Everyone is aware of the drought but how bad or how much will this drought effect the feed prices?? Could this play a major role in the deer industry? I'm trying to prepare myself for the worst. Whats everyones opinoin?
Drought effects
- Thread starter S&A Whitetails
- Start date
Joined May 2009
2,369 Posts | 0+
Chillicothe, Missouri
Local MFA feed store thinks corn and beans will be HIGH........................But they also don't think they will be readily available to use in deer feed.
Hay in my area is already thru the roof a $85.00 a big round bale and thats if you can find any that is not already spoken for.
Many cattle farmers are feeding hay and there will be no second cutting of the grass.....Let alone hay!
I hope it won't be as bad as some say. But I think we should all be aware and see what else we can use as a feed ration for our deer.................Just in case.
Just my crazy pea brain.........................Runnin wild! LOL
Hay in my area is already thru the roof a $85.00 a big round bale and thats if you can find any that is not already spoken for.
Many cattle farmers are feeding hay and there will be no second cutting of the grass.....Let alone hay!
I hope it won't be as bad as some say. But I think we should all be aware and see what else we can use as a feed ration for our deer.................Just in case.
Just my crazy pea brain.........................Runnin wild! LOL
Joined Sep 2010
572 Posts | 0+
Indiana
I have heard of hay prices being between 8-12 dollars a bale. I have been trying bagged dehydrated alfalfa and the deer are eating every bit of it, unlike hay bales where they leave the stems.
We have just come out of the worst drought on record. Many lost hope & didn't believe it would ever rain again.Well it did,& typically the drought ended with floods.
It's important to look out for each other at these times & many on the land don't or wont ask for help,even if all you can offer is an ear & a nod of understanding it can make a "big" difference to those who are watching their life turn to dust.
On drought feed,I found fibre & not protien the hardest to obtain.I used molasses with 3% urea (non protien nitrogen) to provide the protien & any hay or straw I could find for fibre.One kilo of urea will provide more protien at the true stomach than 800kgs of grain (protien from grain is digested in the rumen, unless its a bypass,yes the digested protien still feeds the bacteria,but so does urea).
Be careful using urea,mix it well,& don't get tempted to increase the rate unless you know what your doing.The molasses is a good source of energy & I also add minerals & 3% gargen lime.This mix encourages the animals to forage more & eat plants they normally wouldn't.
A byproduct of ethanol fuel is becomming avaliable,I haven't used it yet,but I will look into this "syrup" as its about a fifth the price of molasses.
Cheers Sharkey
It's important to look out for each other at these times & many on the land don't or wont ask for help,even if all you can offer is an ear & a nod of understanding it can make a "big" difference to those who are watching their life turn to dust.
On drought feed,I found fibre & not protien the hardest to obtain.I used molasses with 3% urea (non protien nitrogen) to provide the protien & any hay or straw I could find for fibre.One kilo of urea will provide more protien at the true stomach than 800kgs of grain (protien from grain is digested in the rumen, unless its a bypass,yes the digested protien still feeds the bacteria,but so does urea).
Be careful using urea,mix it well,& don't get tempted to increase the rate unless you know what your doing.The molasses is a good source of energy & I also add minerals & 3% gargen lime.This mix encourages the animals to forage more & eat plants they normally wouldn't.
A byproduct of ethanol fuel is becomming avaliable,I haven't used it yet,but I will look into this "syrup" as its about a fifth the price of molasses.
Cheers Sharkey
This is a good thread as I do think we are going to have to get creative to be able to continue to feed our deer. Farmers in my area just began to cut their second cutting of hay as it is mature and has to be cut.......you can hardly even see what they have cut......I certainly hope we get rain around here so they can at least salvage what's left of this growing season......I know there are many farmers (Dairy and beef farms) in my area that are already struggling to make ends meet and I am concerned this will be too much for them to bare.....I certainly hope and pray I am wrong......pray for rain!!
Joined Apr 2009
1,428 Posts | 0+
Northeast Wisconsin
Last year the drought was in Texas and Oklahoma, this year it seems to have moved north. In northern WI we've had enough rain to keep things growing, but there aren't many farms here. In the southern part of the state where the farms are it has been very dry. Our Governor just declared a state of emergency for farmers so they could apply for some federal money. This will affect many things, the price of corn, the price of gas, all feed prices. Unless they get rain soon the affect will be widespread. Right now there isn't anything in the forecast for rain - just sun and highs in the upper 80's to low 90's.
Joined Aug 2009
629 Posts | 0+
Winnsboro, LA
Well if you think you got it bad , you should be thankful. Last year we had over 49 days of consecutive 100 degree+ days and 90 straight days no rain. You talk about hard on the deer!
3/4 of the corn is done for in my area, too late for rain to help. Soybean's still have a chance to at least make fair yeild's. Hay is not looking good and real good quality hay will be hard to come by. There is still plenty of last year's corn in the bin's, may be high but it's there.
Most of the big farmers around fayette county IL contract their crops out before the fall and that creates a large chain reaction that will hit the everyday person very hard. Alot of the crop from last year has already been hauled to stl. so the bins around here are empty unless they had such a great yeild that they had extra. We should be thankful? I don't believe you will see me thanking that our fields are scorched and the corn only making it to 4ft high not even producing an ear and the beans curling up turning brown before they are 6inches high. It's going to effect the entire US beings the drought has hit the "corn belt" of the US.
Note animals eat to meet their energy requirements. When many are looking to save money and cut corners, one might think they are saving money by buying a cheaper feed but in reality that feed might require in a 10 or 20% higher feeding rate to satiate one's deer, resulting on it actually costing one more money verses saving money.
About a month ago my feed store told me if I wanted anything close to a guaranty for availability of what I'm currently buying I need to order it now and have it processed and delivered. Then...the price could fluctuate some. I plan on fertilizing the pens and planting food plots as always but this year I will micro manage (seed already on hand). It's a different story on the rest of the farm with the cattle and horses. I've sold horses and 'am down from 23 to 5 and hope to sell 4 of those remaining. I am trimming my cattle down from 50 to 15 before winter as we still have patches of green and they look o.k. We've had 3 good cuttings of hay but a lot has been sold out of the area already and forecasts call for round bales btwn 85-100.00. Our region is a big dairy producer and we will feel the results like everyone else.
We will surely see grain prices sore thats pretty much a given at this time . I raise corn and beans and have been told prices are going up again as the USDA has over calculated the amount of grain still alive a growing in the US . I've also been told this may be the first time in history the US may run out of corn with no reserve by the next harvest of the 2013 crop . I've been fairly lucky here in central Wi with not much rain but fairly good timely rains . I just had a dairy farmer offer 1200 an acre to chop my corn but even at that I have to wait and see . I've been told corn could hit the 10 dollar range and beans may go to 19 ! Hay here is bringing 4 bucks for a small square bale in the 35 to 40 pound range with big bales going for around 100 bucks for the 12 to 1500 pounders . They figure up to 48 percent of the US corn crop may produce no sellable garin . Some of the larger dairy farms in southern Wi are selling off lots of their heifers to keep the cows fed and bring in an income, but that will cost in the future . It will be a very interesting year in Ag that's for sure ! The cost of feeding our critters will surely be much higher than last year, thats a given . Just my opinion .
Gee let see grain will probably go up so we'll be spending between 30 and 40 cents a pound on grain and our bucks eat at least 4 pounds per day so thats $1.20 to $1.60 per day per head for grain . Most of us keep our bucks for 3 years so we've got some where between $440.00 and $585.00 a year in them not to mention the grain we fed their dams to get them and testing and medical supplies and hay . Hummm I better grow bigger bucks or get used to loosing money ...lol 
Just a thought .
Just a thought .my feed had gone up over $3.00 a bag in the last two months. I cant see it going down anytime soon either. A friend of mine owns a feed mill and he told me the other day that a truckload of bean meal has gone from $5000 a load to over $12,000 a load. Things are starting to get out of hand.
Yikes , I talked to a hay dealer today that told me some small square bales were bringing $8.00 to $10 a bale in small loads of 200 bales or less . That seems unreal !! Talked with a corn seed dealer last Friday at the feed mill that figures corn will sell for 9.50 a bu come fall and beans could hold around 18 bucks a bu . Seems hard to beleive that 9 years ago when I started my little deer herd ADM complete feed was 215.00 a ton and 200 inch bucks were around $10,000. Today my feed is over $600 a ton and riseing and a 200 inch buck is $4,000 The grain costs may only last a year or so , but what about the price of our bucks ? Seems the preserves want bucks in that 150 to the 180 range that look somewhat typical yet we're breeding them to be in the 200 to 300 range . Are we breeding ourselves out of business somewhat , one has to wonder ... Just a thought .
I was lucky in that I had about 40 square bales leftover when the early spring arrived this year. Unfortunately, I've used up well over half in my rationing program, and if we don't get some rain (for the weeds at least) soon, the hay will be gone. My hay supplier ripped out his alfalfa and put in beans this year, and I have only known about that for a couple weeks.
Thinking outside the box...raining soon can fill out the bean pods, but I don't think it will add any pods to the plant. I walked the neighbor's bean field the other night and counted 10 or fewer pods on every plant. I'm thinking about calling him and offering to buy some of his standing beans that I can cut by hand as needed and feed to the deer I have and save what little hay I have left. He doesn't have anything to lose, unless it hinders his crop insurance policy.
What about Chaff hay? Does anyone know of any that is available? I've thought hundreds of times about trying it, but may be forced into it if some can be found at an affordable rate. Also, I've been thinking about taking to the timber and cutting oak branches on a daily basis and giving to the deer just for some roughage and browse. That won't last forever, either, as leaves will soon be falling. I did hear of some bales of oak leaves being sold not but a few weeks ago. I wonder how the heck they get baled?
Thinking outside the box...raining soon can fill out the bean pods, but I don't think it will add any pods to the plant. I walked the neighbor's bean field the other night and counted 10 or fewer pods on every plant. I'm thinking about calling him and offering to buy some of his standing beans that I can cut by hand as needed and feed to the deer I have and save what little hay I have left. He doesn't have anything to lose, unless it hinders his crop insurance policy.
What about Chaff hay? Does anyone know of any that is available? I've thought hundreds of times about trying it, but may be forced into it if some can be found at an affordable rate. Also, I've been thinking about taking to the timber and cutting oak branches on a daily basis and giving to the deer just for some roughage and browse. That won't last forever, either, as leaves will soon be falling. I did hear of some bales of oak leaves being sold not but a few weeks ago. I wonder how the heck they get baled?
Joined Apr 2009
1,428 Posts | 0+
Northeast Wisconsin
If we are growing bigger bucks you should be able to sell them sooner for shooters. We are looking for shooters and need those in the 145 to 200" range.
Joined May 2009
2,369 Posts | 0+
Chillicothe, Missouri
Jane I have no problems selling the bucks that are 200 and under, it's the 250's and up I think I'll be having problems with no ones really interested in them . Most buyers want what your wanting 200 and down, not the 200 and up . Even the 200's I feel I'm lucky to break even considering the costs of feeding them as well as feeding the doe's that make them , not to mention I AI all my does . Feed costs will way exceed selling prices in my book , at least for the next few years. It will take years for grain prices to get back down to somewhat normal. If the U.S. runs out of corn with no reserves it will take several real good growing seasons to get that back to normal. If corns high all grains stay high and you will see less and less hay acres being planted and more and more land going into grain production so hay will stay high as well as less will be grown . Just a thought .