How to Save on Roughage Feed When Raising Cattle? Practical Methods Shared

1. Feed less but more often 

If you feed all at once, cattle easily develop the bad habit of being picky about palatable forage, which causes feed waste. Feeding less but more often can save forage. 

2. Feed long grass cut short 

As the saying goes: “Cut grass three times into inch lengths, and even without grain they will gain fat.” Feeding cattle forage after chopping it short saves about 20% compared with feeding it whole. This is especially true for coarse, hard stems that cattle eat little of or find hard to eat when fed whole; if chopped short and fed, they can be fully utilized, and digestibility is also somewhat improved. Generally, stems should be chopped into 3-5 cm lengths for feeding cattle. 

3. Feed roughage finely 

If crop straw used as forage can be treated by salting, alkalization, or ammoniation, or ground and mixed with concentrate for feeding cattle, it can improve the utilization rate of the forage and increase palatability, thereby saving forage. 

4. Feed in the trough 

Change the bad habit of throwing forage directly into the cattle pen for feeding, and instead put the forage in the trough. In this way, the forage will not be contaminated by manure, the cattle will be more hygienic after eating, diseases will be avoided, and a large amount of forage will also be saved. 

5. Feed roughage first, then concentrate 

Feed roughage first, and cattle will eat whatever they can because they are hungry, taking in more roughage. After that, feed concentrate or high-quality pasture according to their nutritional needs. In this way, the characteristics of ruminant cattle in utilizing roughage are fully brought into play, and forage is saved. 

6. Improve the trough 

Because troughs are often too shallow, cattle push the forage outside while eating, causing a lot of waste. When making a trough, this can be avoided simply by making it deeper. Generally, a cattle trough depth of about 40 cm is best. 

7. Process leftover grass 

In the past, the coarse, hard stems left after cattle ate were often burned as fuel. If they are dried and collected, ground into grass meal with a grinder, and then fed, they can be effectively utilized. 

8. Watch the cattle eat 

Many cattle raisers just put the forage into the trough and leave when feeding. In this way, cattle push the forage outside the trough while eating, and once the fallen grass has been stepped on by the cattle, it can no longer be fed. Therefore, keepers should try to watch the cattle until they finish the forage before leaving, and if they find forage falling to the ground, promptly pick it up and give it to the cattle. This can save quite a lot of forage.

9. Save bedding grass 

Keep the pen clean and hygienic, and use discarded weeds as cattle bedding as much as possible to reduce forage waste.