Our cattle eat forages like grasses, forbs and legumes and when needed hay. To name a few you can find are Rye grass, Orchard grass, Quack grass, Fescue grass, Bermuda grass, Brome grass, Johnson Grass, Switch Grass, Timothy Grass, Crab Grass, Brown Top Millet, Wild Oats, Rye and Wheat, yes these are grasses. Forbs like Chicory, Yarrow, Parsley, Dandelion, Plantain and Fennel are just a few named many others exist in our pastures. On the Legumes, some of the ones they munch on are Birdsfoot Trefoil, White Clovers, Red Clover, and many Vetches. When needed we plant seeds during periods of the year to try to maintain something green all year long. Our cattle's nutrition is our first priority without that we have nothing. The cattle must maintain a proper PH for them to be healthy and minerals and vitamins are a huge part to that. We try to maintain the pastures with a variety of forages for the cattle year round, when either nature or man does not cooperate we must supplement with hay and loose minerals.
We have several minerals and vitamins available all year long that the cattle can choose from when "they" feel they need something. We have separated 15 minerals and several vitamins in order to maintain a healthy herd. Our cattle can choose from any of the following minerals at any time like Boron, Calcium, Cobalt, Copper, Iodine, Iron, Manganese, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Selenium, Sodium, Silicon, Sulfur, Zinc. They also have a mixture of vitamins they can choose to help balance their diet that they may not get from the plants. We have seen the cattle eat different minerals and vitamins at different times of the year. By separating these the cattle get what they need when they need it. And yes they have free choice on salt as well.
Our goal is to have the cattle receive most, if not all, the minerals they need from the forages they eat. But since we live in North Georgia and normally receive 50 to 90 inches of rain that can wash out a lot of minerals. Since the land is always having nutrients taken out, we will have to continue to supply the minerals the the cattle want and need until we can get the soil and forages producing.
An ah ha moment I had with minerals, is when I was looking for a better way for minerals. We used a blend for breeding season and then a blend for spring, we were going through 50 pounds a week with less than 50 cattle! So I started talking to people who were raising cattle and looking on the web for a better way. Everyone I talked to had their favorite brand, but always said, "I wish I had this in the mix, or the copper was to low, or the magnesium was too low, or this is way to expensive". I asked, can you get individual minerals and put them out? "That's to too much work and I don't have time for that, they are just cattle". Well yes they are cattle and they depend on us because of the barriers we have made. We must supply what they need in a way they can use it to benefit them the most. So my search started on the web and I found the right company with the right attitude.
Free Choice Minerals Ltd. We are working with Mark Bader and crew from Free Choice Minerals Ltd. to help us monitor our cattle's needs as our pastures change, so may the minerals. Free Choice Minerals is a family owned business that focuses on the holistic approach on natural supplementation in an unconventional approach, offer the cattle what they need and let them select what they need to thrive.
We now use less then 10 pounds a week with more cattle and the cattle get the minerals they need when they need them.
We have several minerals and vitamins available all year long that the cattle can choose from when "they" feel they need something. We have separated 15 minerals and several vitamins in order to maintain a healthy herd. Our cattle can choose from any of the following minerals at any time like Boron, Calcium, Cobalt, Copper, Iodine, Iron, Manganese, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Selenium, Sodium, Silicon, Sulfur, Zinc. They also have a mixture of vitamins they can choose to help balance their diet that they may not get from the plants. We have seen the cattle eat different minerals and vitamins at different times of the year. By separating these the cattle get what they need when they need it. And yes they have free choice on salt as well.
Our goal is to have the cattle receive most, if not all, the minerals they need from the forages they eat. But since we live in North Georgia and normally receive 50 to 90 inches of rain that can wash out a lot of minerals. Since the land is always having nutrients taken out, we will have to continue to supply the minerals the the cattle want and need until we can get the soil and forages producing.
An ah ha moment I had with minerals, is when I was looking for a better way for minerals. We used a blend for breeding season and then a blend for spring, we were going through 50 pounds a week with less than 50 cattle! So I started talking to people who were raising cattle and looking on the web for a better way. Everyone I talked to had their favorite brand, but always said, "I wish I had this in the mix, or the copper was to low, or the magnesium was too low, or this is way to expensive". I asked, can you get individual minerals and put them out? "That's to too much work and I don't have time for that, they are just cattle". Well yes they are cattle and they depend on us because of the barriers we have made. We must supply what they need in a way they can use it to benefit them the most. So my search started on the web and I found the right company with the right attitude.
Free Choice Minerals Ltd. We are working with Mark Bader and crew from Free Choice Minerals Ltd. to help us monitor our cattle's needs as our pastures change, so may the minerals. Free Choice Minerals is a family owned business that focuses on the holistic approach on natural supplementation in an unconventional approach, offer the cattle what they need and let them select what they need to thrive.
We now use less then 10 pounds a week with more cattle and the cattle get the minerals they need when they need them.
