Vigortone Protein Supplements Can Maximize Livestock Performance

Beef cows have relatively high maintenance requirements due to environmental exposure and grazing activity. Because a large amount of daily forage consumption is used for maintenance, any improvement in performance or body condition will hinge upon increasing intake and improving the efficiency with which ingested forage is utilized. Supple­mentation with protein and a balanced vitamin-mineral package increases digestibility and, consequently, intake by meeting rumen microbial requirements for ammonia and maximizing the rumen microbial population. These practices usually will move the cow into a positive energy balance.

It is generally accepted that correction of an inadequate protein intake will result in greater feed intake by cattle. Tests in Idaho, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and Utah have shown that intake by the gestating-lactating cow will be reduced some 6 to 10% for each 1 to 2 percentage units of protein inadequacy.

Manage according to body condition. Net returns to cow-calf operations are determined largely by reproductive performance. A high percentage of cows must wean a calf, and a high percentage of those calves must be born early in the calving season. For a cow to calve next year at the same time or earlier than she did this year, she has to breed back in 82 days or less. Cows in moderate to good condition at calving have sufficient body reserves to get that done.

A Colorado test (1975) indicated that 46, 61, and 91% of cows calving in thin, moderate, or good condition, respectively, were cycling 60 days after calving. In a similar test at Purdue University (1986), the number of days to rebreeding was dependent upon body condition score (BCS) at calving, with scores of 4 to 7 being optimal. Early to mid-lactation demands on the cow’s body reserves can result in the loss of up to one body condition score (70 to 80 lb).

Why not just feed some grain? Directly providing energy via grain (starch) rarely is successful in improving energy status. When the objective is to supplement the existing forage program, the use of grain results instead in a substitution effect in which the rumen microbes preferentially digest the starch, leaving an equivalent amount of ingested forage to go largely undigested. Management of protein intake. Forages of lower quality will dictate feeding supplemental protein at 0.2 to 0.4 lb/cow/day to meet her requirements. Mechanisms for delivering this under range conditions include the use of Vigortone Forage Pro products, Vigortone Protein Tubs, or commodity proteins such as soybean meal, cottonseed meal, corn gluten feed, or distillers grains.

Does a cow get all the minerals she needs from forage? To survive, yes, but to optimize performance, no.

With self-fed products, make sure adequate pasture or roughage is available and that cows are not salt-starved before introducing the product of choice. A two week adaptation period may be required to establish desired consumption. Virtually all commodity proteins will not provide adequate levels of all minerals, so free-choice range mineral is a good practice. Use a mineral providing at least 6-8 g of phosphorus daily in a Ca:P ratio not narrower than 2:1. The Vigortone 32S line of minerals is a good choice.

Consumption of self-fed products can be manipulated by:

1) relocation of feeding stations relative to water or loafing areas,

2) increasing or decreasing the number of feeding stations, and/or

3) feeding additional salt or minerals.

If supplemental protein is hand-fed, every-other-day feeding at twice the daily level has been shown to be as satisfactory as daily feeding. However, feeding every third day, or less frequently, is not satisfactory.

This article was published in the October 2004 edition of Vigortone's Bunk, Bull & Business newsletter.