rumen

What sort of diet is recommended for feeding Heifers into breeding/calving weight when calving down at 23/24 months? Currently feeding them 74%dmd silage and 2kg of a 16% weaning ration. I think they are on the edge at calving. They get excellent grazing grass at every opportunity. Looking to...

Written by Michelle Martin from Agriland Three finalists have been shortlisted, from over 25 entries, for this year’s Royal Dairy Innovation Award. They are: SmaXtec – TruDrinking, UFAC – Envirolac and HerdVision – Auto Mobility & BCS. These three finalists have been chosen for their...

Anybody going?

Some of our weaned heifers (80 to 100 days old) have developed very loose, watery, grayish muck. Smells bad, not like normal muck. Current diet is 3kg calf cake + deccox (split 50/50 morning and afternoon), ad lib hay and barley straw. Vet has been out and taken samples, negative for cocci...

The use of methane inhibitors in cattle and sheep feed was the subject of a recent consultation by the UK and devolved governments, to which the SFT responded. Reducing methane emissions is essential, but we have concerns about some of the products under consideration, as well as the wider...

A title that sums up this section of the forum nicely, I feel. I seem to have rather more ewe lambs kept back for tupping Autumn 2023, than I originally envisaged this time... Best laid plans, etc etc... ;) I have now got 50 odd lambs in the Solar farm, and anticipated feeding some hay to...

Ruminant digestive systems have the ability to degrade and ferment fibre through microbial activity. The fibre components, and the subsequent production of volatile fatty acids (VFAs), provide the majority of the energy for the ruminant. But energy (and milk) production is not the only role of...

We run a spring block grazing herd and house in the middle of November normally. Their diet consists of 8kg grass, 4Kg cake, 4Kg precision chop 1st cut top quality silage. When fully housed it’s all silage no grass. The issue we have is that they are really loose on this diet especially when...

Having a mare with fattening lambs dying 30 + so far they have been dipped wormed ovivac P Alvited and there still dying talking to guy at local ag merchants he’s telling me I’m not on my own and one chap was telling him he’s lost almost 200 . We‘ve done our normal routine weaned from hill farm...

The area of spring cropping in 2023 is likely to be down on previous years given favourable conditions for autumn drilling, however it remains an important option for many farms... This is especially true where maize and spring barley are grown for animal feed, and where planned winter sowing...

Feeding for optimum rumen function is a way farmers can help to maximise productivity from their herd and potentially improve sustainability, listeners on the latest Mole Valley Farmers' Podcast heard. Increasingly, milk processors are demanding farmers produce milk more sustainably, meaning...

Dairy farmers could be losing milk production worth tens of thousands of pounds by failing to protect their cows from heat stress during the summer. That was the message from independent vet consultant, Dr Tom Chamberlain from Chalcombe Ltd, at a Lallemand Animal Nutrition workshop at Total...

Dr Emma Davies: IBERS, Aberystwyth University. An awareness of the risk factors associated with increased calf morbidity and mortality is very important so that management strategies that mitigate these risks can be employed. The primary strategies to improve suckler herd health focus upon...

Hello We are in a tough season across all industry's and choosing what to feed to complement home grown forages is becoming more and more crucial for that end margin. From what we are seeing many out there are relying on their cake reps or some independent nutritionist who aren't fully aware...

Is anyone feeding a higher protein mineralised molasses on straw to their store cattle? I was thinking about feeding this along with the cake they already get plus some silage. I’ve got better access to straw than silage this year. I might be talking rubbish but does anyone do this? If so what...

Hi Advice, Is my rolled barley any good for youngstock 8/10 months old calf’s ?

Taking steps to maximise intake of home-grown forage and the digestion of fibre in the rumen will help dairy and beef farmers navigate this challenging period of high input costs. Despite reports of mixed quality grass silage and an elevated toxin risk in maize silage, Lientjie Colahan –...

Hearing that early sheep not scanning to well???

I’ve thought about this for a while but there seems to be a growing interest amongst some of us to try and lower our costs and finish cattle off forage alone. Obviously there are many who don’t feel this way and thats grand but i think it would be of interest to have a discussion on how folk...

Clostridial disease management is a common topic in sheep farming with most of the UK’s flock vaccinated before lambing for prevention through passive transfer, but it is not given much thought by calf rearers. There are multiple clostridial diseases that can affect cattle, however, the most...