Creep feeding and creep grazing are supplemental nutrition strategies for nursing beef calves, each offering distinct benefits and considerations depending on management goals, forage quality, and market conditions.
Key Highlights
- Creep Feeding:
- Practice: Supplements calves with feed via self-feeders or small paddocks, beginning around 100 days postpartum.
- Benefits: Addresses nutritional gaps, especially during drought or low-forage quality periods, and adds an average of 50 pounds per calf pre-weaning.
- Economic Considerations:
- Feed-to-gain ratios average 9:1, with costs ranging from $0.53 to $1.80 per pound of gain depending on feed cost and efficiency.
- For profitability, the cost of gain must be less than the value of gain (e.g., $1.225 per pound in the example provided).
- Long-Term Impact: Supports faster transitions to feed yards post-weaning and can improve carcass marbling and weight gain in retained ownership scenarios.
- Creep Grazing:
- Practice: Provides access to high-quality forage, such as cool-season annuals or summer legumes, through creep gates or temporary fencing.
- Benefits: Can increase weaning weights by 15-20% compared to calves without creep access, particularly when forage quality for cows is limited.
- Management: Effective for utilizing small forage plantings or extending grazing seasons.
Economic and Management Implications
Producers should assess input costs, calf growth potential, and market value of gain when selecting a strategy. Creep feeding may be advantageous in drought or limited forage scenarios, while creep grazing can maximize gains when high-quality forage is available. Each approach supports higher calf performance when the cow’s nutritional plane is restricted.
Both practices allow for flexibility in management and potential profitability, with considerations for feed costs, forage quality, and market dynamics shaping their effectiveness.
