Post by bluebar23 on Oct 27, 2017 12:18:23 GMT -5
So I am trying to figure out what feed I need to get through the winter, and I am getting super frustrated... I have no idea what I'm doing when it comes to feed!
I am trying to feed two heifers and four goats:
Bred Milking Shorthorn - will be 2yo when she calves in February
Angus cross - born in June, still on bottle but planning to wean this next month
3 yearling does, should be bred to kid Feb/March
1 yearling buck
Currently they have all have a mix of free-access grass hay and pasture. I'm going through about one bale of hay a day, sometimes a little less. (I am no judge of hay, so I have no idea what quality this stuff is. I've had 2 or 3 bales out of 50 that had a spot of mold between flakes. Otherwise they're happy to eat it, unless I overfeed, in which case they start leaving stems.)
The goats get 1/2 lb of sweet feed each TAD. The bottle calf is currently on about 3 lb of creep feed TAD (will go up with weaning). The bred heifer was raised grass-only; I have started her on a couple handfuls of creep feed a day as a training device. I'm wondering about starting her on grain when she freshens; I think I read on here barley is a good place to start if I'm hoping to keep her mainly on grass?
I need to figure out what hay to buy for the winter. I don't know what I'm looking for, or how much. There's a dealer about 100mi away who has about anything I could want:
Grass Mix - $4/bale
2nd cut Grass Mix - $5/bale
Alfalfa - $4/bale
4th cut Alfalfa - $6/bale
Teff - $5/bale
Economy Grass Mix - $2.50/bale
I'm still waiting to hear back on their delivery charge, but if I were to get hay from these guys, how many bales do I want, and of what?
I'm in SE Iowa, so we have fairly cold/snowy winters... we're expecting our first hard freeze this weekend, and I can usually plant my garden by April 1.
This is the first time I've owned pasture, so I have no idea what to expect on that front. We have 4.5 acres of random grass/weeds that was mowed in August, and has been only very lightly and partially grazed since. I'm assuming I can keep grazing until there's snow cover? Or is that bad for the pasture?
I just want to make sure we're stocked so I don't run out of hay in February with a fresh cow and kidding goats in the barn. I've had a hard time finding hay; I just don't know anybody in our new area yet, and most of the farms around us are big operations that deal in round bales, which we aren't equipped to handle. If anyone can offer any advice, I'd be grateful!
I am trying to feed two heifers and four goats:
Bred Milking Shorthorn - will be 2yo when she calves in February
Angus cross - born in June, still on bottle but planning to wean this next month
3 yearling does, should be bred to kid Feb/March
1 yearling buck
Currently they have all have a mix of free-access grass hay and pasture. I'm going through about one bale of hay a day, sometimes a little less. (I am no judge of hay, so I have no idea what quality this stuff is. I've had 2 or 3 bales out of 50 that had a spot of mold between flakes. Otherwise they're happy to eat it, unless I overfeed, in which case they start leaving stems.)
The goats get 1/2 lb of sweet feed each TAD. The bottle calf is currently on about 3 lb of creep feed TAD (will go up with weaning). The bred heifer was raised grass-only; I have started her on a couple handfuls of creep feed a day as a training device. I'm wondering about starting her on grain when she freshens; I think I read on here barley is a good place to start if I'm hoping to keep her mainly on grass?
I need to figure out what hay to buy for the winter. I don't know what I'm looking for, or how much. There's a dealer about 100mi away who has about anything I could want:
Grass Mix - $4/bale
2nd cut Grass Mix - $5/bale
Alfalfa - $4/bale
4th cut Alfalfa - $6/bale
Teff - $5/bale
Economy Grass Mix - $2.50/bale
I'm still waiting to hear back on their delivery charge, but if I were to get hay from these guys, how many bales do I want, and of what?
I'm in SE Iowa, so we have fairly cold/snowy winters... we're expecting our first hard freeze this weekend, and I can usually plant my garden by April 1.
This is the first time I've owned pasture, so I have no idea what to expect on that front. We have 4.5 acres of random grass/weeds that was mowed in August, and has been only very lightly and partially grazed since. I'm assuming I can keep grazing until there's snow cover? Or is that bad for the pasture?
I just want to make sure we're stocked so I don't run out of hay in February with a fresh cow and kidding goats in the barn. I've had a hard time finding hay; I just don't know anybody in our new area yet, and most of the farms around us are big operations that deal in round bales, which we aren't equipped to handle. If anyone can offer any advice, I'd be grateful!