feeding ground cob corn

[Anonymous-0]

i have a small amount of land (10 acres) i'll be playing around with raising a couple of steers for my own beef. i mostly want to feed them grass. i've heard the effects of feeding shell corn & don't plan on going that route but was wondering if i raise cob corn & run it through my hammermill for ground feed, how would the out come be in comparison to feeding plain shell corn ? thanks for any help or added info in advance.....


p.s. keep in mind this isn't my day job

 

[Lumpie]

Ground ear corn is some of the best feed you can make. Throw in a couple bales of good leafy alfalfa, some oats, wheat, cottonseed meal, whatever grains you can get locally, mix it all up for a complete ration, makes good, tender, delicious meat. Don't forget to add a little protein.

 

[rrlund]

What would the outcome be? In reference to what? The only corn I feed is ground ear corn.(and corn silage) Make sure you have a fine enough screen in it to grind it up so it's palatable.

 

[sammydwm]

what are the effects of feeding whole shell corn?
Have grown steers on nothing but whole shell corn and TendRLeen and they grew big and made awesome meat.

 

[culitv8]

some of the effects i've heard come from them having difficulty digesting shell corn, google "John Robbins what about grass-fed beef" & read the article there, i don't know from my personal exsperiance, i'm just looking for some answers & opinions.
thanks again for the replies

 

[jimva]

Just because some guy wrights an article and puts it on the web doesnt mean its truth and fact. I googled and read his article and I can tell you that most of that info was pure BS.

Since your getting into rasing beef cattle you may want to stick to reading articles written by animal nutritionist"s. Better yet if you have an ag extension office in your area talk with one of the animal nutritionist there.

 

[JMS/.MN]

I used the shelled corn and TendrLeen program for many years. Very simple feeding program. Mix and put in self feeders, don"t let them run empty. Had one that foundered all those years- that is the digestive disturbance talked about. That one was already big enough for us to butcher. Corn stalk bedding provides plenty of roughage. That being said, there is nothing wrong with ground ear corn as a mainstay in a well-balanced ration. Now, DDGS is also a great feed to add to the mix. Has about 25% protein. Grass fed beef will not have the same marbling as grain fed, and takes considerable amount more time to market.

 

[rrlund]

Or he could just save himself a lot of bother and eat the soles off his shoes if he hasn't tried grass fed before.

No wait a minute. The leather in his soles might have come from a steer that wasn't grass fed,locally grown,organic and natural. For all we know it could be stuffed full of hormones,fed GMO corn by a corporation that raised it in a four story brick factory farm in the heart of Manhatan. Forgive me. I don't know what I was thinking.

 

[sammydwm]

Nothing like using unproven news headline hysteria to promote your cause.
The whole E Coli thing was never proven, was never based on scientific fact and has been disproved by studies in Australia that found E Coli was just as if not more prevalent in pasture raised beef.
I wouldn't trust most of the rest of it either. A lot of it is old rehashed animal rights propaganda.

 

[donjr]

Real farmers have been raising beef for many years using proven methods and nutrition for the herds they run. No two are likely to be the same, and may differ quite a bit. But the bottom line is how much gain and how fast at what cost will get the animal to the butcher shop has been a debate that will continue for years. The real facts are that they'll gain quicker on grain, but at higher cost. Period. Add a bit of molasses to your cob mix, and they'l eat it like candy. Add some soymeal or peanut meal and you'll taste a difference, as will your customers. But, if you're as smart as you seem to be, stay away from the 'holistic' methods. You'll still get a piece of beef, but it won't be quite as good s you'd like. It needs some fat and marbling, and it will take you too long on plain grass to get a tender meat. So, a little corn can go a long way.

 

[culitv8]

thanks again for all the replies, keep in mind i was just looking for answers & opinions not trying to single anyone or any method out

p.s. i won't be eating my footware as it comes in handy during hunting for the deer that i bait with shell corn

 

[Wayne from Wi]

Where you live, available facilities and equipment, your own knowlege,experience and abilities all will figure in to the best way to finish out cattle for you. Even the breed of cattle will make a difference. Pasture and ground ear corn balanced for protein and minerals is fine. It has been done forever. Talk to your local feed guy. Also there are many sources online on feeding cattle. Makes for fun reading. PS.. Whole shell corn and Tendrlean works fine, mainly for dairy beef. Wayne

 

[LonM]

Basically feeding ground ear corn will result in a slightly slower gain than with shelled corn, assuming amount of hay/silage/miscellaneous roughage is the same between the two rations. This is because a bushel of ear corn (70#), will have about 56# of shell corn and 14# of cobs (roughage). So the percentage of roughage in an ear corn ration will be higher than that in a shell corn ration, again assuming additional roughage is the same for each. So basically what I am saying is that if you back down the additional roughage fed in the ear corn ration in proportion to the amount of cobs you have, you basically would have the same roughage to concentrate ratio with that ear corn as you would with the shell corn ration. Take home lesson: there are lots of ways of feeding cattle to achieve the same end result. We finish our blacks on ear corn, some shell corn (add more as they get bigger to increase the energy density of the diet), protein supplement, corn silage and grass/alfalfa hay. The main thing is to change them over to a new feed gradually so their rumen microbes can acclimate to the changes in readily fermentable carbohydrates (starch). Hope this helps,

LonM

 

[paul]

There is lots of different ways to do it. If you are raising your own corn, sure is easier to pick 5-10 acres of corn, store in a crib, and grind ear corn than any other way.

Ground ear corn and oats mixed, is a heck of a cattle feed. Can use a little more energy towards the end if you want to be real efficient, but the ear corn works well.

As do several other ways of feeding. All whatever you enjoy/ want to make work out.

--->Paul

 

[Chester5731]

culitv8, send me an email at [email protected]