“Cows Were Cycling When The Severity Of The Drought Meant They Shouldn’t Be”
Product Range: MegaMin Graze & Grow and MegaMin Extra Sulphur
Region: Thangool, QLD
Successful seed stock producers are those with clear direction and Shaun and Jo McGuigan, ‘Cree Santas’ at Thangool QLD, exemplify this with their passion and attention to detail. Their recent bull sale averaged $9241 across 62 Bulls with a top price of $40,000. These strong sale averages still provided bulls for all budgets, with stunning young bulls from strong cow families being purchased on the day for under $4000. In 2015, Shaun and Jo attended an AgSolutions Soil and Livestock Nutrition seminar in Biloela, which introduced MegaMin Graze & Grow as a dry feed and production supplement to Cree Santas.
We look for companies and products that provide a positive contribution to our business and the recent drought presented an opportunity to supplement our breeders with MegaMin Graze & Grow,” stated Shaun.
Virtually no rain had fallen for the 12 months prior to February 2016 and any rain since has been quite scattered. Jo said, “Traditionally, we focused on cows that handle these conditions and we only supplemented during drought. This year, in recognition of the benefits of adequate nutrition and what minerals provide, we are trialing an all year round mineral supplementation program. Focussing on production and maximising progeny on the ground is a strategic profit driver. We concentrate on Dam fertility history and nutrition has a critical link to this statistic. Keeping our cows condition score up allows them to reach their fertility potential. As a stud, our female families with fertility are a key trait we base Cree Santas on and EBV’s for ‘days to calving’ back this up. Maintaining weight for age and temperament underpin our management.”
After a really tough season our cows have come through this drought looking good thanks to MegaMin. The most noticeable result being that cows were cycling when the severity of the drought meant they shouldn’t be,” concludes Shaun.
With the recent rain AgSolutions is active in reminding our readers about ‘Right Product for the Right Time’. Cree Santas finally got rain and with the Spring growth will now change from MegaMin Graze & Grow to MegaMin Extra Sulphur. The required intake and cents per head per day will reduce without the need for protein for dry feed utilisation. The Sulphur and minerals in MegaMin Extra Sulphur will help optimise cow condition and fertility, with Sulphur also providing benefits for external parasite control. The target intake is 50-100g/day or 5-10 cents per head.