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bale grazer ?

we usually allow about a week on cows and 5 days on calves. Keeps better feed in front of the calves and makes the cows clean up. If we have other things on the go we will up it to 10 to 14 days. They clean up the works.
 
We have been doing it for a few years now and haven't found out how many days we can go in a row but suspect it is quite a few. We go for once per week bale placement just because we have help on that day to pull twine and for a couple hundred head and frozen twine it is a long enough day. Too few a number of bales for the bunch to get around is more trouble than too many. Also we have found that the more days we stretch the grazing out, the better the cattle get at cleaning up. I doubt that any less days than three not only will not save much time or fuel but will likely cost more in waste as they will stand hungry and wait rather than clean up. Our cows have gotten so used to looking after themselves that they will sometimes go off grazing if they run short of feed before the 7 days are up. Hope this is helpful.
 
We put about 300 to 400 bales per quarter on hilltops and knolls and let 600+ cows graze them. We plan on 40 lbs/cow/day and then move them to the next paddock with another 300 to 400 in there. This is just a guideline and open the next gate when they have cleaned it up.

We placed 3000 bales this fall and have cut all the strings in different paddocks. We have increasingly used bale grazing, but this winter we are feeding the cows all winter this way. Our retained heifer calves get bales once per week plus some pellets daily.

It sure makes chores quick. We hired out the cutting of strings @ $1/ bale.

The best thing to do is only handle the bales once. From the truck to the field and no more. We are feeding lots of two yo hay this winter.

We think our feed cost per day/cow is just over $1 per day.
 
Gomez said:
We put about 300 to 400 bales per quarter on hilltops and knolls and let 600+ cows graze them. We plan on 40 lbs/cow/day and then move them to the next paddock with another 300 to 400 in there. This is just a guideline and open the next gate when they have cleaned it up.

We placed 3000 bales this fall and have cut all the strings in different paddocks. We have increasingly used bale grazing, but this winter we are feeding the cows all winter this way. Our retained heifer calves get bales once per week plus some pellets daily.

It sure makes chores quick. We hired out the cutting of strings @ $1/ bale.
The best thing to do is only handle the bales once. From the truck to the field and no more. We are feeding lots of two yo hay this winter.

We think our feed cost per day/cow is just over $1 per day.
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let us know if you end up needing bids on the string cutting.... my boys would put a bid in. :)
 
I offered it to the 4h club but they couldnt get organized in time. I will give them more notice next year. A high school grad group did some, boys from the colony some and a local fellow the balance.
 
Gomez said:
I offered it to the 4h club but they couldnt get organized in time. I will give them more notice next year. A high school grad group did some, boys from the colony some and a local fellow the balance.
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Had a shortage of knives? :lol:
 
thank-you all for the replies, have three fields and set out enough hay for a week in each, should only have to move gates for the next three weeks,we'll see. really burn's my butt to pay for twine only to cut it off and waste it a month or five later :x
do you all set the bales on end or on the flat or does it matter?

Gomez, your system, of off the truck to the feed area look's to have had some NR influence :wink: :wink:
 
For sure there is NR influence - he was a bright guy. We have done both on end and onside. We have gone to on end because the strings are easier to pull. On side is best for hay utilization.
 
NR and I always agreed that it's way easier and cheaper to move the cows to the feed than the other way around. We tried baling hay with no twine, kicking them out the back of the baler in a pile and trail the cows to those fields come winter. We did it in a field that had access to a dugout, so that in case there was no snow we could pump water, but it turned out there was lots of good snow and they did great. No twine, all the nutrients right there in that same field. Custom grazed 400 yearlings on it this past summer so any bit of leftovers got picked through a bit, and trampled into organic matter.
 
no experience bale grazing - i just don't feel like we have the right soils and enough rainfall to do it on grass here. i do think a guy could set them out on stubble and do it tho.

i got to tour the adamson brothers ranch up in that meadow lake country - it was amazing seeing the results of their bale grazing system in how they were building the soils and improving the pastures.
 
Hereford76 said:
no experience bale grazing - i just don't feel like we have the right soils and enough rainfall to do it on grass here. i do think a guy could set them out on stubble and do it tho.

i got to tour the adamson brothers ranch up in that meadow lake country - it was amazing seeing the results of their bale grazing system in how they were building the soils and improving the pastures.
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Not sure rainfall or soil type makes a big difference. There is not really any leftover if the cattle are managed carefully.

We set bales we know we are going to use on end so pulling strings is easier. We set "end of the winter/may use next year" bales on their side so they shed water.
 
I assume you guys are pulling plastic twine? I use sisal and unrolled 4 days worth on saturday then went on a fishing trip to Lake of the Woods stopped by the farm and it looked as they had plenty of hay left yet. Plugged in the tractor and skidloader.Will feed tomorrow fishing was very slow I caught 2 in 3 days.I feed on my corn ground and rough hay does'nt get consumed good enough to farm through if I don't unroll my hay.My cows eat meadow hay 2/3 rds of the winter.
 
Hereford76 said:
no experience bale grazing - i just don't feel like we have the right soils and enough rainfall to do it on grass here. i do think a guy could set them out on stubble and do it tho.

i got to tour the adamson brothers ranch up in that meadow lake country - it was amazing seeing the results of their bale grazing system in how they were building the soils and improving the pastures.
Click to expand...

That's the only place east of here that I thought I could live at. :D Beautiful ranch and a darn good set of cows. :wink:
 
gcreekrch said:
Hereford76 said:
no experience bale grazing - i just don't feel like we have the right soils and enough rainfall to do it on grass here. i do think a guy could set them out on stubble and do it tho.

i got to tour the adamson brothers ranch up in that meadow lake country - it was amazing seeing the results of their bale grazing system in how they were building the soils and improving the pastures.
Click to expand...

That's the only place east of here that I thought I could live at. :D Beautiful ranch and a darn good set of cows. :wink:
Click to expand...

i remember on the way up there when i turned north thru north battleford, poured rain that whole stretch, that i was eventually going to run into mountains... just from all the trees. never did. when those two brothers were beebopping us around on their place we came into this 40 acre clearing or maybe it was 80 or more... one of those two brothers said his old man cleared it with an axe by hand. i kinda chuckled thinking he was kidding. it must have taken forever. the two brothers and another local were touring us that place. we got out with a bigger group of cows in grass like i've never seen before say an hour before the sun was going to set. it was nuts... as the sun began to set the cows just congregated in an attempt to protect themselves from the bugs. we weren't that far from the pickup but i couldn't make it back fast enough... i'm sure they chuckled a little, but i thought they would eat me alive. crazy how different the county can be from here to there. one of the funnest and most memorable trips i've ever had. the did have some nice red angus cows for sure.
 
Hereford76 said:
gcreekrch said:
Hereford76 said:
no experience bale grazing - i just don't feel like we have the right soils and enough rainfall to do it on grass here. i do think a guy could set them out on stubble and do it tho.

i got to tour the adamson brothers ranch up in that meadow lake country - it was amazing seeing the results of their bale grazing system in how they were building the soils and improving the pastures.
Click to expand...

That's the only place east of here that I thought I could live at. :D Beautiful ranch and a darn good set of cows. :wink:
Click to expand...

i remember on the way up there when i turned north thru north battleford, poured rain that whole stretch, that i was eventually going to run into mountains... just from all the trees. never did. when those two brothers were beebopping us around on their place we came into this 40 acre clearing or maybe it was 80 or more... one of those two brothers said his old man cleared it with an axe by hand. i kinda chuckled thinking he was kidding. it must have taken forever. the two brothers and another local were touring us that place. we got out with a bigger group of cows in grass like i've never seen before say an hour before the sun was going to set. it was nuts... as the sun began to set the cows just congregated in an attempt to protect themselves from the bugs. we weren't that far from the pickup but i couldn't make it back fast enough... i'm sure they chuckled a little, but i thought they would eat me alive. crazy how different the county can be from here to there. one of the funnest and most memorable trips i've ever had. the did have some nice red angus cows for sure.
Click to expand...

You didn't like the Herefords? :lol:

If you ever think you want to back up there you should come here first and get acclimated to the bugs. :P
I do remember how they bothered me 30 years ago but I don't notice them much anymore. It does make us chuckle when we are somewhere else and someone comments about how bad the bugs are when 3 or 4 show up.
 

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