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Mineral needs for cattle not one-size-fits-all

A cow-calf field specialist says mineral supplements need to be customized by producers. Adele Harty with South Dakota State University Extension tells Brownfield Ag News a lot of producers in her state want to improve their mineral programs because of the special circumstances in western South Dakota, “We have issues with very low copper levels in our soil, high sulfate levels in our water and high molybdenum in our soil – which, those three minerals interact with each other and can result in some reproductive issues and things like that.”

Harty says it’s important for each cattle producer to evaluate mineral needs no matter where their operation is located, “There’s so many differences with soil types and forages and supplemental feeds that people really need to evaluate what the big picture is to figure out what the best mineral supplement’s going to be for their operation.” She says mineral supplementation of cattle should not be a one-size-fits-all approach.

SDSU Extension will host a Cattle Mineral Nutrition for Producers program at the Cottonwood Range and Livestock field Station May 23rd, 2017. A second session will be held this fall.

 

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