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Cattle nutritionist: don’t skimp on the feed in this cold

A cattle nutritionist with the University of Missouri Extension says good cattle care is important with bitterly cold windchills and below zero temperatures in the forecast.

Eric Bailey tells Brownfield providing a warm, dry place for cattle to bed in is helpful and don’t forget the extra feed and grain.

“I would consider extra hay and extra calories from some sort of grain/commodity mix. I’m not talking about an extra lick tub or a small package feedstuff. It’s just volume we’re looking for at this point to keep bellies full.”

Bailey says there’s currently wet conditions and extremely cold temperatures are expected to follow and that can get cattle hides wet and affect an animal’s ability to insulate themselves.

“We’re kind of in a perfect storm. It’s at or below freezing and raining and if cattle get soaked, it will reduce their ability to insulate against the cold temperatures. It’s the cattle that look like drowned rats today that I’m worried about.”

He says adequate access to water is important for cattle when it’s cold and producers should be keeping waterers thawed.

The National Weather Service says there’s a wind chill warning in effect for portions of Missouri and Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska and the Dakotas.

There are blizzard warnings, winter storm warnings and winter weather advisories in effect across southeastern South Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota, northern Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin and Michigan.