Beef Cattle Housing and Equipment

1. Beef Cattle Housing and Equipment Chapter 18

2. Objectives • Describe the steps in planning for facilities and equipment for beef enterprises • Describe the facilities and equipment required for beef enterprises

3. Planning for Facilitiesand Equipment • Careful planning is important for success • Facilities and equipment vary with each farm • Careful planning can • Make cattle handling easier • Help to save labor • Make facilities safe for operators and cattle

4. Planning for Facilitiesand Equipment (cont.) • Number of Cattle • Must be determined early on • Number based on many factors including • Availability of feed • Availability of labor • Availability of housing and equipment

5. Planning for Facilitiesand Equipment (cont.) • Space Requirements • Facilities are based on the number of cattle • Only build what is necessary for current operation • Plan for future expansion

6. Planning for Facilitiesand Equipment (cont.) • Kind of Facilities • Depends on the type of beef enterprise • Facilities can be classified as one of the following • Confinement • Open barn and feedlot • Open feedlot • Feeding barn and lot

7. Planning for Facilitiesand Equipment (cont.) • Location of Facility/Environmental Factors • Easy access to good roads • Plan for easy movement of cattle • Direction of prevailing winds must be considered • Runoff must be controlled • Must be well-drained

8. Planning for Facilitiesand Equipment (cont.) • Feed Storage and Handling • Vary from simple, manual systems to complex, automated • System must allow for expansion • Must have an adequate power supply

9. Planning for Facilitiesand Equipment (cont.) • Amount of Land • Varies with the size of the operation • There must be enough space for • Lots • Alleys • Storage • Roadways • Allow for future expansion

10. Planning for Facilitiesand Equipment (cont.) • Money, Labor, and Opportunity for Expansion • The amount of money available determines size and kind of facility • The system type determines the amount of labor • Amount of automation affects labor requirement

11. Cow Herd Facilities • Generally require the simplest facilities • Cows can be on pasture in spring and fall • Need minimum shelter in the winter • Separate feedlot areas needed for different cattle • A corral with essential features is needed • A good water supply is needed

12. Feedlots • Confinement Barns • Cold confinement • Open on one side, away from prevailing winds • Temperature is the same as outside temperature • Pole-type building or open-span construction • Requires less labor than other feed facilities • Large number of advantages

13. Feedlots (cont.) • Confinement Barns (cont.) • Warm confinement • Closed building • Kept warmer than outside temperatures • Most expensive type of barn • Not recommended for cattle-feeding systems

14. Feedlots (cont.) • Confinement Barns (cont.) • Three common floor systems • Solid bedded • Slotted • Solid flushing • Have wall heights of 12 to16 feet • Feed bunks, waterers placed properly • Movement of manure should be considered

15. Feedlots (cont.) • Open Feedlots • Have no buildings • Protected by windbreak fence, sunshades • Usually not paved • Dirt mounds are used to keep cattle out of mud • Require more land • Good drainage and runoff are important

16. Feedlots (cont.) • Open Barn and Feedlot • Protection is provided by a open-front barn • Feeding done in an open lot • Facility common in the Midwest • This facility is adapted to smaller feedlots • Usually not paved • Cattle-handling facilities are part of this facility

17. Feedlots (cont.) • Feeding Barn and Lot • Very similar to the open barn and feedlot • Primary difference is feed bunks are located inside the barn • Feed and cattle are both protected from the weather

18. Corrals • Provide several advantages • Corrals should consist of • Sorting, holding, and crowding pens • Working chute • Headgates • Tilting table and dipping vat • Loading chute

19. Corrals (cont.)

20. Corrals (cont.)

21. Feeding Facilities • Feed Storage and Processing • Silos • Upright silos: gas-tight and conventional types • Horizontal silos: include trench, bunker, and stack type • Sealed silos • Hay can be stored in bales • Can be fed with a hay self-feeder

22. Feeding Facilities (cont.) • Feed Storage and Processing (cont.)

23. Feeding Facilities (cont.) • Feed Storage and Processing (cont.)

24. Feeding Facilities (cont.) • Feed Storage and Processing (cont.) • Auger, elevators, and other conveying equipment are used for easy handling of grain

25. Feeding Facilities (cont.) • Feed Storage and Processing (cont.) • Portable mixer • Grinders used for processing grain, roughage • Electric blender-grinder • Concentrates can be measured, ground, and mixed • Does not handle roughage

26. Feeding Facilities (cont.) • Feed Storage and Processing (cont.) • Electric batch mill • Accurate control over ration formulation • Hay mills and tub grinders • Process roughages • Feed centers may be located in an area away from the feedlot and transported

27. Feeding Facilities (cont.) • Feed Bunks • Kinds of feed bunks used for feeding • Portable lot bunks • Fence-line bunks • Mechanical bunks • Covered bunks

28. Feeding Facilities (cont.) • Feed Bunks (cont.) • Portable lot bunks • Made of wood • Less expensive than other bunks • Fourteen feet in length • Three tofive feet wide • Flat-bottomed and V-shaped bottoms are used

29. Feeding Facilities (cont.) • Feed Bunks (cont.) • Mechanical bunks • Require a huge capital investment • Two types – auger, chain-slat conveyor • All bunks require wiring, electric motors, and electric controls • Wide, as cattle eat from both sides

30. Feeding Facilities (cont.) • Feed Bunks (cont.) • Fence-line bunks • Well adapted to large feedlots • Made of wood or concrete • Usually wider at the top than the bottom • Some designed with roof for weather protection

31. Feeding Facilities (cont.) • Feed Bunks (cont.)

32. Feeding Facilities (cont.) • Feed Bunks (cont.) • Covered bunks • Have a covered roof • Provide protection for mechanical feeding equipment and shade for cattle • In north, placed so sun can reach bunk for thawing

33. Other Equipment • Cattle gain better with good, fresh, clean water • Automatic waterers may be used • Concrete water troughs also used • Frost-free hydrants can be used to supply water to a trough

34. Other Equipment (cont.) • Commercial mineral feeders • Weather vane • Sunshades • Can lower temperatures by 10 degrees • Back rubbers • Creep feeders, self-feeders, calf shelters

35. Other Equipment (cont.) • Cattleguard • Allows equipment to be driven into an area so the operator does not have to stop • More expensive than traditional gates • Don’t use if trespassing, vandalism is problem • Most cattle are afraid to cross • Bosindicuscattle less afraid to jump guard

36. Other Equipment (cont.)