Management
per day of bahiagrass hay and 3.6 pounds per head
per day of whole cottonseed were fed to meet
their nutritional needs. Table 2 shows the costs per
beef cow per day, dollars per beef cow over 120
days, and the total cost for our 100-head cowherd.
The estimated cost per head per day was $1.83
per beef cow, or $183 to feed 100 beef cows
each day. Over the 120-day winter feeding
period, feed costs totaled $220/beef cow and
$21,972 for the entire 100-head cowherd.
Winter feeding is one of the largest expenses
for cow-calf operations in the Southeast. There
are a lot of options worth considering, so this is
not a decision that should be made at the last
minute. I encourage you to work closely with your
county extension agent, successful producers in
your area, and with industry representatives to
develop the most efficient plan to manage winter
the feed costs for your cowherd. As margins
get tighter for cow-calf producers, managing
costs will become even more important. I
Take Home Message
Feeding those girls was expensive. It’s important
to give this example some thought prior to
making a plan for your 2019-2020 winter feeding
season. The costs incurred for winter feeding
beef cows in this example were large and real.
Producers should evaluate alternatives and make
adjustments to supplement their beef cows, while
meeting their nutritional needs for the least cost
possible. The following are some examples of
ways this producer might have reduced his costs,
compared to the system he chose. He could have:
Grazed stockpiled forages with supplements
for the first 60 days of the feeding period
• Grazed cool-season annual forages for
the second 60 days of the feeding period
• Used feeding troughs to reduce
supplement waste by 5-10%
• Purchased higher quality hay (Bermuda
or ryegrass), if available at a comparable
price, to reduce supplement costs. He
could have spent an additional $10
per bale, if the TDN was at least 55%.
• Compared other bulk feed options
to reduce supplement costs. But,
supplement prices vary from year to year,
so you have to do your homework.
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