FEED & NUTRITION

The growing season from the past year has been somewhat like stock and futures markets. Several months of (early season) conditions and expectations changed markedly in a matter of a few weeks.

How cows eat and ruminate is just as important as the nutritional composition of the feed in front of them. Make the most of every minute at the bunk by understanding dairy cow behaviour and incorporating that into daily herd management.

It has long been recognized forage fibre is an essential component of the lactating cow diet, and inadequate fibre intake can lead to depressed milkfat and low rumen pH that can further lead to health problems such as sub-acute ruminal acidosis (SARA) and laminitis.

As nutritionists, we once thought adding the correct level of neutral detergent fibre (NDF) to the diet was all that was required to create a healthy rumen and thus allow the protein and energy contained within the diet to be used to produce milk.

Regardless of the type of feeding system you have, there are many opportunities to declutter your ration, putting more money in your pocket and simplifying your life.

This 2018 forage season was again a challenging one for producers across North America. In some areas, there were weeks of heavy precipitation, leading to saturated soils and even flooding.