Straw usage

[GTB]

How much straw should we be using under approx 100 store cattle? They are in three sheds of approx 60x30 with feed barrier down one side and 10' scraper passage behind so bedded area is 60x20. We are currently using one bale a day 8x4x2 (which I'm guessing is about a third of a ton) between the three sheds. It looks like we put plenty down but by the following day it's gone. Does this sound about right? Cattle are on clamp silage and just one lot of steers getting three kg of beef grower.

With straw at £115/ ton it's costing £38 per day to bed down. Has anyone got a rough idea how much it would cost to bed down with sand or sawdust. I've been told I'd need about 50 tons of sand in each shed every 8 weeks or so??? Sand is about £17/ton delivered here so £850 per shed every eight weeks ish??? This works out at £45 a day for all three sheds. Am I missing something?

TIA

 

[Northeastfarmer]

I think if you’re only using one block for 100 stores you’re not doing bad

 

[Bob c]

how much extra fert will you have to buy to replace the loss of straw muck

 

[bobk]

How you going to get rid of the sand .

 

[gone up the hill]

£0.38 pence head a day is about right this year for store cattle, don't forget you will always use more straw in Dec/ Jan than months like Feb/March etc as the days are so short/ muggy in Dec/ Jan.

 

[willie waver]

i'm using 1 330kg bale to bed down 250 cattle of all ages a day, and they're doing fine, although they are lower stocked than your sheds and eating 40%DM silage, which helps a lot

 

[Coximus]

can you not under-bed with arb-waste? A few round my area have done that and are finding it takes the moisture out of the straw quick, as well as replacing some of it - seems to be popular

 

[Grass And Grain]

i'm using 1 330kg bale to bed down 250 cattle of all ages a day, and they're doing fine, although they are lower stocked than your sheds and eating 40%DM silage, which helps a lot

That's an impressively low straw usage. What sort of housing system is it?

 

[west coast angus]

i'm using 1 330kg bale to bed down 250 cattle of all ages a day, and they're doing fine, although they are lower stocked than your sheds and eating 40%DM silage, which helps a lot

That's some going!! I only managed to bed 27 cows with calfs at foot, a 4ft round a day last year and i would not call them clean by anymeans! What am I doing wrong

 

[tr250]

@GTB I'm using about double the straw you are so I think your doing well to keep them clean at that. but straw is cheap here grown ourselves and being converted into lovely fertiliser to go back on the arable

 

[willie waver]

That's an impressively low straw usage. What sort of housing system is it?

I just keep it simple, put in a deep bed of old haylage along back, then blow a thin layer of straw along the rear 15-20 feet of pen every day, and muck out the front 10 feet next to the feed barrier every 10-14 days. like I said, you need dry silage for it to work. 220+ days winter at £30+ a bale still hurts though...

 

[willie waver]

That's some going!! I only managed to bed 27 cows with calfs at foot, a 4ft round a day last year and i would not call them clean by anymeans! What am I doing wrong

yeah, I calf outdoors in may/june, saves a lot of straw

 

[Chasingmytail]

we are using home sourced woodchip there is no way the boss will spend on straw at the mo. Worth getting in touch with some local arboriculturalists to see if they need somewhere to dump it. Woodchip is excellent are absorbing moisture. We'll keep it back and use the muck to make compost.

 

[Chasingmytail]

What happens to that much sand to the soils if yr going to spread it later on?

 

[Bobthebuilder]

use as much as it takes to keep them clean, some weeks we use less than others, 2 sheds 1of which is 2 long pens 40 in each today they got 3 x 4' silage bales and 3 x 5'6" round wheat straw which will last them all weekend no problem possibly until Tuesday, other is 4 square pens 30 big bullocks in 2, 30 fattening heifers in 1 and 16 bulling heifers and a few old cows in the other, 3 pens will get 2 silage and 2 straw each tomorrow, silage in ring feeders and straw shaken out with forklift, the bulling heifers are on margin hay and straw probably 2 of each tomorrow aswell and that will last them probably until Wednesday, the 3 pens on silage will need done again on Monday, hate seeing dirty cattle

 

[sodbuster]

Using around 15 ton straw every other day for bedding and feeding approx 0.5ton for feeding every day

 

[Derrick Hughes]

Straw to dear to bed cattle .
find something cheaper . plenty of stuff about .

it's crazy throwing money on the floor to be sh!t on

 

[Derrick Hughes]

we are using home sourced woodchip there is no way the boss will spend on straw at the mo. Worth getting in touch with some local arboriculturalists to see if they need somewhere to dump it. Woodchip is excellent are absorbing moisture. We'll keep it back and use the muck to make compost.

Don't blame him .if every one did that you could get the straw price back to a price that makes sence

 

[haymaker80]

How much straw should we be using under approx 100 store cattle? They are in three sheds of approx 60x30 with feed barrier down one side and 10' scraper passage behind so bedded area is 60x20.

Ours are in the same size pens as you and same stocking rate. We use approx 2 ton a week per 100 cattle so slightly less than you but they are on hay rather than silage

 

[Northeastfarmer]

i'm using 1 330kg bale to bed down 250 cattle of all ages a day,

Can you turn water into wine too?