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Effect of Corn Harvest with a Chopping Head on Performance of Cattle Grazing Corn Residue
No full textSummary with Implications
The effects of harvesting corn using a chopping vs a standard, non-chopping combine head on steer performance when grazing corn residue were evaluated. Steers were supplemented with dry distillers grains at 0.6% of initial body weight. The amount of corn residue mass and the quality of the husk did not differ between harvest methods. Steer gains were over twice as high in year 2 (2.10 lb/d) than year 1 (0.76 lb/d), potentially due to greater husk digestibility and milder winter conditions. Corn residue harvested with a standard combine head resulted in a slightly higher average daily gain (1.48 vs. 1.36 lb/d) compared to residue harvested with a chopping corn head. This performance difference is likely due to reduced husk mass and finer leaf particle size in chopped residue, which may have limited intake. While differences were modest, the data suggest that chopped residue may decrease grazing value
Effect of Feed Access Time on Feedlot Cattle Performance, Carcass Characteristics, Feeding Behavior and Ruminal pH
No full textSummary with Implications
Bunk management is crucial for modern feedlots, and understanding the ideal time to target a slick bunk is important. A feedlot study compared the effect of providing finishing cattle with 12, 15, 18, 21, or 24 hours of access to feed on performance, carcass characteristics, feeding behavior, and ruminal pH. As access time to feed increased, feed intake and day-to-day variation of feed intake increased linearly, while gain and feed conversion were unchanged. Cattle with greater access time to feed spent more time per day at the bunk, and consumed feed more slowly. A cubic effect on average ruminal pH was observed, with cattle that had 12 hours of feed access having the highest pH, and cattle that had 15 and 18 hours of feed access having the lowest pH. Reducing access time to feed maintained intake with no loss in gain if access was greater than 15 hours, but reduced feed access time did not improve feed conversion
Effect of Feeding Whole Soybeans, Roasted Soybeans, or Distillers Grains in Silage-Based Growing Beef Diets
No full textSummary with Implications
An individual feeding experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of feeding raw whole soybeans (WSB), roasted whole (RSB) soybeans or distillers grains (MDGS) at three inclusions (7%, 14%, or 21% of diet dry matter) on growing performance, compared to a common control diet (0%) with urea. The greater inclusions of roasted soybeans or distillers grains increased gain and efficiency in growing cattle. Cattle fed the 21% inclusion of roasted soybeans were the most efficient, likely due to the protected protein increasing rumen undegradable protein content, and the additional energy from the higher levels of fat and protein. The 21% modified distillers grains diet resulted in the greatest intakes and gain, however efficiency was not improved when compared to the 21% raw whole soybean diet. These data suggest that soybeans can be fed to growing cattle to provide fat and protein, but roasting enhances the response in performance compared to raw soybeans and may be a suitable alternative to distillers grains without impacting performance
Comparison of Spayed Heifer Performance to Intact Heifers Fed Melengestrol Acetate on Feedlot Performance and Carcass Characteristics
No full textSummary with Implications
Pregnancy and estrous cycle management are critical considerations when feeding intact heifers in the feedyard. Alternatively, producers can opt to spay heifers, which eliminates hormonal fluctuations associated with the estrous cycle. A proportion of U.S. feedlots have spayed heifers on feed, although there is limited data comparing the performance of spayed heifers to intact heifers. A commercial feedlot experiment was conducted to compare performance between spayed and intact heifers fed melengestrol acetate. Intact heifers had greater ADG and tended to have greater DMI compared to spayed heifers, although no difference in feed conversion was observed. Carcass weight and final BW were heavier for intact heifers. Spayed heifers were leaner and had a lower USDA Yield Grade compared to intact heifers. These results indicate that spaying heifers upon feedlot entry and feeding similar DOF as intact heifers does not result in improved performance
Effect of Using Either Synovex Primer or Synovex Choice Compared to Not Implanting on the Performance of Growing Steers
No full textSummary with Implications
A 120-day winter-growing study utilized 576 head of steers to evaluate three dry lot implant strategies on the growth of steers. The three implanting strategies included a non-implanted control, Synovex® Primer™, or Synovex Choice®. While on harvested corn residue fields, steers were supplemented with 4 lb Sweet Bran and 0.375 lb of a vitamin and mineral package. The targeted gain for the non-implanted control was 1.25 lb/d. Both Synovex Primer and Synovex Choice increased ADG over the non-implanted control cattle by 7.5% and 12.7%, respectively. Additionally, Synovex Choice had a 4.8% increase in ADG over Synovex Primer. Steer ADG increased linearly (P \u3c 0.01) in a dose-dependent manner to increasing implant dose during the dry lot phase
Evaluation of FerAppease Administered at Arrival and Time of Reimplant on Feedlot Performance and Carcass Characteristics of Yearling Beef Steers
No full textSummary with Implications
Cattle experience stress in the feedlot during handling events such as initial processing and reimplant that can negatively impact morbidity and mortality, feedlot performance, and carcass outcomes. Application of a maternal Bovine Appeasing Substance (mBAS) marketed as FerAppease (FERA Diagnostics and Biologicals) has been hypothesized to mitigate stress in cattle. A commercial feedlot study compared the effectiveness of FerAppease applied in 10mL doses to yearling native beef steers at initial processing and reimplant to a placebo product on cattle performance, morbidity and mortality parameters, and carcass traits. Steers administered FerAppease tended to have improved feed conversion on a carcass-adjusted basis. FerAppease did not impact intake or average daily gain. Carcass traits, morbidity, and death loss were not impacted by application of FerAppease. These data suggest that FerAppease may be effective in improving feed conversion when applied at arrival and reimplant to yearling feedlot steers
Effect of an Accelerated Adaptation Protocol on Performance and Health of Feedlot Steers Drenched with Lactipro
No full textSummary with Implications
A finishing study evaluated the effects of an accelerated adaptation protocol in conjunction with Lactipro on performance and health of steers. Five adaptation programs were evaluated with steers adapted to a finishing diet in 21, 14, 7, or 0 days. An additional accelerated adaptation program provided intensive feed delivery with 0-d adaptation. Cattle assigned to the 21-d and 0-d adaptations gained faster and consequently had greater HCW compared to the 7-d and 14-d adaptation, resulting in a quadratic response for ADG and HCW. The 0-d adaptation with intensive feed delivery had similar ADG and HCW compared to the 21-d and 0-d adaptation suggesting more frequent feed delivery during the initial days of adaptation does not prove to be beneficial. No differences were observed for any health outcomes. These data suggest that when cattle are drenched with Lactipro NXT, an accelerated adaptation approach with 100% finisher is suitable as it yields similar results to a traditional 21-d adaptation program
Summary of the Value of Distillers Grains Plus Solubles for Feedlot Cattle
No full textSummary with Implications
An analysis of over 6,100 head of finishing cattle across 50 experiments was conducted to determine the feeding value of full-fat and de-oiled distillers grains. This analysis was limited to studies where dry-rolled corn, high-moisture corn, or a combination of the two corn processing methods were displaced by 15% or more distillers grains. Dry distillers grains plus solubles (DDGS), modified distillers grains plus solubles (MDGS), and wet distillers grains plus solubles (WDGS) were evaluated as either full-fat or de-oiled. The feeding value of distillers grains was assessed relative to a corn-based control diet containing no distillers. Results indicate that removing fat from distillers grains reduces its feeding value by 8 percentage units, from 120.7% to 112.8%, across all distillers types. Additionally, feeding WDGS results in improved feed conversions compared to MDGS which is improved compared to DDGS
Long-Term Trends of Annual Herbaceous Expansion in the Nebraska Panhandle: Rangeland Analysis Platform Data
No full textSummary with Implications
This descriptive analysis evaluated changes in Annual Forb and Grass (AFG) herbaceous cover in the Nebraska Panhandle from 1986 to 2023 using the Rangeland Analysis Platform (RAP). It was hypothesized that AFG herbaceous cover would show an increasing trend over time, indicating the potential expansion of the annual invasive cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum). County-level RAP data were used to calculate long-term means as an indicator. Results showed an increase in AFG cover across the region. Trends were cyclical, with cover peaking and dipping over time, but the overall trajectory showed increases in AFG in the Panhandle. The increasing dominance of annual herbaceous cover, such as cheatgrass, has significant implications for forage availability, timing, and quality, as well as long-term ecological sustainability. This spatiotemporal analysis provides a better understanding of the potential threat of invasive annual forbs and grasses on rangelands in the Nebraska Panhandle
Evaluating Cow/Calf and Stocker Performance when Grazing Sudangrass With and Without Sunnhemp
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Sudangrass can provide high-quality summer forage, supporting cow/calf pairs and growing cattle. In this study, sudangrass or a sudangrass–sunnhemp mix was grazed over two years by cow/calf pairs and heavy stockers (~880 lb). There was no difference in carrying capacity between forage types. Sunnhemp inclusion had no effect on cow body condition or nursing calf gain. Cows maintained condition through peak lactation, and nursing calves gained 2.27 lb/day. Stockers gained 1.56 lb/day on sudangrass alone and 1.73 lb/day on the mix. However, the added seed cost of sunnhemp increased the cost of gain in year 1 and resulted in only a breakeven return in year 2. From a forage perspective, adding sunnhemp increased seed cost without improving forage production or grazing days. Based on this study, sunnhemp inclusion into sudangrass does not provide an economic advantage for cow/calf or stocker systems