New crop of calves...

InvalidID · #1 03/26/12, 11:59 AM

My new crop of calves (bottle babies) are up and doing pretty well. We've mixed them in with the rest of the herd and have them out on the pasture now. Thing is they won't eat sweet grains. Grass and hay they'll eat no problem. Grains or wet cob, no interest at all.

Sup with that?

MO_cows · #2 03/26/12, 12:05 PM

They just don't know yet it's good. Might try some alfalfa pellets or calf manna mixed with your regular feed to encourage them to taste it.

InvalidID · #3 03/26/12, 12:10 PM

They've tasted it already. They'll start snorting and trying to spit it out. Meanwhile the larger guys would stampede through the fence to get to it if they could. That's how I know it's not a bad batch. If/when I sell them to a feed lot they'll be in trouble if I can't get them eating this stuff.

I don't have any pellets here. I do have some pressed alfalfa where the leaves have dried out pretty bad though. They'll root through the stems to lick the leaves off the feeder bottom. Think I could mix some grains in with the leaves?

ksfarmer · #4 03/26/12, 12:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by InvalidID

I don't have any pellets here. I do have some pressed alfalfa where the leaves have dried out pretty bad though. They'll root through the stems to lick the leaves off the feeder bottom. Think I could mix some grains in with the leaves?

Yep, though you may have to put them in a pen and put the hay in a bunk and the grain on top of it. Don't give them anything else for a couple of days and they will get the idea.

oregon woodsmok · #5 03/26/12, 07:34 PM

If they've been on bottles, you mix a little milk with the grain. After a few days you top the grain with the dry milk powder. As soon as they will eat it that way, you stop the milk.

InvalidID · #6 03/27/12, 01:28 PM

Well, an older calf solved the problem for me. These guys follow him around like lost puppies and try to imitate him. I decided to give him the grains they wouldn't eat and of course he went at them with gusto. When the little guys noticed this they just had to have some too.

Now they try to climb over you to get to the grains if you aren't careful.

JulieLou42 · #7 03/31/12, 12:33 PM

Why would you WANT to feed them grain. It's not a natural food for them anyway, and makes them cease production of beneficial oils like omega 3 and CLA. Look it up on the 'Net for further info on that statement.

You don't have to eat cold water fish or take their oils to get your omega 3 down if you're eating GRASS-FED only beef.

I just had my 11 y.o. cow processed and she'd been on grass only for two years...you shudda seen the FAT on her. She hadn't produced a calf for three years.

The only grain she had was while milking. Her four bull calves never would take to grain, and since they were for our table anyway, I didn't even push it.

InvalidID · #8 03/31/12, 01:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JulieLou42

Why would you WANT to feed them grain. It's not a natural food for them anyway, and makes them cease production of beneficial oils like omega 3 and CLA. Look it up on the 'Net for further info on that statement.

You don't have to eat cold water fish or take their oils to get your omega 3 down if you're eating GRASS-FED only beef.

I just had my 11 y.o. cow processed and she'd been on grass only for two years...you shudda seen the FAT on her. She hadn't produced a calf for three years.

The only grain she had was while milking. Her four bull calves never would take to grain, and since they were for our table anyway, I didn't even push it.

I want them to know what it is and be able to eat it because they may end up at a feed lot. The calves I keep to raise up to butchering are on grass the entire time.

collegeboundgal · #9 04/03/12, 07:01 PM

grain will help put on extra weight on cattle and help just weaned calves get the extra calories they need. and when it's time to call them up, if they get grain, they come RUNNING! lol. and their are people (like me) who LIKE the taste of grain fed beef...