Cattle Hay Calculator
Enter herd size, average cow weight, intake rate, pasture offset, bale weight, and season length to estimate hay to feed and buy.
For 10 cattle averaging 1,200 lb at 2.5% of body weight as dry matter, the herd needs about 300 lb of dry matter per day. With 88% dry matter hay, that is about 341 lb of hay per day before waste. The calculator adds your waste allowance before rounding up bales to buy.
Daily needs start from a percentage of body weight, then convert from dry matter to as-fed hay.
Reduce hay when stockpiled pasture, grazing, silage, or other forage covers part of the daily requirement.
Add a buying buffer for weathering, trampling, rejected stems, feeder loss, and storage loss.
Convert pounds into rounded bale counts and a rough hay budget for your feeding period.
No. It is a planning baseline. Dry cows, lactating cows, calves, growing stock, dairy animals, cold weather, and low-quality forage can all change intake needs.
Hay contains moisture. If a ration guideline says a cow needs a certain amount of dry matter, the as-fed hay weight must be higher than the dry matter weight unless the hay is perfectly dry.
Many small farms use a 5% to 15% allowance for decent feeders and stored hay. Open feeding, mud, rain, loose hay, and poor storage can push waste higher.
Yes, if you enter the average animal weight and choose a suitable intake percentage. For production ration decisions, use a hay analysis and advice from a qualified nutritionist or extension office.