Texas cow-calf consultant Dan Gary recommends using cow-pie-ology, the visual observation of manure, to determine the nutritional status of cattle.
(research) shows . . . as manure piles stack up, more protein is needed. That’s because passage rate through the digestive system slows down and instead of a cow pie, there’s a cow stack. Conversely, excess protein results in thin manure.
Source: BEEF, June 8, 2016. Link.
Research shows that manure piles should be read where cattle are at rest. The water troughs are perfect locations to observe cow-pie-ology because, if cattle trot only a couple hundred yards to the cake wagon, the manure piles will be thinner than if the same cattle were observed at rest.
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