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Forages are the foundation of all dairy cow and heifer diets. The ruminant digestive system must retain a mat of fiber from forages in order for rumen microbes to proliferate and ferment feedstuffs.
However, that fiber mat must also be digested over time and be replaced by more fiber. Unfortunately, the fiber contained in forages is often the least digestible portion of a dairy cow diet.
Proper nutrition plays an obvious and substantial role in helping cows through the transition period and ensuring a good start in the following lactation.
At the core of successful transition is the impact of nutrition on the cow’s immune function, which is the basis for her ability to stave off infections, metabolic disorders and other challenges that threaten health and performance.
Ever have a frustrating day with a silo unloader and an upright silo? Or have the kids complain about having to cover the silage pile in the hillside trench with wooden walls and dirt floors? Or maybe you were the farm kid who spent Saturday mornings cleaning up silo bag plastic?
Feed efficiency is a common method used in beef, swine and poultry operations to determine profitability and performance. This is a fairly easy calculation based on feed per pound of gain; however, with respect to dairy operations, the calculations become more complicated due to the number of variables that go into milk production.
Niels Bastian Kristensen, a former professor with the department of animal health and bioscience at Aarhus University, Denmark, and current researcher with SEGES (national extension office for the advisory system in Denmark), is the founder and a proponent of a concept called “compact TMR.”
The general approach for dairy feeding in Israel today is to maintain two feeding groups: one for early lactation and another for the rest of the milking cows.
In family farms, the one-diet method is the most popular. Ad libitum feeding, mainly with a TMR and minimal transfer of cows between groups, is the preferred feeding method in Israel.
In layman’s terms, what does TTNDFd mean?
Total tract neutral detergent fiber digestibility (TTNDFd) is a measure of the extent and speed of fiber digestion throughout the entire tract of a high-producing dairy cow, taking into account the overall rate of passage of fiber through the digestive tract.
Rumen-protected lysine (Lys) and methionine (Met) are becoming common fixtures in dairy rations, particularly in those where milk is sold not only for volume, but also for the component values.
Traditionally, 60-day dry cow programs have been considered optimal for dry cow management to maximize milk production in the next lactation.
Feeding both far-off and close-up rations also allows producers to control feed costs by feeding higher-quality forages and additives, such as anionic salts, for only three weeks prepartum.
During the transition period, dairy cows encounter high metabolic and nutritional demand and a reduced immunity, predisposing them to metabolic and health problems. This will reduce their productive life and negatively impact the profitability of the dairy farm.
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