Supplementing Prairie Hay

Two experiments were conducted in Oklahoma to evaluate steer performance fed prairie hay supplemented with various levels of corn and soybean meal. Ruminally cannulated steers were given ad libitum access to chopped prairie hay and supplemented with diets containing two levels of dry-rolled corn (0 or 0.75 percent body weight) combined with one of four amounts of added soybean meal to provide between 0 and 1.3 grams of degradable intake protein per kilogram of body weight. Results indicated that the intake of hay and digestible organic matter increased significantly with added degradable intake protein regardless whether corn was fed. Providing adequate supplemental degradable intake protein to meet the total diet degradable intake protein needs seemed to overcome negative associative effects typically found in supplementing low-quality forages with large quantities of low-protein, high-starch feeds.

Bodine, T.N., and co-workers. 2000. Effects of supplemental prairie hay with corn and soybean meal on intake, digestion and ruminal measurements in beef steers. J. Animal Sci. 78(12): 3144-3154.