LSU article on Cow's nutrition affects on calf health by Christine Navarre DVM.

LSU's Body condition score for beef cattle is helpful when determining if your Dexter is too thin or too fat. Good thing they don't hang a picture on the wall in the Doctor's office for us!

LSU article on Forage Requirements for Beef Cattle by Jason Holmes. Good technical numbers on the difference between early pregnancy needs and lactating needs for cows. Percentages on digestible nutrients and crude protein in forage.

This is a loaded question because the following are factors that may alter the estimate:

1. Growing yearlings
2. Pregnancy ( early to late gestation)
3. Lactation ( early to late lactation varies too)
4. Weather ( colder temps require more intake to keep the Dexter warm.)
5. Injury or illness that resulted in a body condition loss
6. The quality of the hay itself
7. Hay waste when they soil it

Average hay will test out with a crude protein at about 8% Alfalfa hay will test out much higher in the high teens to 20%

Let's use the following example and then adjustments can be made later:

• An open cow/ non-lactating that weighs approximately 750 lbs
• The season is fall ( temps in the 70s)
• Current Body Condition score would be around a 5, showing average healthy weight.
• Hay quality is testing at 8% crude protein, pasture forage is eaten down.
• This cow will eat approximately 2% of her body weight in hay forage. 750 x 0.02 = 15 pounds of hay per day
• Hay waste would be 15% of the 15 pounds needed for the cow: 15 X 0.15= 2.25 lbs
• Add the pounds per day to the hay waste estimate: 15 + 2.25= 17.25 lbs need to be taken to this cow each day.
• If you are using round bales estimate this need based off of the weight of the round bale, remembering the waste that will happen. Round bales tend to have the most waste over square bales.
• If you are using square bales try weighing a few bales to get a feel for what the bales run at weight wise. Then portion the bales accordingly.

Your mineral program is so important to the productivity, hardiness and overall health of your herd. Minerals are far too often overlooked as just a side item to put out in the pasture. Some breeders get overwhelmed with decision because there are so many minerals to consider. Some questions you may ask yourself:

1. What minerals, if any, are deficient on my pastures?
2. Who can test my pastures to tell me if they are deficient?
3. Are my Dexters getting enough of the important minerals, through their current hay, water source?
4. Are some of the challenges we have on our farm related to mineral deficiencies?
5. Are there trusted brands of minerals to look for?
6. Why won't my Dexters eat the brands I have bought for them?

Here is a great article from the Texas Agrilife on Minerals and Beef Cattle: Mineral Supplementation of Beef Cows in Texas

• Primary type: when a Dexter is consuming forage that is deficient and the cow is not offered a mineral supplement to make up for the forage deficiency. This is likely not to occur if your herd is ingesting a good mineral program.
• Secondary type: when your Dexter is consuming a mineral that acts against the absorption of another needed mineral. For example, even though a cow is consuming good amounts of copper, they are also consuming sulfur amounts that prevent the copper from being absorbed like it should. This is the most common type of mineral deficiency. You will need to get your vet, maybe county extension office involved to help you figure this one out. Corrections can be made, but you need to know what those corrections are.

1. Stage of life the Dexter is in. ( I.e. a weaned calf, a lactating cow, a bred heifer, a bull, a growing steer, etc.)
2. Time of year will have an effect on the mineral need, like needing higher Magnesium in early spring for fast growing forage areas, to prevent grass tetany. Winter time
3. Quality of your forage at any given time. (Buy hay from different suppliers with some being better than others.)

1. Macro-Minerals (Calcium, Phosphorus, Magnesium, Potassium, Sodium, Chlorine and Sulfur.)
2. Micro-minerals (Cobalt, Copper, Zinc, selenium, Iodine, Iron and Manganese.)

The most important points to consider when purchasing minerals are calcium to phosphorus levels, salt level, bioavailability (like in copper), level of “trace minerals” in the supplement, and any additives. Salt is not stored in a Dexter's body so we have to make that available at all times. However, salt intake can have an impact on the mineral intake in general. When cattle are overindulging on a new mineral, sometimes salt is added to reduce that intake. If cattle are not consuming enough of the mineral sometimes additives like molasses or changing brands will get them to consume more. Either way, always monitor any new mineral program closely until you can establish the success of it. You don't want your herd having a complication from either too little or too much mineral intake ( toxicity can occur in some cases.) If you have concerns about mineral intake, get your large animal vet involved as they can give you more solid advice and maybe even some testing.

1. Loose, granulated, type ( Will need either the weather proof type, or a good mineral feeder setup.)
2. Hard Block type ( Put it in a draining block holder so not directly on the ground.)
3. Lick Tub, molasses formula (Heavy so typically need a tractor or two sets of hands to place in pasture.)

It is typically not a good idea to provide a separate salt only block, along with a separate mineral block, because the cattle will likely crave the salt and not get enough of the mineral block.

Organic Mineral Option below

Sea-90 Essential Elements Mineral for All Livestock- Certified Organic

“Sea-90” is an organic sea salt that contains a wide variety of trace minerals, and is in a loose form that resembles chunky salt. It is certified organic, which is important to us, as most of the available salts and minerals for cattle are not organic. Note that it is a large heavy bag, and therefore it is not economically feasible to have it shipped.

Cited diagrams

Greene, L.W. 1995. The nutritional value of inorganic and organic mineral sources. Update of mineral nutrition of beef cattle. San Antonio, TX. In: Proc. Plains Nutr. Council Symp. Pp 23-32.

Nutrient requirements of beef cattle. 1996. Washington, D.C. National Research Council.