Introduction

Data shows that a 590 kg (1300 lbs) dry, pregnant cow in good condition needs to eat about 12.3 kg (27 lbs) of hay per day to maintain herself and support fetal growth.

When farmers project their winter feed inventory, they may allocate 15.9 to 18.1kg (35 to 40 lbs) of hay per cow per day.

This difference can be attributed to farmers tracking hay disappearance, rather than hay consumption.

Hay disappearance

Hay disappearance includes losses during:

  • storage
  • handling
  • feeding

Feeding losses can come from:

  • spoilage
  • material lost during transport
  • feed that is wasted or refused by cattle

Reducing these losses can improve feed efficiency.

Feed efficiency

With feed harvested and stored months prior, the main factor you can influence over winter is feeding efficiency.

Cows are notorious wasters of feed. Losses occur when bales are:

  • pulled apart
  • trampled
  • selectively eaten
  • used as bedding rather than consumed

As a result, a portion of this high-value forage may be converted into waste rather than nutrition. It is important to be aware of how much feed is being lost during feeding to reduce these losses and make better use of stored feed.

Feeding systems

No feeding system is perfect. The goal is to minimize feed waste within a workable and cost-effective system.

Large round bales

The highest losses occurred with large round bales, fed free choice without any feeder structure with 43% of the hay wasted. Unrolling large bales in the field did not reduce losses. If a week's worth was placed at a time, losses remained around 40%. This is according to research at the University of Missouri comparing the efficiency of several hay feeding systems.

Daily feeding

Significant improvement occurred with daily feeding, where the amount of hay offered was matched to the appetite of the group. Unrolling enough forage to last each day cut losses down to 12%. In this situation, cattle are actively competing for the hay as it is being rolled out, meaning a relatively small amount is refused or spoiled.

Bale feeders

Whether feeding daily or weekly, using round bale feeders reduces waste.

When cattle were offered a week's worth of feed at a time, feeders cut waste by 80%, resulting in losses of 5 to 6% of the total feed supplied. Daily feeding using ring type feeders also resulted in low losses, around 5%. If feeding daily, there must be enough feeders to allow each cow to eat at the same time. Feeding once or twice a week requires less time and labour, but you need enough round bale feeders to hold the required total amount of feed.

A study at Michigan State University compared feed waste among different types of round bale feeders. Ring and ring/cone type feeders were the most efficient, resulting in an average of only 4.5% waste, while trailer type feeders had 11.4% wastage. Cradle type feeders were least efficient, with 14.6% of hay wasted. These results indicate that feeder choice is important.

Costs

Hay production or purchasing costs are constant, whether the forage is eaten or ends up as compost.

Wastage among feeding systems can range from 5 to 40%. Over a 200-day feeding period, this can change the feed inventory required from 2572 to 3429 kg (5670 to 7560 lbs). This is a difference of $170 to $305 per cow per season, depending on hay cost. Even moving from a moderately efficient system (15% waste) to a very efficient system (5% waste) saves 600 lbs of hay per animal, or $54 to $96 per head.

Summary

Farmers are encouraged to evaluate their round bale feeding system and determine whether improvements can be made to reduce feed waste.