Raising Beef
The life of a beef cow is usually split into two stages: cow-calf operation and feedlots. During cow-calf operation, cows are bred to give birth to calves. The calves are born around 60-100 lbs and will nurse off of their mother for the next 6 to 8 months. Eventually, the calf will start to graze alongside its mother until it is weaned from milk entirely. At this point, the life of a cow will either be for reproduction or fed for beef consumption.
After 8 months, or until they have reached 600-800 lbs, the majority of cows are transferred to a feedlot. The cows stay here for about 4 to 6 months with the goal to increase their weight to about 1400-1500 lbs. When they have reached a desirable weight, they are considered “finished” and ready to be humanely killed and butchered into the slices of meat found at the grocery store.
Grain-finishing produces tender, marbled beef while lowering the overall environmental impact of beef production. In the open-air feedlot pens, the cows have a lot of room to roam around with free access to feed and water. Cattle are monitored on a regular basis to make sure their health and nutritional needs are fulfilled. The development of feeding rations is a highly precise science. Feedlot operations, when managed responsibly and with technological innovations, have the potential to provide cattle with important aspects of a decent life.
A Typical Feedlot Layout
When starting a new feedlot, it is essential to carefully plan and design an animal-friendly, environmentally and economically conscious solution. There are many different considerations in constructing feedlots, such as: minimizing animal and worker stress, feeding efficiently, having a well-drained feedlot, and maintaining a clean feedlot with minimal odours.
Each 100 head of cattle requires the following: one acre that includes pen space, alleys and feed roads, and up to one acre for a waste control facility. Canadian feedlots require approval from the government before operating, and feedlots would need to have a clear environmental plan that deals with the waste created from the livestock.
All feedlots have their feed contained in troughs, usually made of concrete, lined along one side of the pen. Each pen also contains a water bowl that automatically provides fresh water. Each pen will also have a raised dirt mound or sloped bedding area where cattle can lie down when the pens get excessively muddy during rain or snow. Each pen is sloped to drain waste away from the feedlot and roads.
The Importance of Water in a Feedlot
Having a well-planned water management system in a feedlot is extremely important as cows must always have a large supply of fresh water to regulate their temperature, growth and digestion. When cows don’t drink enough water, they will eat less, their growth performance becomes stunted, their stress increases, and they become dehydrated. The feedlot operator can also face significant costs if it happens more frequently.
A decrease in a cow’s water intake could happen for several reasons: the water quality decreased from manure contamination due to improper drainage, the animal being sick, or the pen isn’t receiving enough water for each animal due to poor water management. In order for a feedlot to be successful, is important to have a reliable water source and pumping system, excellent filtration, and proper waste drainage.
Serfas Farms’ 40,000 head Feedlot Project
Download the case study for our work at the Serfas Farms’ Enchant Feedlot and a testimonial from Kevin Serfas.
Complete Turnkey Feedlot Systems
Significant feedlot expansions can be exciting and rewarding, but tackling large, multi-faceted projects can quickly become a colossal headache if not properly planned and carried out. It is often difficult enough to find companies that can supply all the water-related products needed for a project of this size, but also finding a company that provides service, design, and advice is near impossible. Working with many companies usually delays projects, and finding one company that can take charge and correctly complete the entire undertaking on time can potentially save farmers significant dollars. Without the right partners, your dream project can become your worst nightmare.
Southern Irrigation has the resourcing to provide complete turnkey water solutions for your feedlot; no babysitting is required. With seven locations and decades of experience, we offer a vast selection of quality products and complete system solutions, an organized project management team, detailed drawing designs, advice, service, and in some cases, installation.
Southern Irrigation provides the following systems; all necessary water-related components to run a successful feedlot.
Automatic Rotating Screen
At the intake’s inlet, we add an automatic rotating screen to improve the water quality and prevent debris from clogging the pump intake. Doing this eliminates the downtime on pumps due to plugging and burning out. A broken pump has a more considerable impact than just the cost of the pump. Animals without water are stressed animals, and production goes down.
COMPLETE PUMP HOUSE SOLUTIONS
Pumps
Southern Irrigation has various pump options that we can provide our customers and a pump build center for custom units. We would consider the available flow rates and pressure and provide recommendations based on the data. Southern has an innovative way of installing submersible pumps that allows the benefits of submersibles while also having an easy method for working on the pumps.
Automatic Filtration and Flush Water Return System
Filtration is a crucial system component as it helps prevent leaky water bowls as debris can get wedged between the seal and the valve seat. Filtration also helps keep pipes cleaner and keeps taps and valves functioning longer. If implementing a water treatment system, filtration can alleviate stress on sand filters and softeners by reducing the number of contaminants entering the systems, giving a longer life to the media and valves of the water treatment system. We recommend first filtering the water through a Netafim Apollo filter before going to the water bowls and a Turf Boss pump to return backflush water from the filter back to the dugout.
Potable Water Treatment
Having clean, potable water is a must in a feedlot, as a high occurrence of surgeries can happen, and injured cattle have wounds that need flushing with clean water. Clean/potable water ensures we are not re-infecting the cattle or introducing new bacteria to open wounds or incisions. A feedlot may also need drinkable water for their offices and staff.
Mainlines + Sub-mainlines
As HDPE becomes more popular, we often use this pipe on most new builds. Along with the intake pipe and mainlines, we recommend adding extra outgoing lines and capping them off, future-proofing the system and enabling the customer to expand. Each line should also have a valve to isolate different areas of the system.
DRINKING WATER BOWL SYSTEM
The water from the pumphouse travels through our main + sub mainlines to the water bowls; we recommend either Bohlman or Richie Waterers.
AUTOMATED DUST SUPPRESSION SYSTEM
Controlling feedlot dust levels benefits the health and safety of the animals, workers, and surrounding community with cleaner air and clearer vision. A happy cow is a productive cow. Dust control systems also play an important societal role as feedlots often have a bad public image and reputation due to dust and smell.
Typically, a small burst of 2-3 minutes of sprinkling is best to avoid oversaturation which causes concerns in cattle health. Programming the systems to repeat the sprinkling in short periods will alleviate this issue. Using Nelson Big Gun sprinklers connected with a fully automated system such as the Nelson Twig Wireless Control system works best, as it gives owners control remotely when their systems connect to Wi-Fi.
FEEDLOT RUNOFF REPURPOSING SYSTEM
Feedlot run-off can contain a vast array of nutrients beneficial for crop production. One way to utilize the run-off is to slope the feedlot, draining excess water to lagoons on the lot’s edges. By using a screen and pump system, you can filter the water and send it through an existing pivot, retrofitted with valves and large sprinklers to distribute the runoff on your crop.
Sources
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- “Advantages and Disadvantages of a Feedlot.” Agroninja, https://agroninja.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-a-feedlot/.
- “Feedlot 101.” Alberta Cattle Feeders’ Association, Alberta Cattle Feeders’ Association, 21 July 2020, https://cattlefeeders.ca/feedlot-101/.
- Endres, Marcia I., and Karen Schwartzkopf-Genswein. “Overview of Cattle Production Systems.” Advances in Cattle Welfare, Woodhead Publishing, 29 Jan. 2018, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780081009383000012.
- “Beef Lifecycle.” Pennsylvania Beef Council, https://www.pabeef.org/raising-beef/beef-lifecycle/.
- Brush, Emma, and Linus Blomqvist. “Are Feedlots the Ingredient to an Ethical Beef Industry?” Greenbiz, 28 Dec. 2017, https://www.greenbiz.com/article/are-feedlots-ingredient-ethical-beef-industry/.
- “Water Consumption Drives Feedlot Performance.” HerdWhistle, 14 Dec. 2021, https://www.herdwhistle.com/blog/water-consumption-drives-feedlot-performance#:~:text=Water%20is%20a%20critical%20nutrient,that%20need%20to%20be%20addressed.
