Post by rd200 on Sept 21, 2015 8:10:17 GMT -5
I'm having a hard time locating Decent ALfafla hay that isn't sticks crammed into a bale. There is plenty of it around but we have no skidloader so big bales just don't work for us and the majority of the small bales are all grass people make for horses.
Anyways, I have maybe 100-bales of really nice 2nd crop Alfalfa Hay. but, I really need about 250 bales. The rest of my hay is 1st crop all Grass- nice & fine stemmed
2nd & 3rd crop- 50/50 Grass/Alfalfa
4th crop- 70/30 Grass/Alfalfa
I need to find a grain mix or something else to fill in for the Winter in place of the Alfalfa hay. My Jersey cow was quite thin after she calved. And her condition is getting better now at 5months fresh (she's been getting pasture, grass/alfalfa hay mix, & corn & oats & BOSS. but now she's starting to get a little bit of the.....Big hay belly, but boney every where else. So, she needs more protein in her diet. I'm not opposed to feeding grain at all, but Great ALfalfa Hay is higher in protein & economically better than feeding a ton of grain. (that's why I've been trying to get more w/no luck)
There aren't a ton of options around since I only have 2 cows, the feed mill won't mix up anything custom for me because I don't need 1000# of feed!!
There's some great Calf Starters which would work fine for her but they have Rumensin in them which Id rather not have.
I could get some Calf Manna from Tractor supply to mix with corn for the winter. Would that really be a complete feed for her?? Corn & Calf Manna?? (she has free choice minerals, kelp, & salt)
Looking for suggestions please. I'll be the first to admit I don't know a ton about COW nutrition. My expertise is mainly calves!