As weaning time approaches for many southern beef producers, it’s important to consider how to get the best out of your livestock, and the market. Supplementing weaners in a season such as the one we are in – where grass is abundant on many properties, and rainfall this season has been favourable – may not be something you are considering. With the abundance of home-grown feed, why would young weaners need supplementing?
The answer predominantly comes down to rumen development, a crucial process for any young ruminant transitioning from a mostly milk-based diet on to a grazing diet.
If pasture utilisation and growth performance are things you actively strive for and measure, it’s worth considering a weaning program that involves the use of grain or grain-based products such as pellets, as the starch content of grain has been proven to drive rumen development much faster than fibre-based diets.
A great representation of this is the photo series below, taken from a trial Penn State University in USA undertook:
The photos depict the inside of an animal’s rumen on 3 diets: the first a milk only diet – where a lack of rumen papillae can be seen; the second a milk and hay diet –where there is some rumen development but papillae are small; and the third a milk and grain diet – where rumen papillae are present and there is good rumen development.
Animals with well developed rumens are able to utilise pasture more effectively to grow and put on weight, and using supplementary feeds strategically means you can actually get more out of the pasture your animals are consuming.
When you’re designing your weaning program this year, instead of weaning on to just hay, consider offering weaners access to a product like EasyBeef®, and hay, for two to three weeks, to aid in rumen development. Not only will your stock then wean heavier, but once they are put out to pasture to background feed, or go into a feedlot on a feeding program, they will perform better.
Milne Feeds EasyBeef® is a very safe and simple product for producers to use. It doesn’t require an introductory period, unlike a grain ration that needs careful introduction over a week. Weaners can be offered EasyBeef® adlib from day 1, given they also have access to good quality roughage and fresh water.
Weaning is a highly stressful period for young animals, and those yard-weaned on to hay alone can take time to pick up. Offering EasyBeef® during this time not only aids in rumen development, but it can also lessen the time it takes for animals to pick up, as EasyBeef® contains 11MJof metabolisable energy and is 14.5% crude protein, making it higher quality than most commercially available hay.
EasyBeef® is available from Milne Feeds Welshpool site and select Milne Feed depots in bulk or bulka bags, as well as in smaller bags from a range of retailers across WA. If you would like to know more, please contact our Beef Sales Manager, Jess Andony on 0435 174 719.
