12 minute read
Hay Supplementation
from Fall 2019
by TheBoerGoat
Forages and Hay Supplementation by Karla Blackstock
Choosing forages and hay for the winter can be a difficult task for some producers. There are a number of choices in any region of the country, which can be confusing.
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Let’s first cover the basics. There are cool-season and warm-season forages, many of which can be grazed, foraged or browsed. There are also many others that are often harvested for hay or silage, including some perineals and annuals. For a partial list of forages, turn to pg 19.
The forage species utilized will have a large impact on the nutritional value of the hay and/or crop. When choosing a plant species, consider the nutrient value as well as the nutrient requirements of the goats.
“Cool-season annuals, such as rye grass, oats, wheat and barley, are typically higher in nutrient value,” said Associate 10 - The Boer Goat 16 - The Boer Goat
Professor & Extension Forage Specialist Vanessa Corriher-Olson, Ph.D. “Annuals will be higher in quality than perineals.”
When choosing a forage species for a pasture situation, the first considerations need to be geographic location, soil type and annual rainfall. Past that, Corriher-Olson said nutrient value and requirements should be considered.
“Animals that are actively growing or supporting kids will require forage and/or hay that is higher in nutrients,” Corriher-Olson said. “The stage of production and management style should dictate forage decisions much like any other feeding decision.”
Corriher-Olson went on to say that producers should look at their overall production goats and determine when animals will require more nutrition.
“The southern states will have a warm-season base and will need to incorporate other types of forages into their production system,” said Corriher-Olson. And, the opposite is true of the northern states where a cool-season base is more likely.”
Ultimately, she said, it comes down to location and production management. “There are a lot of forages that we have access to across the United States,” Corriher-Olson said.
Whichever route a producer takes, Corriher-Olson said that managing feed options is critical to make it through drought or winter situations.
Because small ruminants have a much higher metabolic rate than larger ruminants, they require more hay per pound. Hay fed to goats should also contain more protein and be more digestible than hay produced for the dry, bred cow.
Estimating hay requirements for winter can be based on a few calculations. According to Dr. Susan Kerr, dry matter intake of goats is 2% to 6 % of a goat’s body weight.
In order to calculate feeding requirements for a specific period of time, estimate body weights, number of head to feed and days to be fed.
Weight of Herd X Days X (2-6%)
For example, if you have 50 goats that average 125 pounds per goats. Take 6,250 lbs and multiply by the number of days and days to be fed. If you are feeding for 3 months, multiply the overall weight of the hay by the recommended daily intake of 2% to 6%. Using the minimum (2%), the hay requirement would be 22,500 lbs.
Additionally, forage analyses can be obtained to more adequately identify the herd’s requirements.
“If you locate the forage specialist at your nearest Land Grand University or your County Extension Agent, you can get a list of labs that will analyze local forages,” Corriher-Olson said. “Hay is an important aspect of livestock management because there is always risk involved in pasture grazing. Forages of all types provide the balanced nutrition that livestock need.”
Some risk is inherent because of rainfall (or lack of) and because some grasses can pose threats, such as prussic acid and nitrate poisoning. Both prussic acid and an abundance of nitrates in forages can be toxic to livestock, including goats.
“However,” said Corriher-Olson, “this should not keep producers from utilizing forages.”
When forages become stressed because of drought or freezing conditions, their growth can be limited.
Corriher-Olson said that toxic conditions occur during the stress recovery stage. “Immediately following a drought or freezing situation, livestock can be pulled until the plant is grown. Following a freeze or heavy rain, the Crude protein (CP) and total digestible nutrients (TDN) levels required in diets of different kinds and classes of grazing livestock.
Meat Goat Doe (lactating) Growing buck % CP 12
12-13 % TDN 62 62-66
Green, leafy alfalfa grown in New Mexico is trucked to other states to supplement livestock in winter months.
Coastal hay is a warm-season grass that can be stored and used for winter supplementation.
crops used for hay, soybean foliage and pods both provide digestible protein. cattle grazing dormant pastures or consuming poor quality hay, protein is usually the most limiting nutrient. Table 3. Approximate hay yield, crude protein content, and total digestible nutri ent (TDN) content of various hay crops under good soil fertility and manageWhen you have to buy supplemental feed, protein is often prussic acid can be dangerous.” Prussic acid will return to safe levels during ment. the most expensive component. the curing process of hay; therefore hay does Approximate usual Forage nutritive value has dranot pose a prussic acid threat, she said. Annual (A) Usual nutrient level matic effects on livestock proNitrate levels, however, do not level off after Type of or hay yield Crude TDN ductivity (weight gain, reprocutting and storing hay forages. hay crop perennial (P) (tons/A) protein (%) (%) duction, etc.), so it is critical Corriher-Olson said, “If forage contains too Cool-season to match the nutritive value of much nitrate, the animals cannot convert it all Alfalfa (early bloom) P 3-6 17-22 57-62 the hay to the nutrient requireinto protein quickly enough and nitrite levels Arrowleaf clover A 2-3 14-17 56-61 ments of the target animal.build up.”
Oats Orchardgrass Red clover Rye Ryegrass Soybean Tall fescue Warm-season A P P A A A P 1-4 2-5 2-4 1-4 1-4 2-3 2-4 8-10 12-15 14-16 8-10 10-16 15-18 10-15
Annual lespedeza Bahiagrass A P 1-2 3-5 14-17 9-11
Coastal bermudagrass (4 weeks) P 5-8 10-14
Common bermudagrass P 2-6 9-11
Dallisgrass P 2-4 9-12
Johnsongrass P 2-5 10-14
Pearl millet A 2-6 8-12
Sericea lespedeza P 1-3 14-17
Sudangrass A 2-6 9-12
Source: D.M. Ball, C.S. Hoveland, and G.D. Lacefield. Southern Forages, 4th edition. 55-60 55-60 57-62 50-55 56-62 54-58 55-60
52-58 50-56 52-58
50-56
50-56 50-56 50-58 50-55 55-60
The nitrite is then adsorbed directly into the Beef cattle bloodstream through the rumen wall where it reFor beef cattle operations, the acts with hemoglobin to form methhemoglobin. most common source of stored Hemoglobin carries oxygen in the blood, but feed is hay. If hay is harvested methhemoglobin does not and can cause an at the proper stage of plant animal to die from asphyxiation. growth and stored properly, it Corriher-Olson said that planting forages and can, with the possible exception supplementing with hay is a critical part to any of grazing, provide nutrients ruminant livestock operation. Finding the perfect at the lowest possible cost. A forage that will be suited to your geographic cow’s nutrient requirement is location may require the assistance of local the greatest 60 to 80 days after extension agents or nutritionists, she said, noting calving. Stockering young, that there are simply a large number of options growing cattle requires an for producers in each unique situation. average daily gain of at least The accompanying chart and listing of forag1.5 pounds for the season, and es should be used as a basic guideline since soil high-quality forage is essential make-up and annual rainfall will dictate overall to meeting this goal. A growing nutrient value. beef steer or heifer requires “The best thing for any producer to do if they forage with about 12 percent want to know what they are feeding, is find a CP and 65 to 68 percent TDN. lab,” Corriher-Olson said.
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American Boer Goat Association Breed Standards Flood waters in New Orleans left people and animals stranded in high waters. These photos were submitted as Revisions --Effective Date: 9/2/2019 an example of how fellow agriculture producers bonded together to help save animals from the flooded areas. Revision to two sentences under the heading “HEAD”
The front of the upper dental pad must touch all incisors until the goat is 24 months of age.
Disqualifications: Wry or twisted face; cleft palate; blue eyes; ear folded lengthwise; ear crimped or narrowed at the base; shortened lower jaw (parrot mouth); the front of the upper dental pad does not touch all incisors before 24 months of age; incisor teeth protruding more than ¼ inch of an inch beyond the upper dental pad after 24 months; teeth not erupting in proper sequential order or position; more than 8 incisors when additional teeth are not the result of the normal shedding process of deciduous teeth. Fullbloods that are disbudded or polled (hornless).
Under the heading “DOES” sub heading ACCEPTABLE the following sentence was restructured.
ACCEPTABLE teat structures have no more than two functional teats per side and may include: • One or more non-functional teats with no more than one additional non-functional teat or protrusion attached to the main teat, as long as it does not interfere with or prevent nursing • A split teat with two distinctly separate teats and orifices, when at least 50% of the body of the teat is separated counts as two functional teats per side allowed • Only one of the two functional teats per side can contain two milk channels with a smooth or rounded end and with no sign of a dimple or division between the orifices 12 - The Boer Goat 18 - The Boer Goat
Warm-Season Perennial Grasses
Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) tolerates a wide range of soil types and soil pH values, making it adapted to most of the southern U.S. There are numerous varieties of bermudagrass, both seeded (common, Cheyenne, Wrangler) and hybrid (Tifton 85, Coastal, Jiggs, etc.). Bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum) is established from seed. The grass is very tolerant of low-fertility, acid soils, but does respond to nitrogen and potassium. It is best used for grazing rather than hay production. Once bahiagrass grows 10 to 12 inches tall, it produces little new growth and loses nutritive value the longer it stands. It is necessary, therefore, to harvest every 30 to 35 days to maintain forage nutritive value.
Dallisgrass (Paspalum dilatatum) is palatable and has a higher level of nutritive value than bahiagrass and some bermudagrass varieties, and it can retain its nutritive value later into the summer.
Johnsongrass (Sorghum halepense) is better suited for hay production than for grazing because it can accumulate prussic acid in its leaves and poison livestock. Young, tender, fast-growing plants are more likely to be toxic than mature plants. Johnsongrass should be harvested at heading.
Old World bluestems (Bothriochloa ischaemum, B. bladhii, and Dichanthium spp.) are well adapted to North, Northcentral, and Central Texas because they are cold and drought tolerant.
Warm-Season Annual Grasses
Crabgrass (Digitaria sanguinalis and D. ischaemum) has high nutritive value and is well adapted to sandy soils. Though often considered a weedy species, it is palatable and can be used for hay production.
Pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) can be used for pasture, silage or hay, though making hay is usually somewhat more difficult because of the large stems.
Sorghum-sudan hybrid (Sorghum bicolor x drummondii) is a warm-season annual that grows rapidly and produces high yields and high nutritive value hay. Like pearl millet, though, sorghum-sudan hybrids also have large stems, which require conditioning and extra drying time. Similar to johnsongrass, sorghum-sudangrass also has a strong potential for nitrate accumulation when subjected to stress and/ or high nitrogen fertilization and can produce prussic acid under stress conditions such as drought or frost. Again, proper sampling and testing are required to ensure the hay is safe to feed.
Cool-Season Annual Grasses
Ryegrass is used primarily for pasture, though it can be used for hay or silage. It tolerates a variety of soil types and grows better in wet soils than any other cool-season annual grass. Ryegrass is sensitive to acid soil pH values below 5.5. It is a popular choice for late winter/early spring grazing and hay production.
Oat (Avena sativa), though primarily used for grain and pasture, can also be used as a hay crop. Oat is generally more cold sensitive than other small grain species and can suffer winterkill. Harvesting oat hay in the boot stage produces the highest overall forage nutritive value, but delaying harvest until the soft dough stage will produce a greater yield.
Wheat (Triticum aestivum) is primarily used for grain and pasture though it can also be used for hay. It should be harvested at the boot to early heading stage.
Rye (Secale cereale) is generally the most winter hardy of the cool-season annual grasses. Rye is also the most productive cool-season annual grass on low fertility, well-drained sandy soils. Rye matures earlier in the spring than most wheat varieties but generally produces more forage in the fall than wheat.
Triticale (Triticum secale) is a cross between wheat and rye. Grain from triticale is used as a feed by the livestock industry. It can be planted earlier, often produces more forage, and has a longer grazing period than many varieties of wheat or rye. Triticale tolerates drought and pests better than wheat.
Cool-Season Perennial Grasses
Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) can be used for pasture, hay and/or erosion control. Tall fescue grows on a wide variety of soil types, but it performs best on loam or clay soils that have some water-holding capacity. Tall fescue also tolerates flooded conditions and grows well in soils that are typically too wet for many other forage grasses.
Cool-Season Legumes
Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is a perennial with high yield potential and nutritive value. Alfalfa hay is very digestible and can be high in crude protein, energy, vitamins, and minerals. Alfalfa harvested pre-bloom typically has higher nutritive value and is more palatable than more mature hay.
Red clover (Trifolium pratense) is a short-lived perennial that can last 2 to 3 years. It is better suited for hay production than other clovers because it grows upright and late into the season. Red clover should be reserved for well drained soils, as this legume does poorly when planted on wet soils.
Arrowleaf clover (Trifolium vesiculosum) can be used for grazing or for hay.
