Agriculture, Soil, Fertilizer & Farm Operations worked example

Livestock Feed Ration with animals in feeding group of 60 head: a worked example

This worked example runs the livestock feed ration numbers for a tougher week than the baseline: animals in feeding group of 60 head instead of the typical 120 head. Estimate total livestock feed ration from head count, dry matter intake per head, feeding days, and ration adjustment factor.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Animals in feeding group: 60 head (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 120)
  • Dry matter intake per head per day: 26 lb DM / head / day (held at the documented default)
  • Feeding period length: 14 days (held at the documented default)
  • Feed waste and shrink factor: 1.05 x (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Feed required = head count x dry matter intake x feeding days x adjustment factor.
  • Total feed dry matter required works out to 22,932 lb dry matter at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Feed total before waste adjustment works out to 21,840 value at these inputs.
  • Feed waste and ration adjustment works out to 1.05 x at these inputs.
  • Daily feed for group works out to 1,560 value at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where animals in feeding group sits at 120 head and the headline result is 45,864 lb dry matter, this scenario comes in 50% below the baseline at 22,932 lb dry matter.
  • Use it when planning a feeding period, sizing a hay or commodity purchase, or checking whether current inventory covers the group to a target date. A result at this level usually justifies acting on the stressed input before touching anything else, because every other figure in the table is downstream of it.

Results at a glance

  • Total feed dry matter required: 22,932 lb dry matter (headline result)
  • Feed total before waste adjustment: 21,840 value
  • Feed waste and ration adjustment: 1.05 x
  • Daily feed for group: 1,560 value

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Livestock Feed Ration calculator, set animals in feeding group to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.