Diet key to keeping cows warm through deep freeze

Cows in good body condition can handle short-term increases in energy requirements, like this past weekend’s frigid temperatures and blizzard.

But to achieve this, producers have to be thinking ahead.

University of Illinois Extension Beef Educator Travis Meteer said good body condition comes from past nutrition, not here in the moment.

“These creatures have been on earth for a long time, and they have been able to adapt to a lot of different things,” he said. “A beef cow in the winter with a thick dense hair coat and a thick layer of fat is the foundation.”

Meteer said during cold months producers can supply additional energy in their ration such as feeding a higher-quality forage.

“If we have a good quality hay that is palatable for the animals, that’s crucial,” he said.

Grains or byproduct feeds, like dried distillers’ grains, corn gluten feed or soybean hulls, are sometimes more economical.

“If we are feeding them a really poor-quality grass hay, we may already be feeding a supplement just to meet the needs of cows,” Meteer said.