in what is (in a feedlot) a very crowded and dirty environment for cattle, which are being fed an unnatural diet.
Hormone implants are placed in the middle third of the ear and are either a synthetic estrogen that will increase muscle gain, a synthetic androgen that decreases protein breakdown and thus increases muscle mass, or a combination of the two. However, implants inserted incorrectly or the wrong implant type for the animal can diminish the benefit. An estimated 25 percent of implants have abscesses around the implant site, reducing their effectiveness, and implants in larger breeds can result in overly large animals. Implants can also increase toughness and delay marbling—the fat deposited inside the muscle—lengthening the time the animal must be on feed to reach a higher quality grade.
Concern over the effects of these practices on the environment and humans has grown markedly. An article by Michael Pollan in the March 31, 2002, edition of the New York Times Sunday Magazine, titled “This Steer’s Life,” probably did more than any other single event to galvanize public interest in what had been fed to the beef they were eating. Mr. Pollan revealed that most antibiotics sold in the United States end up in animal feed, not in people, and thereby add considerable impetus to the ominous and accelerating development of antibiotic-resistant human infectious agents. Manure that gets washed into nearby streams and lakes, in turn, leaves measurable levels of hormones in the water, where fish with abnormal sexual characteristics have been found. Some scientists believe, Mr. Pollan wrote, that this build-up of hormonal compounds in the environment may be connected to falling sperm counts in human males and premature maturity in human females.
Grazing-Management Basics
Some grazing-management practices are dependent upon climate. In arid areas, according to Allan Savory, a high density of grazing cattle is necessary to break up the soil crust and to work seed and fertilizing manure and urine into the ground. In the Deep South, where high summer temperatures prohibit grass growth, some cattle owners plant warm-season annual forages for grazing when pastures aren’t producing. In our area, the Midwest, the major concern is weed control. I mow paddocks once or twice a season, just after they’ve been grazed. In general, it takes grasses and clovers about three days to begin regrowing after they’ve been grazed. You want to mow within that time window so you’re only mowing plants that the cattle didn’t graze, not cutting regrowth. Where the ground is too rocky or steep to mow, I hand-cut weeds, preferably before they go to seed.
Every two or three years, it’s a good idea to test your pasture soil. This involves taking a small shovel and a bucket and gathering samples from the top few inches of soil at several locations in the pasture. Mix up the samples, put some in a plastic bag, and send the combined sample to the soil testing laboratory. In a few weeks, you’ll get back a report showing the pH level of the soil and the nutrient levels for nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus. When you submit your samples, ask the lab to test for trace minerals, too, especially calcium. If your pasture is deficient in any nutrients or minerals, you’ll need to amend the soil accordingly.
To find a soil lab in your area, get precise directions on how to take a sample, or locate lime and fertilizer dealers, start by asking your local agricultural extension agent or feed and seed dealer. Ask what time of year is best for taking samples and spreading amendments in your area, too.
Finally, pastures should not be monocultures (limited to one plant type). You don’t want to eat the same thing for every meal, and neither do your cattle. A mix of several types of grasses, a few different legumes, and an eclectic selection of other plants, such as dandelions and plantains, will furnish a nicely balanced diet for cattle. If you’re short on one of those plant categories, you can buy the seed and work it into the pasture. Ask your seed dealer, extension agent, and other specialists for advice, and then use what seems to fit your situation.
When the snow melts, the ground will be fertilized by a mix of wasted hay and manure.
Hay
When pasture is dormant due to drought or cold, your cattle will need hay, and beef cattle don’t need top-quality hay. Ideally, the hay should be a mix of grass and legumes cut before they go to seed and baled after they’ve dried thoroughly. As long as the hay isn’t moldy or nothing but stems with no leaves, it’ll do for beef cows. Pure, high-quality alfalfa or clover hay, which is high in milk-producing protein and low in body-heat-producing carbohydrates, can be harder on beef cows than old, coarse hay, but you might want to use it if you’re fattening steers during the winter. Knowing when to buy or harvest hay saves you money, time, and labor.
When to Buy or Harvest
If you’re buying hay for cows and calves, you don’t need the expensive stuff. During the growing season, keep a close eye on the weather in your region. Dry seasons quickly create hay shortages, driving prices sky-high. Buying early and in quantity during good years and storing the excess is generally your best bet. In covered storage, hay will last for years, and even round bales stored outside will last two or three years if the bales are tight and kept on dry ground. Don’t pay for any hay until you’ve dug into a few bales and checked for mold, weeds, and stem content.
If you’re having hay made for you on your land or making it yourself, don’t be in too much of a hurry. Waiting a little longer into the season to make your first cutting of hay gives you several advantages: The hay will be taller, giving you more volume. It will be higher in carbohydrates and lower in protein, which is good for keeping cattle warm in the winter. The weather in most areas will be more settled, with less likelihood of a surprise rainstorm ruining the cutting. In addition, grassland nesting birds will have a better chance of getting their babies fledged and out of the nest before the hay mower comes through.
Our local dairy farmers like to take three or four cuttings off their hayfields each year, but I take two—I’d rather have the cows harvest it by grazing a couple times than to haul out the tractor and Haybine again. This extends the grazing season and cuts my out-of-pocket feed costs. As an added benefit, the cattle fertilize as they graze.
Winter Hay Feeding
How you winter-feed your cattle depends on your setup and preferences. If you have just a few head of cattle and are using small square bales, it’s easy to construct a wooden hay feeder or buy a metal feed bunker. If you’re feeding round bales, you’ll need round bale feeders sized for the bales you have. These are widely available at farm stores, and the pieces can be hauled or even delivered in a small trailer for assembly at home.
If you’ve got a shed for the cattle, you can feed hay inside. This is nice in foul weather, but it greatly increases the volume of manure you’ll have to clean up next spring because cattle like to stick close to the hay in winter. If you feed outside, you can either feed in the same spot every day or keep moving the hay feeder to a new location.
If you’re feeding in the same location every day, the happiest situation is having the hay feeders on a cement pad. This eliminates the mud and simplifies cleanup in the spring. If you don’t have a cement pad, your dirt feeding area will become a “sacrifice area,” so churned up by the cattle that it’s unlikely you’ll have anything growing there for a long time. In either case, plan on scraping the feeding area or the shed clean in the spring and spreading the moist mix of manure and old hay on your pasture or hayfields with a manure spreader. This typically requires a Bobcat with a bucket, a tractor, and a manure spreader. If you don’t clean up the area, chances are you’ll have a terrific infestation of stable flies because the manure-hay mixture is optimal for their breeding.
The other option for winter hay feeding is “outwintering,” or feeding hay on pasture away from the barn. You move the feeders each time they’re emptied; because the manure and wasted hay is spread as the cattle are feeding, there’s not much spring cleanup.
