Cottonseed around Stephenville / Weatherford

I saw the Childress thread and also tried the link in there (https://wholecottonseed.com/cottonseed-marketplace/texas-cottonseed-suppliers/) with no success. Most of those places look like traders or logistics rather than avenues to buy CS.

Does anyone know a place around Stephenville or Weatherford that sells bagged CS? Trying to avoid bulk unpackaged or super sacks due to logistics of it.

I saw the fortified cottonseed in tractor supply stores last year but have not seen it in any yet this year

Try the Cotton Gen in Gorman. They had it in February.

TSC is still listed as a Fortified Cottonseed dealer but none have it in stock that I have checked with.

Saw it in stock for the first time today at the TSC in San Saba

That is great news...how much was it?

I have fed regular cotton seed since before it became a hit with deer hunters. I use it for cattle and goats as well as deer. Additionally they all have mineral supplements free choice so why would you pay for a "fortified cottonseed"?

Just curious.


Frio

Not everyone lives close to a cotton gin. Not everyone is setup to handle a full load of bulk WCS. Not everyone will feed enough WCS to justify paying for a full truck load. 50# bags are much easier for me to buy locally and then put it out in a trough. I feed pellets from timed feeders with minerals in them also but still feed fortified cottonseed free choice.

STX I don't think you understood my post. What is the difference in cost between regular cotton seed and the fortified version? A bag of deer mineral such as Mass o Rack from L & E is cheap and goes a long way. It also can be placed in a hole in the ground so there is no expense for a container. I would feel certain it is more of a balanced mineral than what one would get in a fortified version. I also feed either 16 or 20% protein from L & E or DD 24/7/365. That depends on time of year and browse available. It contains a mineral pkg. yet I still use a deer mineral. All that being said, personally I think it's an expense not needed and is just something to sell.

$15.99

We put out mineral February 11th. Dug a little hole and then poured it in. Nothing has touched. It can easily be seen below.

that cottonseed feeder looks pretty simple...is taht really just a t-post with a round of 2x4 wire sitting on the ground? i've considered starting to experiment with some cottonseed as just something extra when i could find it. and i had some wire. have just never worked with it much before.

Deer can be pretty particular when it comes to what they are given. February 11th is only a tad over a month and look where it's at !! They have a smorgasbord right there. Protein, Corn, and Cotton seed. This time of year and coming out of rut they are wanting a full belly. Just give it time and they will hit it.

Frio

They are very simple. Mine are made out of V-Mesh and some are 15-18 years old. Just figure out how wide you want them in inches and multiply that times 3.14 to arrive at how long a piece of wire you want. A 24" across x 3.14 will give you a length of 75.36". Cut it, tie it in a few places and you are good to go. Drop that over a T post and fill it up.

Frio

Measure out a six foot length, tie it up, place it over a t post and be done with it. Do not tie it to the t post.

Our local co-op has the fortified for 12.95. It took the deer 2 weeks to start hitting ours.

out of curiosity why not tie it to the T-post? i assume there must be some experience that made that a bad idea. i'm headed down friday to go fill up and check on things. Planning to try to get some cottonseed to put out and see how they like it. I've never fed it down south before. I've tried to feed bailed alfalfa in years past and the deer never seemed to take interest in it so i quit.

Just easier for the deer to move the basket around and consume all of the product.

Why would you need to tie it down if it is held in place by a T-Post?

do hogs not bother with cotton seed feeders like this? that would be my biggest concern with the aggressive hogs around the areas I hunt. I guess if you have that style of feeder in a hog proof pen, I might have just answered my own question ... so, let me rephrase, if you put up a cotton seed feeder of this nature outside of a penned area, should it be tied to the t-post? possibly use 2 or 3 t-posts?

We house our baskets within feed pens which hogs cannot access.

But cows can.....................

The answered question requested intel on hogs.

PMK, a hog is monogastric. The only thing that will eat cotton seed is a ruminate. That being said, you don't need a pen for a C/S feeder as long as you don't add corn to the C/S. So 1 T-post is all you need provided no cattle, goats, sheep are in that pasture.

The fortified cottonseed is in 50# bags and I pay $14.04 and regular cottonseed is in 40# bags and it runs from from $15.00 to $16.00 per bag. I also feed protein year round and in 32 years of feeding protein have never had a deer use free choice loose minerals any time I tried them. I did force feed Mass-O-Rack mixed with soybean meal that topped dressed on deer pellets for 2 yrs with tremendous results. Just did not feed much pellets due to the minerals added.

I fed the Fortified in feed pens made out of barbwire last year and hogs were eating the cottonseed. I also saw hogs eat WCS in 1996 on a ranch in La Salle county that was close to the river. They ate it faster than the deer did. Hogs will eat it when not much else is available but do not seek it out.

thanks!