Tag: salt

How to actually decipher the disinformation about sulfur blocks

April 2, 2024 /

How to actually decipher the disinformation about sulfur blocksSulfur salt blocks have generated a love/hate relationship among many cattlemen. Some love them and swear by them, while others feel they are a waste of money. It can be a bit of a headache to understand either side truly.

The ones who love them say that it helps with external parasite control. While sulfur powder has been shown to help in that area, there is no evidence, as far as I’m aware, that the block does that.

As with everything, there are pros and cons to using them. While there is some benefit to feeding sulfur, one must also be careful. You need to weigh the options yourself and decide if it could work for you.

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How to get the most out of your winter minerals

November 3, 2023 /

How to get the most out of your winter mineralsDietary minerals are necessary for optimal growth and reproduction. The amount needed depends on forage mineral content, the animal’s age, and the production stage. Just knowing what the cow requires is only 1 component in evaluating its mineral status. Even the soil type, fertilizer used, and rainfall can affect what mineral is available at a particular time.

While forages and even water can provide some minerals to the animal, they may still be lacking. No region will have every mineral available at all times. Even if they offer them, if they are in specific amounts, they can also affect the absorption of other minerals. Also, just providing some minerals may only solve some of your problems.

Some people believe that cattle will naturally seek the minerals they need, but this is untrue. In fact, cattle are much like people in that they only eat what they think tastes good. The problem with that is that some minerals have a bitter taste, so they are less likely to eat them. Here are some things you can do to improve the consumption of your mineral supplement.

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How useful are sulfur blocks for cattle really?

April 1, 2023 /

How useful are sulfur blocks for cattle really?Sulfur salt blocks have generated a love/hate relationship among many cattlemen. Some love them and swear by them, then others feel they are a waste of money. It can be a bit of a headache to truly understand either side.

The ones that love them say that it helps with external parasite control. While putting sulfur powder has been shown to help in that area there is no, as far as I’m aware, evidence that the block does that.

As with everything there are pros and cons to using them. While there is some benefit to feeding sulfur one must also be careful. You need to weigh the options yourself and decide if it could be something that will work for you.

Continue reading

Tips on getting the most out of your free choice minerals this winter

November 4, 2022 /

Tips on getting the most out of your free choice minerals this winterDietary minerals are necessary for optimal growth and reproduction. The amount needed depends on forage mineral content. the age of the animal, and the stage of production.  Just knowing what the cow requires is only 1 component in evaluating its mineral status.  Even the soil type, fertilizer used, and rainfall can affect what mineral is available at a certain time.

While forages, and even water, can provide some minerals to the animal they may still be lacking. No region will have every mineral available at all times. Even if they do provide them if they are in certain amounts they can affect the absorption of other minerals too. Also, just providing some minerals may not solve all of your problems.

There are some people that believe that cattle will naturally seek out the minerals they need, but this is not true. In fact, cattle are much like people in that they only eat what they think tastes good. The problem with that is that some minerals have a bitter taste so they are less likely to eat them. Here are some things that you can do to improve the consumption of your mineral supplement.

Continue reading

Cattle Salt: What is it good for?

July 7, 2021 /

Cattle salt: what is it good for?Salt as you may know is one of the important building blocks for cattle. This, along with other minerals, are necessary for cattle to perform at their best.

An interesting thing about salt is that cattle have a natural “urge” to consume it. What this means is that unlike other minerals they will actually seek it out. If for some reason they are not able to find it then they will try to ingest it from other sources. This is when you will see cattle eating odd things such as tree bark, dirt, and even urine.

As I mentioned a couple of paragraphs earlier salt is very important for the overall function of cattle. Along with adding in milk production it will assist with other functions too. These functions are things like reproduction, blood flow, and even sweating. Though I am pretty sure that last one should be pretty obvious.

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Benefits of salt for cattle

March 5, 2021 /

benefits of salt for cattleSalt, along with other minerals, are necessary to sustain life in cows. Much like humans they are the essential building blocks for a living being to perform at best.

The interesting thing about salt is that cattle have a natural “urge” for it. This means that unlike the other minerals they will actually seek it out. If they can not find it then they will try to ingest it from other sources, such as tree bark, dirt, and even urine.

As I mentioned earlier salt is very important for the overall function of a cow. Along with aiding with milk production it will assist with other functions. These functions are things like reproduction, blood flow and even sweating, which I think that one should be obvious.

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What does a sulfur block do for cattle?

March 13, 2020 /

what does a sulfur block do for cattle?Sulfur salt blocks have generated a love/hate relationship among cattlemen. There are ones who love them and swear by them, then there are others who feel they are a waste of money.

The ones that love them say that it helps with external parasite control. While putting sulfur powder has been shown to help in that area there is no, as far as I’m aware, no evidence that the block does that.

As with everything there are pros and cons to using them. While there is some benefit to feeding sulfur one must also be careful. You need to weigh the options yourself and decide if it could be something that will work for you.

Continue reading

Why do cows need salt?

March 5, 2020 /

why do cows need salt?Salt, along with other minerals, are necessary to sustain life in cows. Much like humans they are the essential building blocks for a living being to perform at best.

The interesting thing about salt is that cattle have a natural “urge” for it. This means that unlike the other minerals they will actually seek it out. If they can not find it then they will try to ingest it from other sources, such as tree bark, dirt, and even urine.

As I mentioned earlier salt is very important for the overall function of a cow. Along with aiding with milk production it will assist with other functions. These functions are things like reproduction, blood flow and even sweating, which I think that one should be obvious.

Continue reading

Which Color Salt Blocks is Best?

January 21, 2020 /

What color salt blocks is best?Salt blocks come in a variety of colors, as any trip to your local feed store will tell you. The specific color of the block will tell you two things about it. One of those is what kind of nutrients are contained in it. The second one is what kind of use it is intended for.

With the different varieties out there it can be quite confusing as to which block is best for you. The one that is best for you depends on what mineral(s) are deficient in your particular operation.

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