Back in the August 2001 archives, there is a most interesting thread on "new" way to feed dairy animals. The new way is feeding entirely on good quality grass and legume hay, cuting out the concentrates and grains. To me, this is the perfect way to go to produce high quality milk for us humans and keep our cows healthy. I am in process of getting a family cow and desire to grass feed if possible. Fortunately, we have good year-round green pastures and excellent quality orchard grass and alfalfa hay. I know that our cow will have to go through a time of adjustment of going to all grass from grain/grass diet that she had at the dairy, but want to end up all grass fed. Several folks who gave responses to this August thread were in process of switching over to grass diet. Would love to hear how that is working plus any other advice from those who have tried this method. There is a wealth of information on this site that is invaluable - it's so comforting to read of others wisdom and experiences. Why reinvent the wheel! Thanks! Kathy in NC

-- Kathy (kadavis@iocnet.net), January 01, 2002

Answers

It didn't work for us. We tried. Good alfalfa too. The goats milk dropped allot, and so did the Guernseys. We had to go back to buying grain for them if we wanted any milk. I wish it would work. One doe kept her bag large, but the others did not.

-- Cindy in KY (solidrockranch@msn.com), January 02, 2002.

Kathy, I milk 35-40 cows for a living and when they are off grain for extended periods I can count on something less than a 50% drop in production. My hay and pasture is mixed grass, with little legume in the mix, with an average protein content of 10% most years. So with grain the herd meanders along at 15,000-18,000# a year average, and off grain they are somewhere around 10,000-11,000#. Big difference in what goes in the bulk tank. If I were milking one or two cows for the house I'd not bother with grain except as treats to get them into the barn at milking time (which most wouldnt need anyway) and to give you a way to control them when they get out. If you really NEED all of that milk, then grain them right along. If you only need a couple of gallons or less a day, forget the feed.

-- Jennifer L. (Northern NYS) (jlance@nospammail.com), January 02, 2002.

I can't comment on dairy cows, but I can comment on grass-fed meat. I just purchased several pounds of bison meat by mail order. The bison was fed and finished on a diet of grass alone. The meat is a rich red color, very high quality, stays good longer than regular meet, and certainly has my approval.

Maybe today's cows have been bred and modified for modern-type agriculture. Cattles' ancestors did not consume concentrates, salt blocks, or grains in large quantities. Bison still does great on grass alone.

-- Rick#7 (rick7@postmark.net), January 02, 2002.

We have a friend here who runs an organic grass fed cow dairy that is seasonal. He does not milk for 2 months in the winter. He has no problem getting milk. We dropped our cows grain by half and her milk hardly dropped at all. We are moving and will have a decent pasture finally, so we are going to try the grass fed only. We do have goats, and we heard that they don't graze enough, so unless you have plenty of woody browsings for them to keep giving them grain.

-- M & M (amazinggraze@valkyrie.net), January 02, 2002.

Hi,

You can expect a drop in production, but not that great a drop if you manage yor pasture for lush new growth. Look at books by Voisin and others on keeping your pasture growing vegetatively. If you can pull off the intensive rotational management of the pasture, you can count on good production. You will lose production as you feed hay as well. Keeping the pastures vegetative is not difficult, but it can be like flyng a jet at 600 miles per hour. You need to look ahead beyond what you can see to plan mowing and grazing rotations. My pastures averaged close to 18% protein when I was flying them well and they fed a 150 cow herd year round...including standing fescue in the winter. No, they were not dairy cows rather beef, but the same principles apply. Voisin's book is based upon his own dairy farm. I would not suggest this method for commercial dairy operations, but I would for family and small scale herds.

Thanks.

oscar

-- Oscar H. Will III (owill@mail.whittier.edu), January 02, 2002.

I've enjoyed all these responses; Oscar, I ordered the Voisin pasture managemet book from Amazon today - boy, does that look like a wealth of info for maintaining good pastures! M&M and Jennifer L. your info was encouraging for going all grass. I am not looking for high production, just good milk, so will try the all grass route first if my winter rye keeps up. Good to know that you can always put the cow on grain to up the production if pastures get thin. Appreciate all the good wisdon! Kathy

-- Kathy (kadavis@iocnet.net), January 02, 2002.

Should work out fine.

For those that don't look into other reading material, be aware that cows can bloat & die grazing green alfalfa or other legumes. You need to introduce them to alfalfa or clover properly, and don't have more than 40% or so of the feed available be green alfalfa.

You can always switch between grass, grain, hay, corn silage, etc. Just do so _slowly_. Cattle like a very boring routine in their feed, the same thing over & over. Changing feed means they have to change the bactirea in their stomachs, and this upsets their nutrition intake and especially upsets milk production.

There are many books on what a cow needs in protien, fat, TDN, etc. It doesn't matter what form the cow gets this nutrition, as long as her stomachs can break it down & use it.

Most of the 'factory farms' as some of you call them feed mostly corn silage & alfalfa hay as the main ingredient in the diet, with grain as a top dressing to balance out the nutrition. The 'grain' is oftem mostly processed soy meal (the oil content was used out), or distiller's dried grains, or cotton seed hulls, or other cast off sources. Better not complain about the feeding ingredients in 'factory farms' until you actually know what they are! :)

--->Paul

-- paul (ramblerplm@hotmail.com), January 02, 2002.

I don't recall any advocates of grass-based dairying recommending going to 100% forages. Grain is still recommended to balance out the diet and for milk production. Grass-based dairying is a method to reduce overhead costs.

About the only publication to report on grass-based dairying on a continuing basis is The Stockman Grass Farmer - 800-748-9808 or www.stockmangrassfarmer.com.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), January 05, 2002.

If you read through the archives there was a gal who did this. Very knowledgeable, I would contact her privately. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), January 05, 2002.

Actually there is a BIG difference in what kind of feed a cow gets, as far as human nutrition from her products goes. It is pretty common for a typical Holstein today to receive 10 to 12 pounds of grain- based supplements a day in her ration; some may just consider this a 'top dressing', but it actually has quite an effect on her milk.

Milk from grass-fed cows is three to five times higher in omega 3 fatty acids than in standard grain-fed dairy cows, which are crucial for good mental health, cardiovascular integrity, healthy blood pressure, and cancer prevention. Milk from grass-fed cows is also up to five times higher in conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which is all the rage now as a supplement, because of the promise it shows as an anti-carcinogen and diabetes treatment, its success as a natural body fat reducer and a muscle builder. MIlk from grass-fed cows is also richer in beta-carotene, and because grass-fed ruminants hardly ever become infected with e-coli, the milk products are also much less likely to be contaminated with this bacteria.

-- Earthmama (earthmama48@yahoo.com), January 05, 2002.

Hello to everyone! I'm most grateful for all the excellent leads that have come through this thread. I've gotten the Stockman Grass Farmer magazine that Ken recommended and eaten up every word on grass grazing. And yes, Earthmama, there is a huge difference in feeding cows green grass versus grain and hay or silage. I'm already in the planning stages of going all grass with intensive grazing and having green grass year-round. Fortunately, my climate will allow green grass all year and since we will be having only one cow to begin, I hope I can manage this new system. Excitied about all these new possibilities!! Thanks to you all -

-- Kathy (kadavis@iocnet.net), January 14, 2002.