Page 17 - MWC 3-9-2023s

The Midwest Cattleman · March 9, 2023 · P17
Grass T
Grass Tetany...Time to Prepare and Preventetany...Time to Prepare and Prevent

By Ted Wiseman, OSU Extension
Although we haven’t had nesium mineral mix doesn’t a free choice mineral mix, the is critical you are monitoring
much of a winter so far, and mean your livestock are in supplemental magnesium can magnesium intake. Commer-
I hope I’m not jinxing us by the clear. You need to monitor be combined with more palat- cial mixes are available, and
mentioning it here. We have mineral intake and make sure able feeds such as dried mo- a few University Specialists
had above average tempera- all animals are consuming de- lasses or soybean meal. In ad- have provided home-made
tures for January with Feb- sired amounts. Magnesium dition, adding salt may help mineral mixes online. The
ruary 5 to 10 degrees above alone can result in decreased increase mineral intake but high magnesium mineral sup-
the long-term average for the palatability and decrease con- also ensure sodium require- plements should be provided
state. To date we are current- sumption. If livestock do not ment is being met. This is prior to turning livestock out
ly 60 growing degree days consume adequate levels from NOT replacing magnesium it continued on page 35
above last year. Regardless of
what weather conditions are
encountered until spring offi-
cially arrives, many plants are RUGGED,
already breaking dormancy.
This includes pastures, so ad-
justing our mineral program PERFORMANCE DRIVEN
now will be cheap insurance
to prevent grass tetany.
Preparing for the early
grazing season, it is import- BULLS
ant that your mineral pro-
gram complement the feeds
you are feeding now. One of
the major problems livestock
producers encounter in the
early spring is grass tetany,
also known as grass staggers,
spring tetany or lactation tet-
any. So what causes grass tet-
any? Grass tetany typically
occurs in the spring but can
occur in the fall or when you
have rapidly growing, succu-
lent, cool season grasses. This
condition is a metabolic or
nutritional condition in dairy,
beef cattle and sheep with low
blood levels of magnesium.
Lush green grasses are gener-
ally low in magnesium but are
made worse by having high
potassium and protein levels.
Mineral imbalances of high
potassium and nitrogen along
with low calcium, sodium and
phosphorus levels can tie up
magnesium in the soil making
the problem worse. This is an-
other reason for soil sampling SELLING APPROXIMATLEY 60 HEAD
and why you should apply fer- Age-Advantaged Red Angus Bulls • Yearling Red Angus Bulls
tilizer based on results, use no Elite Commercial Red Angus Females
more potassium than needed
since grasses are luxury con- There is true herd sire potential in these bulls! Rugged bulls designed to drive performance
sumers of potassium. in your herd, while maintaining the calving-ease needed for peace of mind.
Feeding high magnesium Put Double A bulls engineered to increase your herd profitability to work for you.
mineral supplements is a pre-
ventative measure to reduce
or prevent grass tetany. Cows
require 20 grams of magne-
sium daily which can be ac-
complished through consum-
ing 3 to 4 ounces per day of a
mineral mix containing 12 to RANCH LOCATION: NEVADA, MO
15 percent magnesium. Just DENNIS ALT - (913) 558-7966 | COLE ABELE - (417) 684-0881
because you provide high mag- 22286 W. 74th St. | Shawnee, KS 66227 | dmalt@kc.rr.com | www.doublealandandcattle.org | Facebook.com/AAlandandcattle