feeder said:
We just got a yard of black drug free 400# steers. Need advise on who to contact to find out the protocols in regard to feed. I know no antibiotics and implants but anything else I should know. Also does the premium outweigh any other obstacles we might encounter. Thanks
feeder:
First, do you have verifiable records on these calves that show that they are natural program eligible? I ask this because verification is becoming a huge deal the cattle business, but especially in the natural programs and "branded programs." These need to include feed records, treatment (both preventative vaccinations and treatment for illness) records, and implant records. I would be sure to have these to limit your exposure to potential liability. I say this because you could find yourself in the situation of buying calves that the previous owner said were natural program eligible, and really were antibiotic and implant free, but the creep feed and/or mineral might have a fed antibiotic as an ingredient. I'll give you an example of why this is important...our cattle have not been implanted, and we keep detailed records of those treated, but, we feed a mineral for fly prevention that has CTC listed as an ingredient. That alone eliminates our calves from going into
most natural programs. See my comment below about "most."
Do you know their breed history? Are they straight black Angus, a cross of Angus and Simmental, Angus and Gelbvieh, or any other crosses? This would probably help in deciding if they fit the "grid" the natural program is offering. Most have moved to the "quality grid," with the obvious exception being Laura's Lean that targets a yield grid.
As was mentioned in another post, I would talk to the program you're targeting them into. One really bad thing about this "natural" deal is that "not all programs are created equal." By that I mean that some have a withdrawal period (usually 45, 60, or 120 days) which they can't have any antibiotics, etc., while others are what I call "never, ever" programs, meaning just that...none of the prohibited products, ever.
What I've learned is that very few are the same in their qualifications and requirements. If it were me doing the feeding I'd error on the side of caution and not feed any antibiotics, feed additives, or use implants. As well keep very detailed records on who's been treated for antibiotics and who hasn't. I'd guess you'll be asked to supply those treatment records.
In general here's a list of no-no's in natural programs:
Feed additives (Rumenson, Tylan, etc.)
Antibiotics (oral and injection)
Implants
Optiflexx
Cocciostats (Corrid, Decox) and some allow these, some don't
Some programs don't allow injectable or fed vitamins or indecticides (pour ons, injectables, orals)
I believe all of the programs not only allow but encourage the use of preventative vaccinations.
One thing feeders who enroll in these programs generally say, is that feeding yeast really helps.
One thing to be aware of is the increase in liver abscesses because of digestive upsets. That is one area that has really increased, typically in natural program targeted cattle, since this increase in popularity. In traditional programs, the feed additives (Tylan, Ruminson) decreased abscesses, and upsets (or vice versa :wink: .)
As for the premium...do you have any experience with these cattle? Do they fit the "grid" for your targeted program? I've noticed that natural program cattle tend to have higher QGs, often have higher YG's (more 4's and 5's,) and typically don't gain or convert as well as cohorts fed in a traditional program. Those are generalities...but I'd say that the increased QG is well enough documented that you should be able to expect that. The same holds true for the decrease in gain and poorer conversions.
Let me know if you need anything else...
Cheers---
TTB :wink:
(Sorry for the edits, found a couple spelling and grammar errors after I posted...TTB)
