Technology Drives Feeding Accuracy with Cattle and Elk
Matt Marriott’s family has been in the livestock business near Ogden, Utah, for several generations. Over the past 20 years, Matt Marriott has expanded his cow herd from 150 to 750. Depending on the year, Matt feeds between 200 and 500 replacement heifers through the winter before they’re sold as bred heifers or calved out for later sale.
He’s also added an unusual ruminant – elk – to his Western Basin Land and Livestock operation. Tracking the nutritional needs of both species was challenging until he found Performance Beef.
New venture brings feeding stress
Matt’s family owns a commercial hunting lodge just north into Idaho. His uncle Randy managed the lodge and had always relied on outside suppliers for their bulls, but in 2010, Randy saw an opportunity to take matters into their own hands.
Matt began a new venture at his uncle’s urging – raising and growing elk to age 6, when they’d transport them to his family’s hunting lodge. Today, he uses both artificial insemination and natural bull service on 200 to 400 elk cows.
While cattle and elk are both ruminants, their feeding and management differ. Elk are higher-stress animals. Diet also depends on the time of year whether maintaining body condition or pushing for seasonal horn growth.
“We feed all our elk with a TMR year-round,” Matt says. “I know some others have tried to do the same at a smaller scale, but I don’t know if anyone has done it like we do.”
Ranch management, feeding and record-keeping for both animal species used to consist of batch sheets, which often confused hired workers. It was a constant cycle of questioning whether feed batches were hitting the proper levels, whether the ration was being mixed correctly or if the right amounts were being delivered.
Data availability makes feeding simpler
To improve management and reduce feeding mix-ups, Matt’s Texas-based nutritionist recommended he try Performance Beef. No matter the location, everyone could access the program with their phones and iPads. Nightly emails broke down exactly what was fed to each pen, what was loaded in the feed truck plus precise ingredient formulations.
“I love that it's all online and I can look at it anytime and anywhere I want," Matt says. "Even when I'm on vacation I quickly click on my email and go through the notes. It's made our feed rations much more accurate. "
If he ever has questions or concerns about a new elk ration not being consumed as it should or seeming too wet or too dry, it's easy for his nutritionist to access the program and make changes if necessary or offer suggestions.
Better understanding long-term costs
Performance Beef lets Matt easily track feed levels, inventories and costs before the elk reach hunting age.
“That's the hardest aspect of raising elk," he says. "You're always chasing horn growth with a single year to do it. Unlike beef, you can't put them on a scale every three weeks to see how much they're gaining, but you still need a way to adjust and monitor the horn growth of their yearly antlers. Performance Beef helps us understand those long-term calculations and costs.”
Feeding is simpler and more accurate for both species, Matt says. This attention to detail means rations are loaded much more precisely than before with the whole process making his staff more conscientious.
Matt is excited about the future of his elk and cattle operations. He enjoys the reduction in personal stress from using Performance Beef and loves the potential of the younger genetics involved in his unique herds.
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