help with feed

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CANsteer

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Oct 27, 2010
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333
So last year, i started my steers out on a purina show ration and a couple months in it started getting really expensive, about $17 a bag. When that happened i switched them onto straight cracked corn with protein pellet (22%) and cotton seed hulls mixed in. This year i would like to keep my calves on that feed to keep costs down but i would like to add some other stuff to it like oats and/or barley. what is a good ratio per ton of corn/oats/barley? ive looked into AAOK's feed ration but not all the ingredients for it are available to me here. feel free to PM me and thanks for any help! also it needs to be safe for steers and heifers.
 

cowman 52

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Jan 16, 2009
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San Angelo Texas
Have fed a lot of cattle using a simple deal not by pounds but by parts, a 5 gallon bucket works well, we mix feed every feeding.
Oats and hulls equal by volume, corn 1/2 the oat volume, protien 1/8 the oat volume. If you have the barley, use it at about 1/3 of the oat volume, much more you will have a little problem. Causing you to need to add a few more hulls.
2 things I've learned over the years,  wet feed is a lot more digestible, and here we have access to whole cotton seed, cattle over. 400 can use it well, and you get the oil, protien, and roughage for right at 10 a hundred, and 1to 2 lbs a head is more than enough.
Just a opinion
 

AAOK

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Jan 30, 2007
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5,264
Location
Rogers, Ar
CANsteer said:
So last year, i started my steers out on a purina show ration and a couple months in it started getting really expensive, about $17 a bag. When that happened i switched them onto straight cracked corn with protein pellet (22%) and cotton seed hulls mixed in. This year i would like to keep my calves on that feed to keep costs down but i would like to add some other stuff to it like oats and/or barley. what is a good ratio per ton of corn/oats/barley? ive looked into AAOK's feed ration but not all the ingredients for it are available to me here. feel free to PM me and thanks for any help! also it needs to be safe for steers and heifers.

Here is a suggestion to alter this ration to your preference :
1200 lbs. cracked corn
400 lbs. cotton seed hulls
200 lbs. whole oats
100 lbs. soy bean meal
100 lbs. molasses

600 lbs. cracked corn
600 lbs. barley
400 lbs. cotton seed hulls
200 lbs. whole oats
100 lbs soy bean meal, or protein pellets
100 lbs. molasses
 

CANsteer

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Oct 27, 2010
Messages
333
AAOK, do you think the feed will be too hot with that much barley as a growing ration? Thanks for your help.
 

AAOK

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Jan 30, 2007
Messages
5,264
Location
Rogers, Ar

Up to 50% Barley in a ration is approved for cattle. Barley is higher in protein than corn, so I would vote to not include the protein pellets. I think you would just need to really monitor your steer's gain, and may need to push more corn, less barley near the end.
 
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