Supplements

What can you add to grass to help cattle gain weight more quickly?

To help gain weight more quickly, especially during the autumn when grass quality may decline, consider the following strategies: 

Concentrate Supplementation: Adding concentrated energy sources to the diet can help overcome energy deficits and improve performance. Studies have shown that feeding 0.5 kg/100 kg bodyweight can lead to greater performance and margin without negative substitution effects.  

Protein and Mineral Supplements: These can be used to improve grazing distribution and encourage cattle to seek out underutilized areas of the pasture.  

Custom Mineral and Supplement Program: Tailoring a mineral and supplement program to meet the specific nutritional needs of your cattle can optimize their nutrition and support safe grazing during periods of low grass quality.  

Implementing these strategies can help cattle gain weight more quickly and efficiently, especially when managing forage quality and pasture conditions. 

Powdered minerals within a total mixed ration

This option allows mineral intake to be linked to total intake and provides an opportunity to fine-tune levels of a supplied product. Ensure that the product used is fit for purpose and is fed at a rate that is in line with the requirements of the size of animals being fed. Your nutritionist will give guidance on this.

Boluses

Trace minerals are often supplied to beef animals via a bolus, particularly during the grazing season. Combinations of copper, iodine, cobalt and selenium are typically available. They are designed to supply a steady trickle of each element, usually over a period of five to six months. Carrying out some forage mineral analysis early in the season may help with the decision-making process, avoiding excess cost and oversupply.

Beware mineral toxicity

Young animals have requirements which need to be met to achieve growth and development targets, they may also be more susceptible to toxicity as a result of oversupply. Calves and young cattle on straw and concentrate-based feeding systems are at risk of copper toxicity if excessive levels are fed. This has been seen in cases where a dairy compound with a high copper inclusion has been fed to weaned calves for reasons of convenience and cost.

Make sure that what is being fed is suitable for the animal type.

Hidden Costs of Mineral Deficiency

• Reduced conception rates: Even marginal deficiencies can reduce conception rates by 10-20%, increasing days open and replacement costs

• Increased calving interval: Poor mineral nutrition extends calving intervals, reducing lifetime calf production per cow

• Lower weaning weights: Calves from mineral-deficient cows grow slower, reducing sale value by 50-150  euro per head

• Higher mortality: Mineral deficiencies increase calf death loss, particularly in selenium-deficient regions

• Elevated veterinary costs: Mineral-deficient cattle experience more health problems requiring treatment

• Reduced milk production: Dairy cows and nursing beef cows produce less milk when mineral deficient

• Poor feed efficiency: Cattle with marginal mineral status convert feed to gain less efficiently

• Increased susceptibility to stress: Mineral-deficient cattle handle weather extremes, weaning, and shipping more poorly