Width of slatted pen?

[Jaffa Cakes]

What's the optimum width of a slatted pen for beef stores/finishing? All fed along one side. Does 15ft sound about right? Is it worth getting the slatted rubber?

 

[JohnAC]

Personally I don’t like too deep a pen I think 15/16ft is plenty I’m sure somebody will tell me I’m wrong lol. We rubbered a few pens a couple of years ago and are really well pleased with it and will do more cattle are far more content and comfortable and far less slipping and sliding

 

[Sheep]

TMR?

 

[Northeastfarmer]

In each pen 15ft x 20 ft roughly how many suckler cows would you get around 700 kilos?

 

[le bon paysan]

12 to 15 if you pack them in.
3, each cow needs about 100 square feet.

 

[sheepwise]

All depends if you are feeding TMR or add lib. Our pens are 22' deep consisting of a 12' and a 10' slat, 17' of comfort mats from back wall over 12' slat to midway of 10' slat.Generally stops cattle lying up against feed barrier. I like the deep pens as I think finishing cattle do better when they have room to lie stretched out. We are add lib TMR though so all cattle don't need access to barrier at same time. When calving in spring we sometimes use a couple of pens for cows and young calves. The deeper pens mean calves have room to move around their mothers and we just set up a small temporary creep in a pen corner with straw which the big cattle soon tramp through when creep taken down.

 

[Jaffa Cakes]

TMR?

No tmr

 

[Limcrazy]

15ft is too wide if feeding meal from a bag and wanting all to eat at one time unless feeding at both sides or walk through troughs between pens.

 

[Jaffa Cakes]

15ft is too wide if feeding meal from a bag and wanting all to eat at one time unless feeding at both sides or walk through troughs between pens.

Do you not just put less in the pen in that case. Give them a bit more room?

What width do you think is optimal?

 

[Limcrazy]

Slatted pens need to be well filled for cattle to stay clean and dung to tramp down well. I've a shed with 14ft slat plus a foot concrete either end it's ok for tmr always available but stores can't all eat at one time if feeding meal on top of silage. Bit old fashioned but a narrow meal passage up back and wide passage for silage and meal at front works well and be flexible if you went tmr at some stage. Pens could be full but everything would line up to eat.
Also could put water troughs at back and be able to clean without going into pens.
13/14ft is more cost effective to build and slat.

 

[jamesy]

In each pen 15ft x 20 ft roughly how many suckler cows would you get around 700 kilos?

Pens 15’ x 12’ 7 cows pre calving down to 6 after calving

 

[Jaffa Cakes]

Slatted pens need to be well filled for cattle to stay clean and dung to tramp down well. I've a shed with 14ft slat plus a foot concrete either end it's ok for tmr always available but stores can't all eat at one time if feeding meal on top of silage. Bit old fashioned but a narrow meal passage up back and wide passage for silage and meal at front works well and be flexible if you went tmr at some stage. Pens could be full but everything would line up to eat.
Also could put water troughs at back and be able to clean without going into pens.
13/14ft is more cost effective to build and slat.

Thanks, how many stores or finishing cattle would you have in a pen?

 

[Hard Graft]

If TMR and in a bunker feeding 24 deep pen what ever width though you want though working off the roof cost though 15/16ft is a better barrier but 20ft would not worry me but go for wj

And if you are fitting new slats and thinking off fitting mats in the near future. the best time is at day zero as they produce the best Roi in the fist year on new slats as the new slats cause issues with their feet an alkaline reaction and sharpness on the feet for the fist year so do it up from if you can

 

[Limcrazy]

30 stores in pen 16ft x 2 bays fairly crowded but all can lie down.
If I was doing it again I'd leave any concrete pads an inch higher to be level with top of mats not top of slats and no indoor mixing points.

 

[flywheel]

Pens here are 15ft to suit steel for 15ft bays ,slats are 10ft tho.

 

[Sheep]

Pens 15’ x 12’ 7 cows pre calving down to 6 after calving

Similar to this.

15x14ft fed on TMR 7 finishers.

Without TMR I'd be missing feeding space for 1/1.5