How Weather Conditions Affect Your Cow Herd's Nutrient Needs

How Weather Conditions Affect Your Cow Herd's Nutrient Needs

Across the West, there is been plenty of cold weather, freezing rain and snow for ranchers to deal with. Washington State University Extension Regional Livestock Specialist Dr. Don Llewellyn shares that there are several factors to remember during these frigid temperatures.

Llewellyn: "We really need to be thinking about natural and man-made wind breaks. If those cows are protected from the wind — that can help a lot. We've got to remember the most important nutrient — that's water. The continuous supply of water is really important for these cows. Nutrient requirements increase cold temperatures. In general temperatures below 32 degrees with a dry winter cow — they may need additional feed. And when you throw humidity and wind into the mix, that can also increase the requirement as well. As a rule of thumb, when you drop the temperature from 30 degrees F to 10 degrees, the cows are going to need about 20 percent more energy in their diet. If that drops to minus 10, you may be looking at 50 percent more energy in that diet."

Llewellyn continues

Llewellyn: "When you look at a wet coat — it just will not trap air like a dry coat will. So if you have extremes with lots of wind and rain, the coat is matted down with water that can be just as bad as very low temperatures. You may be in the 20 to 30 degree range, but if you have extreme wind and a wet coat — that cow is going to get real cold."

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