Feed troughs are essential to animal agriculture. In this article, we draw a comparison between beef and dairy feed troughs, helping you come to a better understanding of what the two troughs offer.
Our Beef feed troughs are created with one high side and the other side low allowing easy access for cattle and calves to feed on one side. Due to this, they have some noticeable differences.
The structure of a beef feed trough differs from a dairy feed trough in that it generally features a U shape with a low side allowing calves and cattle to feed, and a high side to prevent feed spillage and wastage.
Also, the dimensions of the beef feed trough are made in 3m sections, weighing 1.8 tonne each compared to dairy feed troughs being 2.4m sections, weighing 1.3 tonne each.
Similarly, both these troughs have an open-ended design, cast in lifting points and cast in fixture points, which provide simplicity when it comes to assembling your feed trough in order to meet the demand of your circumstances.
Another feature of the beef feed trough is that a bolt-on fence system can be placed down the high side of the troughs to complete your feed solution faster and allowing you to manage and control your cattle while feeding them.
It is vital that beef feed troughs can withstand the abuse that occurs when cattle run to feed. Therefore, beef feed troughs must be heavy enough not to move or be tampered with, whilst also being smooth enough to not cause injury to stock.
When designing our troughs, we take this into consideration. Our troughs have thick rounded edges and smoothed surfaces minimising injury to your stock, with also being strong enough to last decades.
When feeding dairy cattle in paddocks and feeding stations, these troughs are ideal as they are sized to allow stock to access feed from both sides, which is the main difference to beef feed troughs.
Whilst a beef feed trough has a U shape, a dairy feed trough has a smooth bottom and slightly sloped sides. This allows stock to access feed from both sides of the trough, which allows for double the number of cows to be fed compared to beef feed troughs. The design of this trough also makes it easier to sweep out uneaten food.
To control and manage cattle behaviour and stop cattle from getting into the troughs, there is a provision for a hot wire to be placed through the centre of the troughs.
When it comes to dairy feed troughs, it is vital that they are strong enough to resist damage so are constructed with 40MPA concrete and reinforced with mesh and reo bar. This is the same for beef feed troughs, in that they both must be strong and heavy enough to discourage tampering or movement by cattle, and ensuring a quality product for years to come.
Both dairy and beef feed troughs are designed to meet the needs and expectations of Australian farmers, being designed for flexibility, strength and adaptability.
Whatever feed troughs work best for your feeding solution, they both can save up to approximately 25% feed wastage compared to ground feeding. This a massive saving on the cost of feeding your stock!
Contact Us For Quality Concrete Feed Troughs
Whether you require beef feed troughs or dairy feed troughs, Vikon Precast is here to help. Located conveniently in Bairnsdale, East Gippsland, we are a family owned and operated manufacturer of agricultural and civil concrete fixtures. We are ideally located to service customers in south eastern Victoria, and with our user-focused designs, are a favourite provider across the state.
If you are looking for a locally manufactured, top quality solution for feeding your stock, or are in need of Victoria’s best agricultural or civil concrete fixtures, call Vikon Precast today on 1800 768 364.
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