them too long.
    Excessively heavy cattle do not tolerate heat and are more susceptible to AIP (acute interstitial pneumonia;
    respiratory distress). Harvest-ready cattle with black hair coats lacking shade and experiencing a temperature-
    humidity index of 79 or greater with no night-time cooling are most susceptible to death from heat stress.

    As cattle get too heavy and lay down too much condition, they may also receive discounts due to poor yield grades.
    Large cattle are also more susceptible to bruising and injury due to being too large to easily move through cattle
    handling systems and fit through some trailer doors. To reduce the risk of fatigued cattle syndrome, these cattle
    must be handled quietly during loading and unloading. Cattle feeders and truckers should be sure to follow BQA
    guidelines when handling and transporting cattle.

    (4-24-20)

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