I wana start by saying I know nothing about raising cattle. But I watched a Dirty Job episode where he collected cow crap so the farmer could sent it off to have it checked to see what each cow may need of course I have no clue what that would cost but it seems to me to be a pretty accurate way to get the most out of your cattle. Just a thought.
I've watched some other videos about protein tubs and didn't learn anything from them. Your explanation of the mechanism of action makes sense and will benefit ranchers who follow your reasoning.
I thought that was a very good informative video. As I currently have pigs, would you consider doing a supplement video for them? I currently don't give them any extras.
Hi Jesse, thank you! The minerals for our pigs and chickens are included in their grain mix that we buy from the mill. If you're feeding a homemade grain blend, you can buy mineral packs straight from the local mill. Pig nutrition would be a good video though...I'll put that in the hopper.
Question... When I did a water test on my well, it has a lot of the minerals you mentioned, including the sodium. How do I know if its enough? Should I still offer the minerals to them? Is it possible for them to get too much?
I understand the part of using the protein tubs only in winter as they can gain protein from the field in summer. But do you still give them the other 3 free choice mineral in summer when on pasture?
We feed mineral year round. The pastures are lacking in some minerals, especially trace minerals. The protein tub experiment didn’t work out. We didn’t see any gains in dress weights and it was expensive.
@@JustaFewAcresFarm thanks for the quick reply. You are very knowledgeable and I am learning a lot through your videos. Thanks for all the great videos.
Hi Pete. This was a very good video in your series and one that resonates with me. When we took our farm over in 2005 the previous owner, my wife's uncle, only put on 1 bag / acre superphosphate. Same every year. So everything was out of whack. Lots of crazy, seemingly infertile, shaggy looking cattle. We soil and grass tissue-tested every paddock and saw how bad the place was. Like anything you cannot just put more fertiliser ( moron farmer ) so we supplementary supplied mineral licks of what we were deficient in, mixed with molasses and gradually fed out soil. After 5-6 years we cut back on the majority of the licks but still drench with selenium as its a very slow process to build this up in the soil. Thanks for the info and time you put in to help others.
I posted a question about this very thing a few weeks ago, not realizing you had already addressed the topic. Apparently I missed this video before. I want to thank you for this video, it was very helpful. I’ve always assumed that those changes in manure from summer pasture to winter hay were normal. I was wrong! I’ll be heading out tomorrow to buy a protein tub.
question? do you add clover and other seed to your loose mineral mix?i have known other cattle men that did/do. when asked bout this i was told that it helps in establish more of the forage plants that are good for the critters,plus it saves money on not having to have equipment to do the seeding as cattle dont digest the seeds, just asking, thank you for the video,, be blessed and safe
@@JustaFewAcresFarm i,m sure glad they came out with these computers, now i dont have to have boxes of notes on things, just thought i would ask..be blessed and safe
I really enjoy your videos and would like to thank you big time! I am in my initial steps in a small farm in Bowmanville, Ontario and your sharing has been extremely helpful. thanks again
Thank you so much for this valuable information! I just got two calves to grow out for beef for my family and i want to give them the best nutrition possible. You’re helping me do that. I appreciate ALL of your videos…well, the livestock videos anyway…but no worries, my husband loves the tractor maintenance videos too! 😂
At first, right after I got the cows, I was itching to get a tractor with a brush hog, but then I saw the cows eating weeds despite having plenty of grass. I think the cows know which weeds contain trace minerals that are absent from the grass. I also catch them eating tree leafs. I still have a mineral tub in the pasture but it's been 3 months now since I have had 6 cows and the tubs still has 1/3 left in it. So i'm not sure how much they like that stuff.
Well Pete, you just keep giving me more and more to put on my list. I don’t seem to remember all of the things I did on the farm when I was young. I guess it’s not like “riding a bike”! Thanks for all of the great advice and information. Your videos are over the top! Thank you! Jeff
Just got notified of the new video. I just watched your video about how and why you left your office job. I work night shift at a mental hospital and dream of having a small farm. Your videos and way of doing things are fascinating and make the dream more attainable. Thank you.
Hi Greg. I’m really enjoying your videos and getting a good background before I get into Dexter cattle ranching. I’m curious, this particular video was shot three years ago. Do you still believe the protein is necessary? Thanks for the service you’re doing to the industry. 10:04
Hey Pete aren"t those minerals the same as alot of humans need also, Question I once heard of place in China I believe that the people lived for an exceededly longer time from their water source. Seem that they lived in a valley of sorts and relied on the snow melting from a mountain, making water, and running into the valley. These people get all there suppliments from their water source?? Don't know if it's a fact but I remember a report about it many years ago from two reporters called Huntley and Brinkley,I'm 70 and maybe I got my cards wrong,
Great video, as always! What's the ratio between grass and legumes on your pasture? I've read that you can use up to 50% legumes, or even higher when using non-bloating species like birdsfoot trefoil, sainfoin, and cicer milkvetch. Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems to me that with a high legume percentage in the sward it should be possible to produce hay with sufficient protein to avoid the need for using protein tubs or cake. Alfalfa is an excellent forage and I think you mentioned that you included it in your pasture mix, but if you re-seed at some point it might be worth including some of the other species I mentioned (still keeping the alfalfa, of course!). Some of them -- especially sainfoin -- have very deep taproots that can draw up minerals from the subsoil, and that might help reduce the need for supplemental minerals as well as reduce the risk of bloat, even using a much higher percentage of legumes.
Hi Andrea, we plant about 40% legumes; alfalfa and red & white clover. Birdsfoot used to be planted in our area on marginal soils where it seems to do better than alfalfa. I like alfalfa for the reason you mentioned with sainfoin. It is very deep rooted and cycles nutrients up from deeper in the soil, and will keep growing when other plants stop from lack of moisture. I have finished my little experiment on using supplemental protein; I saw no increase in dress weights in our steers, and it was expensive.
this was exactly what I was looking for. I still wonder what differences between sulfur and cobalt salt blocks are. I just sort of rotate them all now.
Never really thought about this as far as minerals . Where do you buy kelp minerals only place I found is online . I’m not far from you windsor New York east of Binghamton . I’d love too come visit you if possible
Hi Pete, thanks for you videos...very helpful. We're just about to jump into farming and have very similar ideas to you. Your insights have been a great help for many things. How did your calves go this season with the addition of the protein supplement? Did you see any difference?
Hi Clayton, the calves looked good but we just got our first steer of the season back from the butcher and he was no heavier than our steers usually are, so I would say feeding protein was not worth the money we invested.
Another good video thank you. I went to get a protein tub and it only comes in a large size that I can not handle myself. Or move when we move our cows.
Hi Michael, we were getting them at Tractor Supply. If you look at later videos, I was not satisfied with the results of our protein experiment. It cost a lot of money and I did not see a change in steer dress weights.
@@JustaFewAcresFarm I'm not sure if there are tree swallows in your area, but that's one natural method that Greg Judy uses to control fly populations with his herd, seemingly with success. Barn swallows are another possibility, though they're more difficult to house. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE--gCRMKhqKhk.html
