High protein liquid feed on straw for store cattle

[FarmerK]

Is anyone feeding a higher protein mineralised molasses on straw to their store cattle?
I was thinking about feeding this along with the cake they already get plus some silage. I’ve got better access to straw than silage this year. I might be talking rubbish but does anyone do this? If so what are you using and roughly how much is the liquid feed
Thanks

 

[JSmith]

Just plane molasses on straw if your feeding other food aswell, be plenty in my opinion for what that’s worth, depends on how much you want to push them on I suppose

 

[FarmerK]

Just plane molasses on straw if your feeding other food aswell, be plenty in my opinion for what that’s worth, depends on how much you want to push them on I suppose

I tend to give them around 2kg of beef nuts per head per day along with silage and straw but thinking the way the silage job is try to get them to eat more straw and the liquid feed would sort of compensate a little for the lack of silage. I might be wrong?

 

[DrDunc]

Adding urea to straw will likely be your cheapest way, depends upon what type of animals you're feeding, especially if they're already getting (fecking expensive) cake

Simmental cross Shorthorn and Angus stores just get good silage and straw here now. Cut out cake and molasses years ago after growing and conserving better grass. Meant there was a better margin. Feck knows what to feed them on now fertiliser price has exploded

 

[FarmerK]

Adding urea to straw will likely be your cheapest way, depends upon what type of animals you're feeding, especially if they're already getting (fecking expensive) cake

Simmental cross Shorthorn and Angus stores just get good silage and straw here now. Cut out cake and molasses years ago after growing and conserving better grass. Meant there was a better margin. Feck knows what to feed them on now fertiliser price has exploded

I was just on with feeding silage but I decided to just try and give them a bit of a shine over and buy and feed a mouthful of cake (rightly or wrongly I don’t know!) I have everything from b&w bullocks to pure limi’s. I was just thinking to have the straw ad-lib with some molasses or something tipped over it. Cake them once a day then gripe a bit of silage up for them on a night

 

[Tractorboy67]

I was just on with feeding silage but I decided to just try and give them a bit of a shine over and buy and feed a mouthful of cake (rightly or wrongly I don’t know!) I have everything from b&w bullocks to pure limi’s. I was just thinking to have the straw ad-lib with some molasses or something tipped over it. Cake them once a day then gripe a bit of silage up for them on a night

If you got some oat’s they will put a shine on them. And relatively cheep..

 

[neilo]

Is anyone feeding a higher protein mineralised molasses on straw to their store cattle?
I was thinking about feeding this along with the cake they already get plus some silage. I’ve got better access to straw than silage this year. I might be talking rubbish but does anyone do this? If so what are you using and roughly how much is the liquid feed
Thanks

We did dairy heifers on straw and liquid feed a couple of times, when silage has been short. Ad-lib, clean in a rack (& bedding of course) and liquid feed ad-lib through a ball feeder. As we had 50 or so in the shed, we made a ball feeder out of an old metal water trough, with a metal plate inside (halfway up) and 4 or 5 Adaptaballs fitted. Park the ibc on pallets next to it and fill with a hose whenever needed.

Cattle did well on it, without anything else, but obviously dearer than silage most years.

 

[livestock 1]

I give cattle a high % urea liquid. It either gets fed in the cereals/blend or in ball feeders.
You can more or less reckon that the urea liquid plus straw will only replace decent silage if that’s what you are asking.

 

[Werzle]

Is anyone feeding a higher protein mineralised molasses on straw to their store cattle?
I was thinking about feeding this along with the cake they already get plus some silage. I’ve got better access to straw than silage this year. I might be talking rubbish but does anyone do this? If so what are you using and roughly how much is the liquid feed
Thanks

I wouldnt bother, its dear and doesnt do alot of good. They will do fine as they are.

 

[FarmerK]

I give cattle a high % urea liquid. It either gets fed in the cereals/blend or in ball feeders.
You can more or less reckon that the urea liquid plus straw will only replace decent silage if that’s what you are asking.

I was thinking about soaking it through a bale of straw if that makes sense. I just have good access to straw and the silage heap is getting smaller every day. Was hoping the molasses/straw combined would give similar feed value. People asking £40 a bale for silage just makes me wonder

 

[livestock 1]

I was thinking about soaking it through a bale of straw if that makes sense. I just have good access to straw and the silage heap is getting smaller every day. Was hoping the molasses/straw combined would give similar feed value. People asking £40 a bale for silage just makes me wonder

That’s all we do pour it onto the bales then feed it. Same with square bales. It’s a good idea to put liquid feed onto the straw as you need more protein otherwise the gut won’t work and the cattle can’t digest it. Fed plenty of cows this way there is a daily requirement ask your man and they will tell you.
There’s no real saving in my eyes except when silage is dear as you say the real saving is the fact they eat much less straw than they do silage. That’s where you score.

 

[FarmerK]

That’s all we do pour it onto the bales then feed it. Same with square bales. It’s a good idea to put liquid feed onto the straw as you need more protein otherwise the gut won’t work and the cattle can’t digest it. Fed plenty of cows this way there is a daily requirement ask your man and they will tell you.
There’s no real saving in my eyes except when silage is dear as you say the real saving is the fact they eat much less straw than they do silage. That’s where you score.

I plan to still feed silage to the cattle but just gripe them a little bit one end of the day because I’m finding they just waste it in feeders etc ( pull it through) and they grow a big belly. The straw idea is more for keeping the belly right while they’re getting goodness from the liquid feed

 

[milkloss]

I was thinking about soaking it through a bale of straw if that makes sense. I just have good access to straw and the silage heap is getting smaller every day. Was hoping the molasses/straw combined would give similar feed value. People asking £40 a bale for silage just makes me wonder

Does straw work out much cheaper with molasses on it? Genuine question.

we used to buy an Edf Mann product with 44% protein to help with a straw diet. Self limiting to a degree so we fed using ball and wheel lick feeders. Seemed to do ok on it.

 

[livestock 1]

Does straw work out much cheaper with molasses on it? Genuine question.

we used to buy an Edf Mann product with 44% protein to help with a straw diet. Self limiting to a degree so we fed using ball and wheel lock feeders. Seemed to do ok on it.

The only real saving is cows can’t get through the quantity of straw that’s wheee it’s at

 

[FarmerK]

Does straw work out much cheaper with molasses on it? Genuine question.

we used to buy an Edf Mann product with 44% protein to help with a straw diet. Self limiting to a degree so we fed using ball and wheel lock feeders. Seemed to do ok on it.

It seems to at the moment as I’ve plenty of straw but don’t have too much silage. I’ve only started this thread to see what other peoples thoughts are to be fair as I’ve not started feeding any straw and liquid feed yet. I’ll have to sit down and put pen to paper but folks round here are wanting £40+ per bale what’s been made with an old roller baler and grass you’d think twice about grazing

 

[Matt Crooke]

The trouble is liquid molasses and urea is not cheap 40% urea molasses is 90pence a litre from one supplier I rang

 

[FarmerK]

The trouble is liquid molasses and urea is not cheap 40% urea molasses is 90pence a litre from one supplier I rang

I’ve not rang round any reps yet as I was wondering if anyone else was on with it already so I’ve not heard any prices. As the cattle are still getting cake I don’t think they’ll need loads of molasses if that makes sense. Just want something a little more nutritious than normal molasses so the straw is more palatable and to reduce the silage useage

 

[Matt Crooke]

If there getting cake and silage then there may be enough protein in the ration to feed the rumen bugs to work on the straw. Depends what the silage is like and how much protein is in the cake. We use it for suckler cows on straw with a bit of cake to get the protein up enough.

 

[Kernowkid]

Yeah same here. Whacks of straw but the clamp is going back faster than my brothers hairline.
Reading the thread with interest

 

[DrDunc]

The trouble is liquid molasses and urea is not cheap 40% urea molasses is 90pence a litre from one supplier I rang

Adding granulated urea to an IBC of water until it's a saturated solution is an awful lot cheaper