How to feed a calf so that it steadily gained weight

Fattening of gobies is one of the main tasks of a farmer who is raising animals for meat. Knowing the weight of the calf by months, you can correctly calculate the diet of a cattle representative and determine the features of caring for it at all stages of growth.

Content
  1. Importance of drinking newborn calf
  2. How to feed newborn calves
  3. Calves feeding scheme in the first month from birth
  4. Switch to solid food
  5. When the calf begins to gain weight quickly
  6. Features of calves from four months to a year
  7. Basic rules for bull feeding
  8. Types of fattening
  9. Basic rules
  10. When they slaughter

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Calf weight syatsam

Many breeders are sure that the most effective period for gaining the mass of bulls is in the first few months of their life. During this period, proper care becomes the basis for a strong and healthy body.

Importance of drinking a newborn calf

The task of every farmer after calving a cow is to drink calves with colostrum. This product is an indispensable source of vitamins and minerals that create a strong and healthy immunity from the first hours of the animal’s life. Its distinctive feature from ordinary milk is its higher protein content, which is the basis for the formation of a strong body.

It is important to feed colostrum in the first hour after calving.Each farmer must do this precisely in the first 60 minutes after birth. Any delay in drinking increases the likelihood of bulls and their poor productivity in the future. Such animals grow poorly and are poorly amenable to weight gain.

How to feed newborn calves

In order for the calf to grow and develop quickly, you need to know about the features of its feeding. The main task is to create strong immunity, which will create the necessary conditions for the baby to develop faster, because during the first month of life the animal needs it most, therefore, from the first day of the little bull, it is necessary to feed 5-6 times a day. Special bottles with nipples are used for this. It is necessary to choose the right diameter of the hole in them so that drinking does not cause:

  • dulling of the sucking reflex;
  • curdled formations in the abomasum;
  • swallowing large portions of milk .

It is best for calves to be given fresh milk, although it can also be used frozen. The main thing is that it has a temperature of 37-38 ° C. Many livestock farmers use different milk from different cows for feeding. The antibodies that receive such a product create immunity that is strong against infectious diseases. Such methods are also welcomed if the mother of the calves suffers from mastitis. If the farmer does not know the nuances of how to feed the bull so that he gains weight, there will be no growth, as well as benefits from the calf.

Calves feeding scheme in the first month of birth

Each newborn calf has a weight of 30-40 kg. Depending on the constructed diet and the characteristics of immunity, the animal already receives a gain of 10-15 kg by the 30th day. But to achieve such indicators is not so easy, much depends on the farmer himself. It is important to consider the nuances of feeding, which include:

  • the need to feed newborn calves 5-6 times a day;
  • a gradual decrease in the frequency of feeding by 30 days to 3-4 times a day ;
  • use of skim milk;
  • feeding through a nipple (each bull has its own, and after each feeding it is disinfected);
  • use of fortified additives;
  • gradual transition to roughage.

Switch to solid food

The second month of a bull’s life differs from the first month of the introduction of solid food into the diet, rich b lkami, fats and carbohydrates. For such purposes, starter feed is used, which is introduced into the daily menu to replace milk feeding. The calf weight gained during this time can be 1.5 to 2 times the weight at birth, but its cicatricial digestive system is still weak, which cannot be ignored. Starter compound feed allows you to soften the transition to hay, grass and other foods.It contains products that can be easily digested by the stomach:

  • crushed corn, barley and wheat;
  • skimmed milk powder;
  • meal;
  • fodder yeast;
  • fodder fat;
  • sugar and salt.

From the second month such food becomes the main for a young bull . The animal receives all the nutrients necessary for good health and active growth precisely from such food. Already in the second week of the application of starter feed, cicatricial digestion is normalized, so the farmer should add a little hay ramen to the diet with the beginning of the transition to solid food. Daily, its amount increases by 150-200 g. It is equally important to add silage and haylage.

When the calf begins to gain weight quickly

Calves, the monthly weight of which depends on features of the diet, develop faster with a complete transition to solid foods. Most often, this period begins from the end of the second or the beginning of the third month. The animal body by this time becomes ready to digest any food and needs a large amount of protein. The weight of the bulls at this age is 90-110 kg. The table shows how to feed a young bull so that it gains weight:

Age, months.Milk, kgCompound feed, kgHay, kgPremix, kg
250.310.3
36120.3
4-621,530,5
7-12250.9
13-14281
15-1818.51

Appetite distinguishes males from females. Bulls do not need to be persuaded to eat all the food, they easily empty any container with food. In order for the calf to gain weight, it is necessary to choose the right food, which will include a large amount of protein and have high energy value. The main reason is a decrease in the consumed volume of milk. A good substitute for it will be soy based concentrates. Such foods are rich in vegetable protein, but have one drawback: poor digestibility. Feed additives can help solve this problem. One portion of such feed should contain:

  • 22% chopped soy;
  • 20% corn;
  • 23% barley;
  • 30% peas;
  • 5% minerals and premix.

The protein needed for mass gain with such a consumption will be useful and completely replace the trace elements contained in milk. In addition, each farmer can make such mixtures independently, without buying expensive finished feed. As a result, the breeder expects the bull to gain.

Most often, the main increase in bulls falls on the period from 6 to 12 months. This is due to a fully formed muscle mass and musculoskeletal system. In just six months, starting from this time, weight gain increases by 1.5-2 times.

Features of keeping calves from four months to a year

Accustomed to solid cattle food requires a gradual increase in servings. So, from the fourth month, the mass of gobies reaches 140 kg and has a daily increase of 400-500 g. This result is achieved simply: it is enough to daily increase the mass of feed by 1-1.5 kg. Constant access to water is also important – even for a walk on a pasture, the farmer should choose places near sources of fresh water.

In the summer, walks in the sun are limited to two hours. In winter – 20-30 minutes. Best place is next to the barn, on a site cleared of snow and ice. Also, a platform under a specially equipped canopy is suitable.

From the seventh month of the calf, they are completely transferred to three meals a day. During this period, their muscle mass is completely ready to increase and develop.If from the moment of birth, the young bull was eating properly, then by the 7th month it should weigh up to 200 kg, and those individuals that weigh less than 150 kg require fattening. Faster weight gain can be achieved by increasing portions of feeding. It is also required to increase the dose of vitamins and minerals.

Basic rules for bull feeding

Low calf weight is an indicator of errors in the nutrition and content of the animal. If other peers of the same age weigh more, and the farmer has a desire to fix this problem, you should take care of the animal’s diet – feeding and fattening processes.

Especially often, these methods are used several months before the slaughter of the bull. Some farmers are against the use of feeding (eating grass from pastures) because of the low energy value of consuming such food, which cannot be said about keeping in a stall and abundant feeding with compound feed (fattening).

Types of feeding

In order for the bull to gain mass, one of the varieties of fattening is used for subsequent slaughter and butchering of the carcass:

  • Short type. Duration – 1-3 months. It is used for cattle, which does not require a large increase in weight. The most suitable age for starting the procedure is 1.5 years.
  • Medium type. Feed the bull so that he gained weight using this method, begin with 1.3-1.6 years. Duration of fattening is 4-7 months. The effect is an increase in weight by 100-150 kg.
  • Prolonged fattening.Takes from 8 to 12 months of moderate feeding. The effect is weight gain up to 350 kg.

The choice of type of fattening depends on how much the representatives of cattle weigh from 17 to 19 months. The necessity of such a procedure is also determined because of the purpose itself, because calves are raised to gain meat mass and get profit from it.

Basic rules

The bull is fattened for slaughter subject to such rules as:

  • Minimum motor activity of living creatures. The less the bull moves, the faster it will gain mass.
  • Abundant consumption of feed rich in protein, fats and carbohydrates. Compound feed, fresh grass, hay, food waste – everything will do. The main thing is to give the animal food in large portions.
  • Adding beer grains, bards and vitamins to the diet. The healthier the animal, the faster its weight gain occurs.

In order for the calf or adult bull to gain weight, it is closed in the stall for 3-4 months. During this period, he should gain 50-100 kg. Sometimes the length of time such a content of a bull is increased to 8 months and even up to one year to obtain a higher mass of carcass. The phrase “feed for slaughter” is well known to everyone, and it completely characterizes the feeding process, because in a period of 12 months a healthy person should have gained 200-250 kg in weight.

When slaughter is carried out

Each farmer when growing cows should be guided by the demand for a particular product.

Some livestock breeders keep cattle for milk. Others are meat products. A farmer for keeping livestock for slaughter must do everything in his power to make the finished product tender, healthy and tasty. There are some features of this merciless, but necessary procedure that guide livestock breeders. All of them relate to the taste of meat.

To obtain soft fiber pulp, calves are slaughtered at the age of 1.3-1.5 years. Such a product has great biological value: it is easily digested and contains a large number of amino acids. Young beef is often used for feeding sick and children and has a considerable cost in the market.

Fattening gobies youngest group: 41 days – 2 months
Fattening gobies: 10 days vs 10 months
video for the Weight Schedule section

Coarse-fibered greasy flesh suitable for cooking rich first courses. A high percentage of fat and lower quality of the product affects its value. If the main goal is to get just such beef, cattle are and slaughter at the age of 20-24 months.

Both products are in demand on the market, but they have differences in cost. For the farmer, the price of meat products is a fee for hard long work and the money spent on caring for livestock.

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Anna Evans

Author ✓ Farmer

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