Don't completely trust your computer and laptop, put on dirty boots, get ready to get your hands dirty, and really go to the farm to see how cows perform and what kind of diet you really need. Do not assume that you should not only use the theoretical value, but regularly test the feed so that it meets the needs of the farm's diet. --Trish Lewis
Maintain the nutritional balance of dairy cows
Cattle is a rumen, and the rumen microorganisms are used to synthesize, decompose, and provide nutrition to cows. Therefore, we should first understand the rumen microbes. According to different nutrients digested, rumen microbes are divided into: fiber-degrading bacteria and starch-degrading bacteria. Fiber-degrading bacteria can digest cellulose, hemicellulose and use non-protein nitrogen, and then absorb these nutrients to synthesize rumen microbial proteins. Fiber-degrading bacteria prefer a relatively high pH environment. If the pH of the rumen is too low, it can affect the activity of fiber-degrading bacteria.
Starch-degrading bacteria can use starch sugar, and can also use amino acids to synthesize microbial proteins. When these fibroids die, microbial proteins flow into the posterior portion of the intestine as a source of protein that can be digested and absorbed by cows; at the same time, these rumen microorganisms produce volatile fatty acids that are absorbed through the rumen wall. It is a type of dairy cow. An important source of energy. And part of the rumen microorganisms will also produce lactic acid, an acid that is important for reducing the pH of the rumen. In addition, some rumen microbes can help break down lactic acid and break down lactic acid into volatile fatty acids, which in turn can help reduce rumen acidosis.
The best ruminal buffer for dairy cows is their own saliva, and the more milk cows chew, the more saliva they produce. For well-fed cows, saliva contains two kilograms of sodium. Of course, some ruminal buffers can also be manually added:
â— Sodium bicarbonate: Manually add 100 grams a day.
â— Magnesium Oxide: If the amount is too high, cows will be lethargic and will affect milk production.
â— Live yeast: Promote the growth of cellulolytic bacteria in the rumen, so that cows get more nutrition. It can prevent rumen pH from being too low and prevent ruminal acidosis.
Reasonable design diet
When designing our diet, we must first consider the protein and energy needed to balance the rumen microbes, and at the same time, in order to match energy and protein, we must also consider the energy and protein degradation rate; secondly we must consider the energy and protein balance of dairy cows at different lactation stages. Third, ensure that enough fiber is provided to the diet. Not only acidic detergent fiber (ADF) and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) are considered when formulating diets, but sufficient effective fiber (EF) for dairy cows must be guaranteed. Fourth, Consider whether to add ruminal buffer, if the content of sugar and fermented starch in the diet is high, it is necessary to consider adding ruminal buffer; Fifth, it is necessary to ensure adequate minerals and vitamins for the diet.
The difference between assumed and actual values
Many of us have calculated the formula of the dairy cow's diet on paper and thought that it would be a success. We think that the cow will have a good performance, but this is not the case. The first place where gaps are likely to occur is when the nutritional value of all raw materials is the theoretical or actual value in the book when formulating the diet. Generally speaking, the reference value written in the book is often related to the raw materials we actually purchase. The value is very different. For example, when you use software to formulate a diet, you will see that the protein content of soybean meal is 44%. You would match it with a protein content of 44%, but in reality, would you buy 44% of soy protein? Even if you measure The protein value of the soybean meal in the cattle farm, but is this part of the soybean meal you sampled representative of the average protein content of all the soybean meal in the pasture? Second, the predicted dry matter intake and the actual dry matter There is a difference in the amount of material intake. For example, the diet you are designing can provide dairy cows with the necessary nutrients, but the premise is that the intake of dry matter must be more than 24 kg, but it affects the dry matter intake of dairy cows. There are many factors. If the ruminal pH of dairy cows is reduced or there are empty troughs in pastures, these factors may affect the intake of dry matter that cannot reach 24 kg. Thirdly, the feed conversion efficiency refers to the number of kilograms of milk that can be converted into one kilogram of feed per feed (dry matter basis). The higher the feed conversion efficiency, the more milk that can be produced when one kilogram of feed is fed. . However, the efficiency of feed conversion as stated in the book is generally based on healthy dairy cows, while ensuring that the feed is not overprocessed. In addition, the poor stress and health of dairy cows can affect the efficiency of feed conversion, while also taking into account possible antagonistic reactions between raw materials.
Mycotoxins affect feed conversion efficiency
In addition, we must also consider the effect of mycotoxins on the efficiency of feed conversion. Although there are many kinds of mycotoxins, they are generally caused by mildew caused by moldy feed, called mycotoxins. They can compete with the rumen microorganisms to compete with the nutritive substrate. Mold growth can have a symbiotic relationship with the plant, so it is easy to produce mold in the feed. Some plants produce toxins before they are harvested, so they do not see mold. They say that they have mold. Some molds are produced inside the plant and may not be visible to the naked eye, but it does not mean that no mycotoxins are produced. In addition, mold is also produced when storage conditions are poor.
One of the main reasons that mycotoxins have less impact on rumen animals than on monogastric animals is that rumen microorganisms can decompose some of the toxins. In the case of healthy rumen, some special rumen microbes can decompose mycotoxins into harmless ingredients. However, some mycotoxins have also been converted into more toxic toxins in the rumen, including aflatoxins. Aflatoxin is a toxin that we must focus on to prevent the production of toxins, because it can enter milk through cows and cause human liver cancer. There are some mycotoxins that will not be broken down in the rumen. It enters directly into the posterior digestive tract through the rumen and is absorbed by dairy cows. The detoxification function of dairy cows is affected by many factors, such as milk production levels, stress, etc. Wait. In addition, it is important to remember that the calf is a monogastric animal, because its rumen does not have the ability to detoxify itself, so the calf's response to mycotoxin is much greater than that of an adult calf. Mycotoxins have many effects on cows, such as reduced feed intake, reduced milk production, and affecting the cow's immune system.
Once mycotoxins appear in the feed, its feed conversion efficiency will be reduced. We can use the specific performance of the cows to evaluate whether the feed is reasonable.
• The rumen pH is a very important indicator. The fibrin-degrading bacteria are expected to have activity and must ensure that the pH of the rumen is greater than 6 and if the pH is lower than 5.5, subclinical ruminal acidosis can be assumed to have occurred.
â— Health also affects the performance of dairy cows. When the cows have leg problems, the body condition score drops very quickly. Even if the same diets are fed to other cattle groups, the production performance will be greatly reduced.
â— Ambient temperature has a certain influence on feed intake. Cows have heat stress, but there is also cold stress. In very cold weather, the energy needed to maintain the cow is significantly increased.
â—Patients have a great influence on feed intake. If you formulate a poor diet, feed intake will drop. Even if only one ingredient in the TMR diet is poorly palatable, it will affect the palatability of the entire diet. If corn silage is not doing well, then palatability is not good. Sometimes savings do not necessarily represent real savings. If corn silage has already appeared rot, mildew, or secondary fermentation, it must not be used anymore because even adding a small amount to the diet can affect the palatability of the diet. The results of the University of Kansas study showed that the use of this rotten corn silage will not only affect palatability, but also affect fiber digestion. Therefore, the production of corn silage is very important, to ensure it has a good palatability, do not produce butyric acid.
â— The feeding method is very important to ensure that each cow has enough eating space. Dairy cows are also graded. If there is not enough space, some weak cows can't eat strong cows.
â— To ensure the freshness of feed, a difference of at least 10% in energy between freshly-matched diet and 24-hour diet. The reason for the loss of energy is that when it comes into contact with air, yeast and mold in the feed use the sugar in the feed to produce heat at the same time. In addition, ensuring feed freshness is critical for perinatal dairy cows. Perinatal dairy cows have a problem of poor appetite, so they should be given the freshest, most palatable feed.
â— Cowsheds and comfort, the cows are less stressed and the cows are more comfortable. The bed design must ensure that there is enough space, the cow is very comfortable and comfortable when lying down.
Pay attention to cow signals
In addition, there are many cow signals that will give us a reference when designing diet formulas.
Eating behavior
If dairy cows are picky eaters, the reason for picky eaters may be uneven mixing of TMR diets and lengthy cuts of roughage. The cows in the cows will feed concentrates first, and some vulnerable cows will only eat the rest of the coarse material. Therefore, in a herd, the difference in the body condition scores of dairy cows will be great. In addition, the cows first eat the concentrate feed, and then eat the crude material again. “Pre-coarse and coarser†will also make the rumen pH unstable.
Rumen filling
For ruminal filling there is a score of 1 to 5 points, 1 point is poor ruminal filling, and 5 is the best ruminal filling. The rumen crypt is on the left side of the cow, is an inverted triangle type, full of cattle, looks like a big apple at the rumen; also can see if the cow is full by looking at the rumen crypt, if you can not see the rumen crypt The cow is basically full, and if the crypt is very obvious, it means there is no enough food. When assessing the feed intake of cows, several cows should be selected to check the rumen filling. The good rumen filling indicates that enough fiber and dry matter were eaten.
Rumination
The cows are ruminating for 8 to 10 hours a day. It is normal for 50% of the cows to fall down ruminating. If the diet is formulated reasonably, the cows should chew 50 to 60 times per cud, if the number of chews is less than 40 This time, it was indicated that the feed was too small, and if the number of chewing was more than 70, it meant that the feed was too much.
Stool score
It can also reflect the formulation of dairy cows' diets. Dairy cows' excrement is too thin, which may be due to too little fiber content in the diet or excessive crude protein content. However, this is not to say that the irrational diet formulation is the only cause of fecal leanness. Mycotoxins also cause cows to become diarrhea. If bubbles are seen in fresh feces, it proves that it is fermented in the intestine. This means that these fermentable nutrients are not used by the rumen, but enter the posterior intestine. The digestive tract is fermented. In this case, the digestibility of dairy cows is very low.
Poultry ratio of milk
Reflects the content of volatile fatty acids in the rumen. If the ratio of fat to egg is relatively high, it means that the use of fiber by cows is relatively high and the content of acetic acid produced is relatively high; if the ratio of fat to eggs is low, it means Sugar and starch digest more. The ratio of fat to egg is less than 1, and it may be acidosis.
Somatic cell count
Reflects the cow's health and immune function. Once mycotoxins are present, the number of somatic cells rises very quickly. Some of the symptoms reflected by mycotoxins are common and may be similar to those caused by other diseases, but mycotoxins also have special clinical manifestations. If the dairy farm infrastructure and bed are not greatly changed, and the cow suddenly has joint swelling, it is May be caused by mycotoxins.
In short, balancing rations is critical, first, to provide a balanced diet for rumen microbes and second, to provide a balanced diet for cows. Do not assume that you should not use only the theoretical value and feeds should be tested regularly so that you can meet the needs of the cattle farm diet. In addition, we must minimize the effects of mycotic bacteria, monitor the behavior of dairy cows, and send signals to the cows to ensure that cows feed scientifically reasonable diets.
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