Many beef producers, including those in Missouri, found themselves trying to pull a rabbit out of the hat as they rang in 2024 with low hay supplies, says University of Missouri Extension beef nutrition specialist Eric Bailey.

Bailey says post-drought feeding woes leave producers challenged with “what to feed when there is no feed.”

The severity of the drought in 2022 and 2023 may have been underrated, he says. Many areas of the Missouri faced precipitation deficits of 12-20 inches in mid-November before entering winter – typically the driest season of the year. Mid-Missouri was among the hardest-hit areas, with 80% less precipitation than normal, but drought ravaged pastures throughout the state.

Effects of those deficits continue to carry over. Bailey says producers should strive to hold winter feeding costs to $5 or less per cow per day, urging them to look at their total mixed ration (TMR) to ensure that cattle receive adequate nutrition for good health, milk production, and reproduction in the days ahead. TDN needs differ for lactating (62%) and (55%) dry cows.

Feed cows based on nutrient requirements, rather than appetite. Ask if bellowing cows are hungry or just wanting. Limit intake slightly – from 2.5% to 2.0% of body weight per day. Small reductions such as this should lower your feed bill but not adversely affect the cow’s health.

Bailey offers these tips for stretching your feed during the next few months:

Figure dry ton costs for the best deal. Corn silage at $80 per ton and at 35% dry matter amounts to $228.57 per dry ton. Corn at $5.32 per bushel is $223.54 per dry ton, and soyhulls at 13 cents per pound is $288.88 per dry ton.

Bailey also suggests producers consider feeding cornstalks if fencing and a water supply is available. Limit cows to grazing cornstalks for two months or less and allow an acre per cow per month. Protein intake is limited after the first 30 days on the same field as cows eat their way through leaves, husk, and, finally, stalks and cobs. Also, consider soil compaction caused by grazing cattle.

The nutrient value of grazed cornstalks diminishes with time and need to be supplemented. Bailey recommends supplementing with 5 pounds of a 14% commodity mix per cow per day. The goal is to get 0.75 pounds of crude protein per cow per day.

He recommends guidance from your regional MU Extension livestock specialist and these resources from the University of Nebraska:

Ammoniation of less palatable hay or straw also is an option, Bailey notes..

Another option in some parts of the country is cotton gin trash, which is the residual seeds, bolls, leaves and stems of the cotton plant left after harvest.

More information about calculating winter feed costs for beef cows can be found here.