It is very important that silage, whether it be corn silage or sorghum silage, is put up at the optimum moisture level. If silage is put up too wet you can run in to a problem such as having the pile run, which causes a mess to begin with and can result in a loss of nutrients. On the other side of the coin, if the silage is put up to dry it becomes difficult to get the silage pile packed decent. If the pile is not packed decent, quality can become an issue. With the amount of work that you have stuck into your silage pile, you want to get the best bang for your buck. Also on the topic of silage piles, I would like to stress the importance of tarping, even if you are going to feed off of it right away. Spoilage and shrink can be anywhere from 5-20% on a pile and, with the cost of everything rising, it is important to minimize shrink.
With the approach of fall, it is time to start thinking about weaning. With the stress that these calves went through early on it is going to be important that we get a good weaning program in place. The goal is to get these calves started and on feed as quickly and as stress free as possible. When you do decide to wean calves, give Brooke (605-523-2244) or me (605-421-1537) a call and we will get you set up with the proper calf ration that will work best for your program.