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This article was #12 in PDmag's Top 25 most-well read articles in 2010.
Summary: Described in this article as a nutrient-rich, water-sipping, high-yielding crop, forage sorghum is becoming a popular ingredient in dairy rations. Jenny Hightower of the United Sorghum Checkoff Program explained the benefits of sorghum and how to incorporate it into a herd’s diet.
Because this article was so popular, we asked Hightower a follow-up question:
The complexity of dairy nutrition is increasing every day. A higher percentage of diets are likely balanced for amino acids, taking into account digestibility measures such as digestible NDF, and fine-tuning specific carbohydrate fractions such as starch and sugar. With price volatility in today’s market, feeding the right diet at the right time has never been more important.
Feed analysis doesn’t stop at the bunk. A lot can be discovered at the other end of the digestive tract.
“Fresh, undisturbed piles of feces or droppings may provide valuable clues and should be part of your tool box when evaluating the nutritional status of the dairy herd,” said Mike Hutjens, dairy specialist at the University of Illinois. He outlined three different methods to use at the Four-State Dairy Nutrition Conference in Dubuque, Iowa, earlier this summer.
The economic consequences of heat stress to the dairy industry have been calculated to be approximately $900 million annually. This sum reflects not only milk production decline, but reproductive losses, increased lameness, prematurely replacing animals in the herd, rumen acidosis, a decrease in milk fat, premature calving, retained placenta and many other health implications. While many producers consider only the decline in milk production in the economics of heat stress, the losses are indeed greater.
Two main responses cows usually have to heat and humidity are to eat less feed and produce less milk. Another problem that often occurs with heat and humidity stress is an elevation in the somatic cell count of the herd. Below are some suggestions for reducing these summer stress responses of your cows.
1. Ask your nutritionist to check your rations for changes that will help maintain intake and milk production.
Also check to be sure your cows are receiving adequate levels of vitamins A and E, and selenium.
Historically, dairy barns were constructed like houses, striving to keep barns closed-in to protect cows from winter weather. But building them that way ignored the fact that cows have a different temperature comfort range than people.
“Cows are much more cold- tolerant than we are and much less heat-tolerant than we are,” said Jeffrey Bewley, University of Kentucky College of Agriculture assistant extension professor in the Department of Animal and Food Sciences. “Of course, even in the Southeast, we experience winter days where cold stress is a concern.”
Dana Cook, owner of Cook’s Countryside Trucking LLC in North Freedom, Wisconsin, and president of the Professional Nutrient Applicators Association of Wisconsin (PNAAW), knows the importance of sharing the road with all types of vehicles. His manure application business covers most of Wisconsin, northern Illinois, northeast Iowa and southeast Minnesota, passing over thousands of miles of highway each year.
The business hauls for 210 farmers annually and applies manure, or a portion of it, from farms of 40 to 2,000 acres.
Regulations are a commonplace way of managing manure. To keep them from piling up, Dr. Doug Beegle says it’s as simple as a little common sense.
A distinguished professor of agronomy at Penn State University, Beegle provides some things to think about when handling manure, as well as what to do if regulations are afoot in your area.
I will support any action, measure or legislation that will aid and/or comfort U.S. dairy farm families. In a recent e-mail, I was asked my view on the prospects of a specific measure, U.S. Senate Bill S 1645, The Milk Marketing Improvement Act of 2009.
Just like a doctor that works on patients all the time, your mechanic knows your machine, and the machines like it, best. They get a lot of the same problems and usually can give you ways to avoid the major problems with minor improvements or maintenance tips.
Gunner Kyser, a former student of mine and a service foreman at a local dealership, told me about some of the common problems and quick adjustments that will save owners a lot of money.
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