Mark Johnson, Oklahoma State University Extension Beef Cattle Breeding Specialist, offers herd health advice as part of the weekly series known as the “Cow Calf Corner” published electronically by Dr. Peel, Mark Johnson, and Paul Beck. Today, Johnson talks about manure scoring.
At this time of year, producers with spring calving herds are in the process of managing cows for the next calving season in 2024. With warm season grasses going dormant and losing nutritional quality. There are a couple of convenient management tools we can use to ensure we are meeting our cow’s nutritional requirements. The first is body condition scoring cows and the second is to monitor manure consistency. By monitoring body condition score (BCS) across our entire cowherd, on a regular basis, we can monitor the plane of nutrition over the long-term. This will answer the question “What condition are my cows in, and are they gaining, maintaining or losing condition?” The goal is to have cows in a BCS 5 at calving (on a 1-9 scale). If cows are in adequate condition (BCS 5 or higher) and maintaining, no immediate nutritional changes are needed. However, if cows are in poor condition (BCS less than 5) or losing condition, nutritional management changes are needed requiring the addition of protein supplemental and/or energy so that BCS does not drop below 5 before calving. If the cows are in BCS greater than 5 and maintaining, the nutrition program is more than adequate.
What is Manure Scoring?
Manure scores range from 1 – 5. A manure score of 1 is more liquid than solid with consistency of cream soup. A manure score of 5 is very firm and can stack several inches high. These are the manure piles you trip over when walking through pastures. In healthy cows, manure scoring can serve as an indicator of forage quality and animal performance. In the short term, manure scoring helps us make sure we are providing enough nutrition without overdoing it. At this time of year, the primary question this indicator can help answer is, “Do the cows need a protein supplement? If they are receiving a protein supplement, is it enough?” The pictures below show manure from animals that have excess dietary protein (Figure 1), adequate dietary protein (Figure 2), and a deficiency of dietary protein (Figure 3) during late gestation.
Manure patties similar to Figure 1 indicate a diet with crude protein greater than 10%. The center of the patty has a crater-like appearance. If there are small folds present around the edges of the patty, the crude protein content will be in the 10-13% range. No additional supplementation is needed for mature cows with manure of this consistency during late gestation.
The manure in Figure 3 indicates diets with crude protein of 5% or less. These patties have very distinct rings at the lower portion which tend to be firm. Manure from this forage quality tends to stack, but the rings are a true indicator of lower forage quality. This manure type indicates the forage is below maintenance requirements for all classes of beef cattle and that protein supplementation is necessary to increase digestibility and utilization of the low-quality forage.
When cows are grazing dormant range, it can be challenging to get a representative sample of the forage to test for quality. Manure scoring is easily done while checking pastures and indicates protein deficiency, adequacy or excess in the diet. When manure scoring indicates inadequate dietary protein, adding or increasing the level of protein supplementation will be beneficial in meeting overall nutrient requirements and maintaining the BCS of your cowherd.
References: https://extension.sdstate.edu/monitoring-nutrient-status-beef-cows
OSU Beef Cattle Manual, Eighth Edition, E-913
