The Rural Voice, 1993-07, Page 25quota. That herd BCA which he once
found hard to budge over 160, now
reads 229 with his heifers now at 240,
232 and 243. His aim is to push the
average BCA over 250.
Recently one of his cows set a new
Canadian record for butter fat
production in a lactation, and she's
still producing.
There's a price to pay for all this
good news. The wet mash isn't fun to
deal with, he admits. He gets a half -
load of 15 tonnes and it's a battle to
use it up in three weeks before it
spoils, a reason large herds have
found the wet mash the most viable.
In the summer months in particular,
moulds start to form in the mash and
the smell can get very strong.
The distillers corn is dumped on
an outdoor cement pad bordered by
four -foot walls. He uses a skid -steer
loader to scoop up the mash and
dump it into a feed bunk in the free -
stall barn. Finally he has to go into
the bunk and spread the corn around
with a fork. It all adds 15-20 minutes
of work per feeding.
As a pioneer in using wet distillers
grains Schmidt has welcomed a
number of curious dairymen to the
farm in recent years. Now that more
and more farmers have realized the
tremendous potential of by-product
feeding there aren't as many people
coming for advice, but the benefits
keep coming. The young couple is
expanding again (Grace jokes she's
getting a new bulk tank for her
birthday). Their willingness to
experiment with new ways of
production has allowed them to make
up for a slow start in the business.
Schmidt gets half loads but spoilage
is still a problem.
Someday, if things keep improving,
Grace may get presents for the house,
not just for the barn.°
B.J.
BEAR
GRAIN CO. LTD.
B.J. BEAR GRAIN CO. LTD.
WET BREWERS GRAIN
• An excellent source of By -Pass PROTEIN
• Available in Full or Split Load Quantities
OTHER FEED INGREDIENTS AVAILABLE
• Hominy/Corn Gluten Feed/Bakery Meal
For further imformation on These and Other Feeds Contact:
B.J. BEAR GRAIN CO. LTD.
P.O. BOX 99, FLORADALE, ONTARIO
NOB IVO
1-519-669-1750
JULY 1993 21