As I have mentioned many times before different parts of the country will have different mineral contents that they provide. There have also been cases where even 2 operations in the same county will have different mineral types present in the soil. One thing to remember is that if it isn’t in the soil then it won’t be in the forages.
Insufficient mineral intake can result in performance losses with your cattle meaning less money for you. Along with this cattle not getting enough of the right kinds of minerals can also result in various clinical deficiencies. These can include things like reduced pregnancy rates, poor libido, and poor calf performance.
But just how can you tell if the mineral that you are putting out for your cattle will meet those needs. Well here are 3 things for you to consider when making that decision.
Where are cattle getting the mineral?
There are many different ways cattle can take in the minerals that they will need this summer. Things like the forages they eat, the supplements that you give them, even the water they drink will provide them with some, not all, of the minerals that they will need.
Knowing the mineral content of your forages and the supplements provided can help producers make adjustments to the mineral program that they are using. Having your forages tested in a good way to find out what is present in the grasses they are eating. To find out what the supplement provides you will just need to read the label.
Your cattle’s mineral needs can vary based on the forage type they are consuming. With things like fescue what fertilizer you put out will play a major role in the amount of macro-minerals that is provided by the grass. If you did not fertilize then calcium and phosphorus amounts would be too low to meet your cattle’s requirements. Most of your native warm-season grasses can be deficient in things like salt, copper, selenium, and cobalt.
Water can provide several of the minerals, especially salt and sulfur, that your cattle will need. When deciding what summer mineral program you will be using it is always a good idea to have your water tested.
As far as the supplements that you will be putting out there will be some differences among those as well. Your grains will offer more phosphorus than calcium, any forages will be higher in calcium than phosphorus. If you will be using a by-product such as DDG then it will have high values of both phosphorus and sulfur.
What form is the mineral in
The bioavailability of the minerals that you will be supplementing will play a part as well. Bioavailability of a mineral indicates how well it is absorbed by the cow. Oxide forms will have the lowest bioavailability while your sulfates and chlorides types will be more easily absorbed. Organic forms are absorbed the best over inorganic but they do cost more so that should be considered.
Interaction between the different types of minerals will determine how well cattle will absorb it. Some minerals have positive interactions with others where both will need to be provided for maximum absorption. Other types will have negative interactions which can interfere with absorption of certain minerals. Sulfur, copper are 2 types of minerals that will have negative interactions.
Due to the high variation of intake with a free-choice mineral using an injectable trace mineral supplement can be an option for cattle producers. Injectable minerals are easy to administer, provide a specific amount, and you will know which cattle have gotten their minerals or not. Now before you go running off to the store I should tell you that research has not consistently found that this form of mineral will result in improved health and performance.
Cattle mineral feeding strategy
Things like salt as well as most of your trace minerals will be deficient regardless of what forages you have. I talk more about the importance of salt in a cow’s diet in a previous article “Why do cows need salt?” So with that being said a supplemental mineral should always be offered.
There are 3 common strategies for providing mineral that you can consider:
Same free-choice mineral
This is the most common strategy that is used by cow/calf producers. In this line of thinking it doesn’t matter what mineral levels your forages and water has. Regardless you will provide a mineral supplement that supplies close to 100% of your cattle’s requirements.
This is viewed as the safest method of supplementation though it may not be the most economical. During certain times of the year you will be providing a higher phosphorus. The problem with this is it’s more expensive so you’ll be spending more money than needed.
Two free-choice minerals
Both of the minerals that you use can be very similar to each other. Their similarities are in that they will meet both salt and trace mineral requirements. The difference between the two will be the amount of phosphorus that it will be providing.
During times of the year (such as spring) when phosphorus is at it’s highest you will be putting out a mineral with a lower amount for 3-6 months. When the phosphorus amount declines such as when the grasses reach the maturity stage you will swap it out for a mineral with a higher content.
Using this type does has it’s benefits. This method will make it easier for you to introduce anything to improve herd health. Things like approved antibiotics and/or a Insect Growth Regulator can be introduced to your herd.
Free-choice mineral most of the year and a “forced-fed” the rest
What this strategy will have you do is provide a supplement with minerals mixed in to feed your cattle. When adding a mineral to a supplement that is fed daily intake can be more consistent.
When your cattle are in large warm-season pastures a free-choice mineral is recommended. This is due to the fact with it being such a large pasture observing the cattle can be infrequent.
As you may have guessed the draw back with this strategy is that you will be feeding your cattle daily. Doing this can be labor intensive and most producers will not have the time to be able to do this.
If you are looking for more information about cattle minerals then check out the paper from the University of Georgia “Mineral Supplements for Beef Cattle”.