For much of last year and early into 2025, most of Wyoming, Nebraska and South Dakota, plus parts of western North Dakota and eastern Montana, have been deep in drought conditions. 

As the cold and dry days outnumber the wet and warm ones this time of year, a cow-calf producer may be looking for solutions for feeding his cowherd. Hopefully, drought and grazing plans ease the process when ideal weather returns. 

Karla Wilke, cow-calf and stocker management specialist for the University of Nebraska Panhandle Research and Extension Center, shared her thoughts recently about feeding cows in confinement as well as research at the center focusing on production in these cow-calf herds. 

Drought conditions have carried over several seasons in many areas of Nebraska. 

“This could be a real concern for a lot of people as to what to do if we are limited on grass,” she said. “The other reason that we might decide that we want to feed production cows in confinement would be that we will have an integrated operation with cropping systems and cattle.” 

Planning ahead is crucial, especially if conditions remain dry. Wilke said research at UNL has shown that feeding a mixture of wet distillers grains and either some low-quality hay or crop systems residue instead of grass can present a challenge. 

“What’s very hard is to get a one-to-one ratio replacement,” she said. “If we’re going to feed this mixture, it’s extremely hard to get feeding a pound of dry matter of that mixture to replace a pound of dry matter of grass that’s consumed.” 

Wilke said some of the research showed only about 2 pounds of grass were being replaced.  

It’s much better to implement an added ration for the herd before the grass runs out, she said. Using a sacrifice area in the pasture to feed helps save the rest of the pasture from overgrazing. 

“Now an important thing to understand in this is, if you just feed a protein supplement that does not replace grass, it will actually increase grass intake, and that will actually make the pasture worse,” she said. “Your cattle may look better, but it’s actually going to be worse for the pasture.” 

A producer might be interested in feeding a mixed ration because it can help him to stretch a forage resource, she said. The pasture could be utilized more efficiently and avoid abuse. 

If a producer is in a predominantly perennial grass situation, and his summer pasture is a long way from facilities, he may want to keep from overgrazing that area, she said. He could use a forage replacement strategy to buy time. 

Drought and cold spring conditions often delay forage growth.  

“This might help you get to that next forage resource. It may help you get pairs that have to be sold to a better marketing point,” Wilke said. 

Young calves will benefit from eating green grass, and she said there’s data that indicates calves can eat the same poorer quality rations and distillers grains as cows, but they tend to do better when they’re still getting milk.  

“Green grass has a high rate of passage, so they can eat more of it. It’s higher quality than harvested roughages,” she said. “There’s also less competition from the cows who are eating out of the bunk, if the calves can spread out and eat grass.” 

Another consideration might be if a producer is feeding a mixed ration out in the pastures or in another location, they may not want to feed the entire herd in confinement if the feed resources are too limited. Hopefully the producer already has a drought mitigation plan in place and won’t have to make a choice in haste. 

“Maybe consider feeding only cows that have been selected for dispersion to save grass for the core herd,” she said. “Maybe you have some pairs that you’ve decided that if you don’t get rain by such and such date, or the pasture growth isn’t of a certain level, by this date, you’ve already got these pairs picked out to be culled.” 

Drought mitigation strategies

Producers who are in a primarily perennial forage region, when facing a drought, also might want to consider alternatives, Wilke said. The other group that might consider something different are those who are limited on perennial acres but have access to cropping system residue or even access to by-products like wet distillers grains, beet pulp, sweet bran or similar feeds.  

“Because we do this in our own integrated cropping and livestock systems at home, I have people ask me a lot of times, why wouldn’t you just go buy more grass or lease more grass?” she said, adding that doesn’t always work. 

As a researcher and a producer, Wilke said it does make sense because of her location in western Nebraska, where she annually receives about 12 to 15 inches of rain. That means a perennial pasture is going to make many acres to support a cow-calf pair. By using a confinement feeding system, she can have 10 times the number of cattle with a management plan for cropping systems. 

In drought mitigation, diets and management for the confinement period are critical, she said. 

“You can do some limit feeding to help reduce diet costs, but you’ve got to increase the nutrient density of the diet so that it meets their nutrient needs,” she said. “It’s that kind of concept that we have to think about for the cows. We can save on some feed resources, but we’ve got to make sure that her needs are still being met, so that she’s either maintaining or gaining weight, whatever she needs to be doing.” 

In confinement, Wilke said the cows need at least 12 feet of bunk space per cow and about a foot of space per calf, since they need to spread out if they’re being limit fed “because the boss cows will always get the most.” 

When feeding residues, the diets work best if there’s something wet in the ration—like silage, wet distillers, sugar beet pulp or sweet bran—to help the diet stick together. The moisture will soak up some of the poorer quality residue and make it more palatable for the cattle.  

Wet feeds are high in energy and good sources of protein, Wilke said. If they are mixed with poor quality residue, be sure the ration is balanced and will fit the needs of the herd at the time, whether the cows are lactating and gestating, she said. 

Both the cow and the calf need feed and water, and the rancher needs to take into account the calf’s intake if feeding pairs.  

Calves out on pasture find small spots on the ground to drink out of, but, in confinement, a producer needs to be more aware of the height of tanks and make sure calves have access to the water, too.  

Management is key when using a confinement strategy because of the nutritional requirements. 

Having some forage acres in the arsenal can be helpful, and Wilke said to consider planting a “chunk of ground” in the fall with small grains that, come spring, could be grazed or harvested. Later in the spring, a summer crop could be planted or utilized. 

“It’s not as easy, but it can be done, and the key is to meet the nutrient requirements of the cows as well as calf,” she said. “And you can do this as a drought mitigation strategy or as a way to increase the return per acre in an integrated system. So, I think there are benefits. It can work for you, just depends on what you’ve got to work with.” 

Kylene Scott can be reached at 620-227-1804 or [email protected].