Protein and energy imbalances in ruminants Flashcards
What should the chopped length of fibre be?
2-4cm. To encourage rumen movement using the scratch factor
What affects productivity? 5
Genetics Diet Environment Management Disease
What is the ideal amount of time for a cow to spend lying a day?
14 hours a day - remember the time budget
How much trough space should a cow have?
60cm per cow
What are 4 most important points to assess when looking at water intake?
Access, cleanliness, TDS (total dissolved solids), cows like to go and drink in groups
How should you determine DMI?
Measure it - feed companies can provide this information. estimates are often inaccurate.
What is the formula to estimate DMI?
0.025BW + 0.1 milk yield but this is an estimate only
What should you consider when making a diet assessment? 3
Accuracy, representative and when?
What fibre length will cows sort for?
2cm is their ideal and they will eat this preferentially over longer lengths (e.g. 5-7cm)
True or false - in a true TMR system, nothing is fed in the parlour
True
What happens if silage is anaerobic? 2
Secondary fermentation, spoilage through heating and moulds can produce mycotoxins.
When is it easy to over estimate the value of grazed grass?
Especially in long dry summer
What is another term for Mg deficiency?
Grass staggers
What is a ‘buffer feed’?
Something you can give before turning a cow out to grass each day if the grass quality isn’t good enough.
What does the cow comfort index suggest?
That 1 hour before feeding, 85% cows should be lying down. It gives an indication as to the cubicle comfort.
What should milk fat level be?
4.2%
What is the main indicator of milk fat levels?
Concentrate : forage.
If this ratio is > 60: 40, the milk fat level will drop significantly as the acetate : propionate ratio is key
What MAY low bulk milk fat indicate?
SARA. However different groups within herd may have very different milk fats so low milk fat mat be hidden in overall bulk level.
What should milk protein level be?
3.4%
When does milk protein level change?
Levels drop after a period of inadequate energy intake. Very difficult to correct quickly
How should diet be investigated?
Looking, smelling, handling, asking more than one person, check ration and computer sheets etc.
Outline the dung scoring system
Score of 1-5 with 1 being most loose and 5 being most solid. 3 is ideal and should make a slow hand clap once dung hits floor and shouldn’t stick to boots. Apparently this score means a rose should stand up unaided in it!
When should you BCS cows?
At different phases of cow life cycle - dry cows, freshly call, 2-4 weeks post calving and late lactation. Ideal Score is 2.5-3
When is the most critical time to be aware of a cows BCS?
6 weeks either side of calving
