Hay there, I’m Mike and this is Our Wyoming Life
Hay is for horses, but cows eat it too, and so do sheep and pigs and chickens.
Seems like everyone eats hay around here.
No wonder I don’t ever want a salad.
Erin grows in the garden.
She grows tons of vegetables that we sell at farmers market and help support our family
and the ranch.
I grow too, not vegetables but deep down every rancher has to be a farmer too, a grass farmer.
When it comes to feeding cows, or horses or any other animal around here we need grass
and a lot of it.
At harvest time, each acre of of hay ground around here has to produce about a ton of
grass, weather we harvest it and bale it or the cows eat it right off the pasture, we
need it to grow.
If it doesn’t, like last year, we have to buy it from somewhere else, we have to pay
to get it trucked in and its not cheap.
We have all the equipment to bale our own winter hay and we make the time, but mother
nature is still the great decider in these matters and last year we got our rain at the
wrong time and we had no hay to harvest.
So we bought a bunch, about 400 tons of the stuff.
And as a result, I have a very interesting chance to do something that I have wanted
to do for a long time.
A cow taste test, no not how cows taste, but what tastes they like.
We have four different types of hay on the ranch right now.
There are lots of different types of hay, just depending of what is harvested to produce
them and most any plant can be turned into hay.
The trick is finding plants that cows or other animals will eat and that are good for them
and economical for you.
The four types we have here are Grass or pasture hay, 1st cutting alfalfa from irrigated land,
4th cutting alpalfa from irrigated land and Millet hay, a grain that’s actually harvested
a little early before the heads open up and rolled up just like hay.
Each type of hay is tested for protein and other nutrients after its baled, that’s
helps me decide what kind of supplements the cows may need in their diets to make them
the healthiest cows that I can.
So we have our 4 types of hay layed out, and Ive got the cows locked in a pasture where
they can see us but they cant get to us so we can get these rolled out for out for their
breakfast.
While I’m doing that lets take a closer look at each type of hay.
Grass hay, or pasture hay is from right here on the ranch.
We have a few hundred acres that is set aside for just growing this hay, the cows don’t
step foot in it and the grass is allowed to grow as big as it will before we cut it and
bale it.
It made up of crested wheatgrass, alfalfa, and other native grasses.Our pasture hay tests
at about 8% protein so when we are feeding it we have to give the cows more protein to
make up for the low amount.
1st Cutting alfafa is from and irrigated ranch a few hundred miles south of us, they get
any where from 3 to 5 cuttings off their fields based on the weather and when it gets cold.
The first cutting tends to have more native grasses mixed with the alfalfa but its still
good stuff, running at about 18% protein we don’t have to feed as much supplement to
the cows 4th cutting alfafa is pretty much straight
alfafa and a great source of protein and fiber for the cows, at 22% protein.
Lastly we have Millet hay, its our first year feeding it and its actually raised more for
cereal crop around the world but this is cut a bit early and baled.
Cows supposedly love it, some even say its like candy to them.
It comes in at 11% protein and is usually fed with a higher protein hay at the same
time.
So we have our 4 types of hay spooled out.
I honestly have no idea which type of hay is going to be the most popular, with the
millet hay and the straight alfalfa here I doubt there is going to be much attention
given to 1st cutting alfafa and even less to the pasture hay.
And here we go, the moment of truth.
Surprising results.
Not much attention given to the Millet hay, some cows have came and tried it and moved
back to the alfalfa.
….the 4th cutting or straight alfalfa is of course popular as it the 1st cutting and
our pasture hay is standing up very well considering the competition.
Back after an hour, our results still hold true and 3 hours later some cows are leaving
and done, having never touched the millet hay.
Theres still quite a bit of it on the ground when the other types of hay have been cleaned
up pretty good.
Over time the cows may grow to love the millet hay but they did leave it til last, good thing
theres plenty more of it for them to broaden their palet.
So, why does any of this matter.
Well, when it comes to food it’s the biggest expense we have as cattle producers and making
sure that the cows are happy is one of my biggest concerns, happy cows are easier to
work around and healthier and knowing what foods they prefer is a big part of that.
I’m actually quite proud that a number of the cows still gravitate toward the pasture
grass.
Erin said its their comfort food, shes probably not far from the truth.
So as the cows finish up their breakfast they head off to get something to drink, which
isn’t a half bad idea.
I think a frosty beverage may be in my future too.
Before I got into this life, I never gave two thoughts about hay or different types,
or even that there were different types, it just never crossed my mind and it was never
part of my world, thank you for letting me make it part of yours.
Remember….
Hay is for horses, but cows eat it too Straw maybe cheaper, and grass is free,
If you get into ranching You’ll get all three
Thanks for your time today, have a great week and thanks for joining us in our Wyoming life.