Key Points of Feed Formulation and Feeding Management Techniques for Beef Cattle Farming

At present, cattle farming by rural households is increasingly recognized by farmers. Nowadays, rural household cattle farming has changed its original purpose. In the past, cattle were raised for plowing fields and doing farm work, but now most rural households raise beef cattle breeds, mainly for beef production. So with the change in farming purpose, farmers' methods of cattle farming must also change. Below is an introduction to feed formulations and cattle farming techniques for rural households raising beef cattle:

1 Feed formulation.

The concentrate feed formula for feeder cattle weighing over 40C kg is: corn 65%, soybean cake 5%, cottonseed cake 15%, wheat bran 11.5%, bone meal 1%, salt 1%, baking soda 1%, flavoring agent 0.5%. The feed formula for young cattle weighing over 250 kg is: corn 60%, soybean cake 10%, cottonseed cake 20%, wheat bran 5.5%, bone meal 1.5%, salt 1%, baking soda 1%, flavoring agent 1%.

Roughage mainly consists of a combination of corn stalk silage with beer lees and white distiller's grains. The corn stalk silage used is mainly made by timely harvesting green-stemmed, green-leafed corn stalks after the autumn corn harvest for large-scale silaging. Fed year-round. In summer, it is paired with beer lees, and in winter, with white distiller's grains.

2 Feed quantity.

Depending on the age of the cattle, fattening methods can be divided into:

1 Young cattle fattening. Fattening period is 6-8 months.

2 Feeder cattle fattening. Fattening period is 4-5 months.

Generally, it can be divided into three stages of feeding:

The first stage is 7-15 days. At this time, newly purchased cattle may experience fatigue and maladaptation to the environment due to long-distance transport and stress. This stage is the recovery period. The main task is to train the cattle. Do not feed concentrate at the beginning. First feed high-quality green grass, dried green grass, wheat straw, peanut vines, etc., provide clean water, and gradually mix in silage, ammoniated feed, distiller's grains, etc. Let the cattle go hungry for 1-2 days before feeding concentrate.

The second stage is 15-20 days, which is the transition period. After the previous recovery period, the cattle have basically adapted to the feeding conditions of the new environment, and at this point the amount of concentrate can be increased. Generally, concentrate is fed at 0.8% of body weight. For cattle weighing 200 kg, 1.6 kg of concentrate is sufficient. Roughage is unlimited. Feed this way for several consecutive days, and after adaptation, gradually increase the proportion of concentrate. At the end of the transition period, concentrate can account for 40%-50% of the daily ration.

The third stage is 110-120 days, which is the rapid fattening period. During this period, the proportion of concentrate in the daily ration is: 55%-60% for days 1-20, 65%-70% for days 21-50, 75% for days 51-90, and 80%-85% for days 90-120.

3 Feeding method.

For ease of operation and management, a feeding method of 2 times a day is generally adopted: 5 AM and 5 PM in winter and spring, 4:30 AM and 5 PM in summer and autumn. Each feeding session generally lasts 30-40 minutes. In summer, provide water once at noon. Ensure rumination time is no less than 8 hours. Within 2-3 days of changing the daily ration, the feeder should frequently observe the cattle's feed intake and rumination frequency, and handle any abnormalities promptly. At the same time, concentrate should be added according to the feeding stage. The method for processing forage is: soak the concentrate with clean water before feeding until it forms a ball when squeezed in the hand and breaks apart when dropped. First spread the corn stalk silage evenly on a concrete floor to a thickness of about 15 cm, then evenly scatter the soaked concentrate on the surface, then sprinkle a 5 cm layer of distiller's grains on top, and finally cover with plastic sheeting for fermentation. Generally, after 3 hours in summer or 12 hours in winter, it can be mixed evenly and fed. This kind of forage is soft and has a wine aroma, which cattle particularly love to eat, leaving no residue, followed by clean water. Song Fang