I recently heard an interesting analogy: Not testing your hay can put your cows on a nutritional roller coaster. While some may enjoy the thrill of a roller coaster and the anticipation of the next flip or turn, for cattle nutrition and the rumen environment, slow and steady is the way to go.

For those buying or selling hay, forage testing can play an even bigger role in pricing and purchasing value.

Deciding which supplement to use will vary depending on forage quality, animal requirements, body condition score, the ability to feed daily or not, product availability and cost per unit of needed nutrient.

You may be familiar with the phrase, “If you don’t test, it’s just a guess,” a phrase that applies directly to hay quality. The only way to know the exact nutrient concentration of hay is to take a representative sample and have it analyzed by a lab.

With the fall-calving season just around the corner, it is time to start thinking about increased cow nutrition needs at calving and during lactation.

Hay quality cannot be judged based on looks or if it was fertilized or not. Often, some of the best-looking hay will test out to be some of the lowest quality.

Forage for grazing, hay, baleage or silage production is critical for cow-calf operations. Producing quality forage and hay is also important to reduce or eliminate energy and protein supplementation for the cow herd.