beef cattle nutrition Flashcards by Kaitlyn Johnson

what is the most common reason producers consult food animal veterinarians

disease diagnosis or treatment
disease prevention
information on nutrition
information on production management
financial or production analysis

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what weight are beef cattle considered to have a fully functioning rumen

4 cwt (400lbs) because we wean at 500-600 lbs; so rumen needs to be fully functional prior to that

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what is the purpose of rumen bacteria

they are a major source of protein for the cow;

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what is the benefit of secondary rumen contraction

moves gas for eructation

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why is the ruminant important

their ability to convert on untillable land

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how much does a baby calf weigh when born?

80lbs

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preruminant calf % of rumen

25%

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preruminant calf % of abomasum

60%

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heifer at weaning % of rumen

80%

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heifer at weaning % of abomasum

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what is in the rumen

bacteria smaller than fungi smaller than protozoa

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rumen motility

mixing
movement to omasum
rumination
eructation

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how does the rumen get established?

esophageal groove closed so bypasses rumen in young animals (can bypass in adult by using copper sulfate); if esophageal groove does not close in bab calves it can cause bloat by getting milk into rumen;

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what can cause the esophageal groove to not close

vagal nerve being pinched by mediastinal lymph nodes which prevent innervation of GIT and thus groove does not close properly (pneumonia can cause enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes)

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what is the size of the rumen

40-60 gallons

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how much saliva is produced per day

100-190 liters per day

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what does saliva contain

Na bicarbonate

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how much gas is produced per day

30-50 Liters per day

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bacteria classified on

their actions (bacteria>protozoa>fungi)

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what is the function of primary contractions

mixing and stratification

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how many primary contractions occur

2 primary contractions in 3 minutes

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what are the layers of the contents of rumen

gases
todays hay
grain and yesterdays hay

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what stimulates primary contractions

low tension stretch receptors in reticulum
cold
eating and chewing

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what causes depression of primary contractions

systemic disease
lack of stimulators
failure of vagal pathway
increased inhibitors- pain, fever, distension, VFAs, endotoxins hypocalcemia

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why does high VFA decrease primary contractions

if VFA high, dont need anymore so contractions are depressed

what is the function of secondary contractions

associated with eructation, increases with distension

if gas is pressuring, they will want to have

secondary contractions

what is primary bloat

something stuck in esophagus and animal cant eructate

what is rumination

cud chewing; regurgitation, remastication, resalivation, deglutition

rumination occurs ____ a day

8 hours a day;

rumination increases with

more fibrous roughage

if you feed at 6 pm

calves will be born in the morning

where are VFAs abosrbed

rumen

unfermented CHO are converted to sugars in the

abomasum and intestines

mehtane in rumen lost by

gasses; eructation

carbon dioxide in rumen

lost through eructation

what is taken in by tissues

VFAs and sugars

acetic acid

oxidized in throughout the body; lipid synthesis (butter fat: jersey cows used for cheese and ice cream)

proprionic acid

major substrate for gluconeogenesis; critical because small amount of glucose reaches small intestines

butyric acid

oxidized in many tissues for energy production

DIP

degradable intake protein

UIP

undegradable intake protein

microbial protien

metabolizable protein

urea, soybean, cotton seed meal

protein degraded in rumen becomes

ammonia

ammonia becomes

microbial protien or absorbed in blood

ammonia absorbed in blood becomes

into the liver to become urea

urea becomes

excreted in saliva or taken up into rumen or excreted in urine

microbial protein becomes

protein in abomasum and intestine

protein in abomasum and intestine becomes

undigestable or degraded into amino acids

amino acids becomes

absorbed into blood and taken to liver

amino acid in liver becomes

used for tissue metabolism or converted to urea

Urea and NPN sources in rumen become

ammonia in rumen

degradable intake protein -->

microbial protein

undegradable intake protein -->

bypass protein

metabolizable protein includes

UIP and microbial protein

what happens to the rumen in an anorexic cow

becomes alkalotic

why????

more sodium bicarbonate being produced from saliva than acid from food

how do you obtain a rumen fluid sample

rumenocentesis; from right side, low on right side; 18 gauge needle nasogastric tube

physical characteristics of rumen

color, consistency, odor, sedimentation test

chemical test of rumen

pH and methylene blue

acidosis occurs when

ph reaches 5.5 or less;

normal rumen ph is

5.5 - 7

if eating grass instead of grain, ph is more

alkalotic

microscopic exam

qualitative: activity of protozoa quantitative: numbers of protozoa

methylene blue reduction test

2-6 minutes is adequate bacteria are present | 10+ minutes inadequate bacteria present

how many pounds of feed do they need to get 1 lb of gain

6 lbs

pasture can be

native or improved

can add

mineral supplement and water

what is rangeland

not improved

how long is the winter feeding program?

about four months

basic cattle feeding

hay or pasture plus supplement

advanced cattl efeeding

hay or pasture plus stockpiled hay; add rye grass

late fall to early winter feed

stockpiled hay

winter pastures

oats and rye

grass is back in

april 15th and cows can be put back on pasture

forage assessment

sampling of pasture and hay

nutreint analysis

want to sample from everything cows are eating including stockpiled hay from each pasture and pasture

???????

what compoents on a forage analysis report signfies energy

TDN

WHAT IS ADF

Acid detergent fiber

digestibility of ADF

lignin, cellulose, silica, etc

hi adf

low digestibility

what is ndf

neutral detergent fiber

fiber component so effects

DMI

NDF increases with

maturity of the plant

increase NDF

decrease intake

???????

????????

BCS 1

skeleton

BCS 5

not thin/not fat; cant see ribs

BCS 9

obese

why should you BCS in a beef herd

to monitor nutrition program identify causes of low fertility calculate economic losses of thin cows

BCS 5 cows

90% pregnant

BCS 4 cows

75% production of BCS 5.5

BCS 3 cows

50% production of BCS 5.5 cows

thin cows vs good body condition cows

lower calf survival lower weaning weights lower pregnancy rates

first calf heifers should be

6.0 at calving

mature cows should be

5.0 at calving

what are the key times to BCS beef cows

onset of calving onset of breeding mid-summer pregnancy exxams

protein status cowpattyology

piled high= a lot of fiber | diarrhea with white spots = acidosis

what is most important in beef cattle nutrition

protein

winter feeding is based on

protein needs

cows are protein deficient in the

winter tiem

what is the most costly portion of a nutrition program

protein

winter feeding program

basic forage nutrient content estimate dry matter intake (2-2.5% body weight) calculate amounts of nutrients supplied compare to NRC nutrient requirments determine deficiencies/excesses design a supplement to correct deficiencies

determine feed intake by

actual consumption or estimates of daily DMI

actual consumption

weighing feedstuffs; observation of consumption

estimates of DMI based on

percentages of body weight

1.5-2 bales of hay is what you need to hold back for cattle for winter

what happens when protein is added?

12% of rumen is working perfectly; if too low, add protein and bacteria start working better

nrc nutrient requirment table

beef cow nutrient requirements is based on

``` period of reproductive cycle BCS age cow size milk production environment ```

two supplement levels are

late gestation | early lactation

late gestation is

increasing BCS (will decline after parturition so make sure it is high)

early lactation is

maintaining BCS

cattle groups

young, old, and thin | mature, good BCS

time of day to feed supplement

noon to early afternoon | after 6 pm

positive associative effects of protein supplementation

rumen microbes need adequate protein to function properly digestibility of forage increases (2-6%) with protein supplemenation until dietary protein is 8% DMI increases 20-40%

negative associative effects of energy supplementation

excess energy lowers rumen PH and impairs rumen microbes forage digestibility and DMI decreases occurs with energy supplementation over 0.4% of body weigh ~5 lbs of grain/breeders cubes per cow

what is the number one mistake producers make

feed corn and not fulfill protein supplement