Think before you Creep Dr. Karl Harborth, LSU AgCenter
I have received many inquiries on creep feeding this year due to the record high feeder cattle values. I think to answer this question we need to look at the advantages and disadvantages of creep feeding. The following list of advantages and disadvantages was originally written by Dr. Harlan Ritchie (Ritchie, 1987) and was adapted from DiCostanzo and Gill (2008):
Potentially advantageous scenarios:
Calf prices are high relative to feed prices
Fall-born calves
Drylot cow operations
Calves from first-calf heifers
Forage for cows is limited
Milk production is limited
Maximum weight or "bloom" is desired
Male calves
Large-frame, late-maturing calves
Calves will be finished by the cow-calf producer on a high-grain diet
Less advantageous scenarios:
Feed prices are high relative to calf prices
Heavy milking cows
Forage is abundant
Heifer calves
Smaller-framed, earlier-maturing breeds
Spring calves
When calves will be backgrounded on a high-roughage diet
When creep-fed calves are severely discounted
The number one reason on the list is calf prices are high relative to feed cost, which increases the desire to take advantage of the added weight gain obtained from creep feeding. The problem is the second half of Dr. Ritchie’s first advantage. Carcass data should be used as another management tool that breeders have to make a more informed decision about selection of the cattle that will enter their breeding programs – “relative to feed prices.” Currently, we are in a high-calf-value-to-high-feed-cost scenario. In this situation, I feel that it becomes a tougher question to answer. Most people do not like my answer as I feel we can more efficiently feed calves by early weaning rather than by creep feeding. If we look at the historical studies of creep feeding, feed efficiency is variable at best and can range from a couple of pounds of feed per extra pound of gain to as much as 20 pounds of feed per pound of added gain. These differences can be attributed to many factors. Which one would you prefer? Of course we would prefer the lower feed to gain conversions. But the problem is, you may not know how efficient your calves will be on a diet until they are consuming it, which makes it very difficult to budget.
The number one reason most people want to creep feed is to reduce the amount of milk a calf consumes or to take some pressure off of the cow. While this is a great theory, studies have shown that calves will still consume similar amounts of milk compared to non-creep-fed calves. Creep feeding will put additive gains on your calves, but the question is – at what cost? I think everyone has to look at their individual situation and put a pencil to the cost of the creep feed and what the expected returns will be in relation to the value of the added weight and condition gain.
Creep feeding is a management practice that if used properly and/or during the proper economic scenarios, can increase the profitability of your cattle operation, However, at the same time, if not practiced in the proper situation, it may actually cost you more than it is worth.