Do cattle prefer long or short grass?

They prefer any height, but too long of grass can cause eye problems like pink eye, especially when stemmy material and leaves poke them in the eyes. Of course, coarse grass and those with seed heads will cause much more problems than grasses that are in their vegetative stage.

For optimal pasture productivity, it is best to start grazing cattle on grass that is 10 to 12 inches in height. Cows can also be grazed in standing corn, winter wheat, winter/spring rye, etc. that are much taller than 10 to 12 inches in height.