Farm Table says:
This article covers opportunity lot feeding which can assist producers in making the most of markets such as fat sales without the commitment of a feedlot all year round.
The items covered in this article are:
- Opportunity lot feeding.
- Is it worth the risk?
- Setting up the feedlot.
- Feed and feeding frequency.
Key points were as follows:
- Opportunity lot feeding gives producers the incentive to feedlot cattle in the short-term to make the most of market conditions.
- Before you decide to opportunity lot feed, carefully budget costs to ensure a profit will be made, not a loss.
- Weighing cattle before, during and after lot feeding is essential to ensure weight gain is on target.
- Cattle should be fed daily, have access to clean drinking water and shelter from the sun and wind.
- Feed troughs or bunks should be set up in the feedlot yard/s with enough space for cattle to eat when they want to, allow 5m of clearance per head.
- All feed mixes should include grain, roughage, protein concentrate and minerals/vitamins.
