Late lactation milk fever

I've had 4 cows in the past ten days with milk fever like symptoms. They are all 200+ days in milk.

The current diet is approx

4kg DM maize silage
3kg cake
7 kg DM grazed grass

We're still doing building work so only have feed space for 200 out of 500. Is maize low enough in Ca that if some were eating way more than their fair share of maize it could induce milk fever like symptoms?

They are supplemented with mag and trace elements but no Ca or phos.
 

More to life

Member
Location
Somerset
I've had 4 cows in the past ten days with milk fever like symptoms. They are all 200+ days in milk.

The current diet is approx

4kg DM maize silage
3kg cake
7 kg DM grazed grass

We're still doing building work so only have feed space for 200 out of 500. Is maize low enough in Ca that if some were eating way more than their fair share of maize it could induce milk fever like symptoms?

They are supplemented with mag and trace elements but no Ca or phos.
150 g of lime stone flour per cow will cure it
 

Dead Rabbits

Member
Location
'Merica
I dunno, I’m feeding twice that amount of corn silage and no calcium. Lots of crossies but a decent number of brown cows and no milk fever. Did have a bloat three days ago though.
 
I dunno, I’m feeding twice that amount of corn silage and no calcium. Lots of crossies but a decent number of brown cows and no milk fever. Did have a bloat three days ago though.

I think it would only be because of the lack of feed space in my case. Feeding approximately 4kg maize is very approximate, there are three of us who might feed and we have nothing with weigh cells so some days might be 5+kg and some individuals might then eat 10 before being be kicked out in the rain and decide not to eat a single mouthful of grass.
 
This maize sounds like a wonderful crop to feed!.
I know a few that have stopped growing it because of cow health .

Just a few teething issues, this is the first time I've fed maize in nearly 10 years.

My latest milk quality the proteins were up to 4.79. Using home grown forage to push saleable proteins has to be a good thing in my view.
 
Is your "cake" straights or compounds? Most compounds will have limestone flour already added.

It is cake not straights. We've been feeding the same level of maize for three weeks now but haven't had any issues until we started feeding the last load in the middle of last week. I haven't checked the ticket to see if it has limestone flower in, the cake is from Forfarmers who I wouldn't trust to include any of the listed ingredients anyway.
 
It is cake not straights. We've been feeding the same level of maize for three weeks now but haven't had any issues until we started feeding the last load in the middle of last week. I haven't checked the ticket to see if it has limestone flower in, the cake is from Forfarmers who I wouldn't trust to include any of the listed ingredients anyway.
Don't hold your breath for a Christmas hamper
 
Location
southwest
It is cake not straights. We've been feeding the same level of maize for three weeks now but haven't had any issues until we started feeding the last load in the middle of last week. I haven't checked the ticket to see if it has limestone flower in, the cake is from Forfarmers who I wouldn't trust to include any of the listed ingredients anyway.

Limestone flour and molasses are the cheapest ingredients in compounds, you'll never see either cut out of the mix
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
the tolerance levels allowed for declared ingredients, is about 15%, in cake
the tolerance, and 'admix' in grass seed, can legally get you down to 67% germination
and as the price of cereals rises, less are used in formulations, being replaced by something cheaper, they raise the price per ton, and blame the cost of cereals.
But every time you talk about using home grown cereals, they try and talk you out of it, the old excuse, there's a little bit of everything, in each nut. However, you know what is in every ton of rolled, or crimped grain, and it's pretty well 100% usable, with no tolerance. We have fed cereals at various times, dependant on price, crimped maize, caustic wheat, rolled wheat, barley and beans, s/maize was home grown, the rest usually bought in.
This year we grew 14acres s/barley, for next year, 18acres of wheat, and 9 acres s/barley, We only grew the barley, because we picked up 56acres to rent, but have been impressed with both yield, 3t/ac, and straw just under 2. But, our growing corn, had been under discussion, for 3 yrs, ever since we bought a load of rolled barley, to 'see us through', off a major cake firm, and they agreed for our mill/mix man, to re roll it, at their expense, it was one of the worst samples of corn, l had seen, pinched grain, that went between their rollers, without touching, presumably, in a cake ration, it wouldn't get noticed, just make you think.
 
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