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Cold, snow create stress for cattle

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With winter snow and cold temperatures, people compensate with sweaters, coats, boots, hats and gloves. But Montana is home to approximately 2.5 million cows, at least 130,000 registered horses, and lots of grade horses as well as other domestic animals and wildlife.

Most animals don’t buy a new winter coat or move inside, so how do they keep warm? Jack Stivers, MSU County Extension Agent, said ranchers need to up the feed during cold weather.

“Cattle will just eat more,” Stivers explained.  

Some ranchers will add a little straw, Stivers said, because the rate of fermentation is slower and it takes longer to break down.

Cattle have a thermoneutral zone, Stivers said. In this zone, cattle are neither too hot nor too cold, the fewest nutrients are needed to maintain bodily functions and their performance is optimal.

Stivers referred to a paper titled “Winter Stress in Beef Cattle,” by Roger Brownson, Montana State University Extension Livestock Specialist and David Ames, Colorado State University Head of the Department of Animal Sciences. Basically, the colder it gets, the more feed a cow needs to maintain her thermoneutral zone. 

Another important issue is a place for cattle and horses to get out of the wind, such as a barn, a loafing shed, trees, a draw, the side of a building or even a tall creek bank. 

The Brownson and Ames paper also recommends scattering bedding so cattle don’t have to lie right on the frozen ground. Animals are their own solar collectors, so whenever the sun is out, they soak up the heat. Sunshine can bounce off a creek bank or the side of a building and warm animals.

 “Condition is always important,” for cows starting into the winter, said Wyoming Livestock Board president Robert W. Orchard.

Good shape means healthy body weights and a thick, furry winter coat. It’s also important to make sure animals have enough food and water, and fresh running water is best.

One important thing to remember is that ranchers and farmers are good stewards of their cattle, horses and other animals because livestock is their livelihood.

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