Performance of Beef Calves

These results support the earlier findings by Dr. Bill Kunkle and his research involving limitcreep supplements based on cottonseed meal and salt mixtures. Calf performance responses, as measured by the added gain realized by creep supplementation, are highly variable and cannot always be described by amounts of creep feed consumed. This variability has large and direct impacts on the cost effectiveness of the management system. In our studies, using liquid molasses-based creep supplements, we realized a 4-year average cost of gain of $0.53 / lb of added gain – not including the costs associated with feeding equipment and labor. Although this value may appear cost-effective, in 2 of the 4 study years, the cost of added gain exceeded the per lb value of the calves we sold. These studies evaluated an array of molasses-based supplement formulas including those with urea, urea & Alimet®, and cottonseed meal. We did not evaluate sugarcane molasses (blackstrap) alone, which may be a consideration within future study designs. Further, it is important to note that pasture forage conditions likely have a significant impact on the effectiveness of limitfed creep supplements, particularly when these supplements are offered to older calves in the last months prior to weaning. In our experiments, we realized significant variation in the crude protein content of the bahiagrass pastures between experiments. In Experiment 2, pasture crude protein concentrations were greater and calf response to creep supplementation was poorer than in Experiment 1. There is a likely potential that these two factors are related and may influence the results achieved. Our future studies will attempt to incorporate different pasture forage types (i.e. limpograss vs. bahiagrass) and nutritional quality among our treatment factors. Efforts to better understand the variability in calf responses to limit-creep supplements will assist producers in making decisions on when the management system may add value to their beef production enterprise.