Patent ID: 7464666

Claim:
A method for managing animals for commercial food production during a time period in which groups of animals are fed in pens in feedlots prior to shipment from the feedlot for processing into food products, comprising: receiving a group of animals in a feedlot; directing animals from the group to a processing location and through a one-way chute which has gates for separating one animal at a time at a location remote from a feed pen; entering characteristic data in a computer system for individual animals from the group; determining, from at least in part the characteristic data, a projected target condition for the individual animals; determining an estimated time required to reach the target condition for the individual animals; directing the animals from the processing location to one or more feed pens, and there feeding the animals for a feeding period; determining an estimated time required to reach the target condition for the animals in a feed pen considering at least in part feed ration information, a projected feed intake, a projected gain, production value and production costs; administering a feed additive growth promotant to the animals in a feed pen based at least in part on the estimated time required to reach the target condition for the animals in the feed pen; dispensing the feed additive growth promotant into a feed ration by a computerized feed additive delivery system for administering the feed additive growth promotant to the animals in the feed pen; and dispensing the feed additive growth promotant at a determined optimum time prior to shipment of the animals from the feedlot for determining optimum economic value for the animals in the feed pen.