The observation that beef barn design has not changed much is somewhat true. There are new fabric barns, and new flooring discussions, but the basic principles remain the same.

A better question to start with might be, “If I am starting a beef operation, what facilities do I need to look after my animals?” Sorting out the type of farm you want, and the production system you will employ, will determine what you need for facilities.

Beef Farmers of Ontario conducted an extensive study last year as it looked at what a startup beef operation would require for land, machinery and facilities. Long discussions with farmers, advisory staff, and economists considered a wide range of options.

With a beef cow-calf operation, three critical care points are easily identifiable: calving, health treatments and weaning. In Ontario, our weather determines how elaborate our calving facility needs to be. Traditional calving during the winter months requires some type of barn to protect the newborn calves from the elements, and typically include a heat source of some kind. The BFO model looks at working with nature and the seasons, with calving on grass during the summer months. This eliminates the need for a heat source, and a specific calving barn.

Treating animals for health reasons requires an excellent handling system. Under the Beef Code of Practice it is critical to handle cattle safely and humanely. The BFO model builds in a facility for handling livestock in a safe manner.

At weaning time, calves experience stress as they are separated from their mothers. This stress can be reduced using the Fence line and Two-Step weaning methods as outlined in previous Virtual Beef articles on the OMAFRA website.

The BFO model found that the optimum number of cows was around 250, and would need about 2,500 acres of land. What did the BFO model indicate as an absolute requirement for facilities to look after these animals?

The first building is a simple open-fronted pole shed, 30×100 feet or in that size range, that would serve primarily as storage for high-quality hay. Wastage from dry hay stored outside without cover can be extensive. Storing some high-quality dry hay under cover would retain quality, plus allow for hay that could be accessed in the middle of winter if it is stormy. The secondary purpose of this facility would be for sick pens and a weaning area as the hay is fed out.

The second building would be a covered handling facility, approximately 30×30 feet. This would house the crowd tub, working chute and squeeze for restraining livestock for treatment purposes.

Where do the cows spend the winter if there is no barn for them? The BFO model uses windbreaks and bedded pack dry lots for housing the cows. Cows need shelter from wind, more than from rain or snow. By using tree lines and groves for cover, cows can get out of the wind. If they are out of the wind, cold can be managed by the animal’s internal metabolism.

Using existing trees or planting trees for windbreaks is the cheapest option for keeping cows sheltered from the elements. By bale grazing and feeding out on pasture, manure can be spread as the cows eat, supplying soil with nutrients and organic matter. In the absence of trees, portable windbreaks could be used.

For more traditional dry lots, both Western Canada and northwest Quebec ranches use wooden windbreaks to block their wintering sites from the wind.

Things to consider in locating a dry lot include:

• Raised area for bedded pack;
• Sufficient slope to direct run-off to proper location;
• Windbreak for shelter;
• Feeding area (preferably with paved surface);
• Adjacent alleyways (for sorting livestock into different areas, feed and manure-handling equipment, etc.);
• Sufficient distance from surface water, wells, neighbours, etc.

Proper site preparation so water from the roofs of adjacent buildings and overland flow of field run-off does not enter livestock yard area.

Machine sheds were identified as important under the BFO model to keep equipment out of the elements… the cattle actually keep better outside than the tractor does.

The facilities discussed in this article suit extensive beef production using summer calving and employ minimalist facilities.

Barry Potter is an agriculture development adviser with OMAFRA.

The post Facilities for Ontario beef cattle appeared first on Canadian Cattlemen.

Recently, another focus has been reducing feed costs. For the last few years, corn has been a big part of their nutrition package. Not grain corn, but standing corn, grazed to extend the cows’ days on pasture, and reduce the amount of stored feed required to feed the cows.

Bruce and Valve run a 40 head cow calf to finish operation. During the time period observed, 39 cow-calf pairs, and six replacement heifers grazed the corn. The calves were born in April, and would be 6-9 months old in the trial.

For the 2012 corn grazing season, Bruce kept complete records of the days grazing, and supplemental feed required to keep his cows out in the field until just before Christmas. Ordinarily by mid-September the cows would be getting stored forages. From September 16 to December 15, the cow calf pairs and replacement heifers grazed corn instead. The cows were strip grazed, and moved daily to a new section of corn.

Moving fence can be tricky with cows looking to surge past you into a new section. Bruce supplemented the cows and calves daily during fence moving time to distract the animals. The cows received 2 lbs per day of a screening pellet, and the calves 3 lbs per day of a creep ration. While they were eating this, Bruce would move his fence forward. The beefers also had access to a bale of dry hay daily, to make sure they always had gut fill.

Labour to move the fence daily, plus provide supplemental feed was one hour. This cost was not added to the direct cost total.

What were some of the direct benefits that the Forrests observed? The cows were very healthy, with lots of exercise in going out to the corn daily. Manure was spread over the ground on a consistent basis, not piled up to be spread at a later date. The cattle gained weight. Over the 90 days, the cows gained about 1 lb. per day. The calves performed very well, averaging 2.4 lbs. per day weight gain. But were there any significant savings?

The Forrests used their own equipment to prepare the ground and plant the corn. The ground was disked twice, nitrogen spread, and the corn was planted using their own seed drill. Roundup was used for weed control. All in, the corn cost $193.59 per acre to grow. Total costs, including the supplemental feed and hay amounted to $8,635.

Planting corn resulted in 90 extra grazing days for 39 cows, 39 calves, and 6 bred heifers. This amounted to 7,560 animal grazing days at a total cost of $1.14/head/day, well below the alternative cost of feeding stored hay to the animals in a confined area. The number of grazing days per acre was 343.

Performance did not suffer, the animals were healthy, and costs were lower. As Bruce sees it, there is a lot of winning attributes to extending the grazing season with corn.

The Forrest results echo similar trials at the Western Beef Development Centre in Saskatchewan in 2011. Those results are in Table 2.

Tips for grazing corn

• Use an electric fence. If the cattle are trained to respect the current in electric fencing, one strand is usually sufficient to contain livestock. Make sure to spend the time to train the cattle to respect electric fence prior to turnout in the corn.
• Make sure the ground is dry or frozen before turning the herd into the field. If the ground is wet, cows will get dirty, plugging can occur, and corn stalks get pushed into the mud and not eaten.
• Sample your corn plant. Chop up some whole corn stalks, making a representative feed sample. Send it away for a feed test. Cows need energy, which the corn plants will have. Calves may need some protein supplementation.
• Review your mineral supplementation. Corn is lower in calcium than a legume based hay. You may need to use a higher calcium to phosphorus mineral to balance the ratio. Providing some legume based hay can also give the animals calcium. Feeding hay will also increase the amount of rumen degradable protein, allowing the rumen to make better use of the corn stalk as an energy source.
• Limiting the access to cows to the standing corn is important. Cows can overload on grain if they can free choice pick and choose between corn cobs and stalk. Make sure and check the cows and calves to make sure they are not getting too much grain. Watch their feces. If the manure is too runny, they may be getting too much grain.
• Force the cows to clean up as much residue as possible. An article from Manitoba recommends no more than 2000 kg/ha of residue left behind.
• Have a backup feeding strategy in case of bad weather or excess snow.

For more information: call 1-877-424-1300 or email ag.info.omafra@ontario.ca.

Barry Potter is an agriculture development advisor with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food (OMAF). 

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