Autumn calving nutritionist South West

[epfarms]

Does anyone have someone that they would recommend? We calve seasonally through late Summer and Autumn and often find that cows don't do as well as they should. I think our main issues are poorly balanced buffer feeding when out at grass, poor protein/energy balance when housed usually resulting in loose dung and poor fertility performance. We have good maize, good wholecrop, good grass silage, rolled wheat, soya and cake feeding in parlour - so I'd hope someone could make a sensible ration from this, but not what we're currently getting. I'd rather they were independent, but will listen to company affiliated guys as long as they don't just turn up with a sales pitch for their products.

Cheers

 

[happycows]

I really rate Luppo Diepenbroek. Straight Line nutrition.
Will feed what’s genuinely best for cows requirements with a close eye on cost.
He formulated my feed and spent a year working with me 7 maybe even 8 years ago and I’m still doing the same now.

 

[deleted user 837354]

Does anyone have someone that they would recommend? We calve seasonally through late Summer and Autumn and often find that cows don't do as well as they should. I think our main issues are poorly balanced buffer feeding when out at grass, poor protein/energy balance when housed usually resulting in loose dung and poor fertility performance. We have good maize, good wholecrop, good grass silage, rolled wheat, soya and cake feeding in parlour - so I'd hope someone could make a sensible ration from this, but not what we're currently getting. I'd rather they were independent, but will listen to company affiliated guys as long as they don't just turn up with a sales pitch for their products.

Cheers

Charlie King.

Tell him if he doesn't do your work I will be on his case- I know where he lives.

 

[Dorsetcountryman]

Charlie king for sure

 

[dinderleat]

Does anyone have someone that they would recommend? We calve seasonally through late Summer and Autumn and often find that cows don't do as well as they should. I think our main issues are poorly balanced buffer feeding when out at grass, poor protein/energy balance when housed usually resulting in loose dung and poor fertility performance. We have good maize, good wholecrop, good grass silage, rolled wheat, soya and cake feeding in parlour - so I'd hope someone could make a sensible ration from this, but not what we're currently getting. I'd rather they were independent, but will listen to company affiliated guys as long as they don't just turn up with a sales pitch for their products.

Cheers

What sort of ration is it normally? 3kg of rolled wheat (would be better if caustic treated or maxomon treated both will help rumen function) 2ish kg of soya 50% grass 50% maize, feed to yield in parlour Up to 7ish kgs should give you a ration of 45l you could feed more in the trough just depends if you want to target it more to certain cows if they are at different dim, 30l in the trough. Why are you growing whole crop if you can grow maize. I’ve made a lot of assumptions but best to get a nutritionist to run it through a program with your forages

 

[epfarms]

What sort of ration is it normally? 3kg of rolled wheat (would be better if caustic treated or maxomon treated both will help rumen function) 2ish kg of soya 50% grass 50% maize, feed to yield in parlour Up to 7ish kgs should give you a ration of 45l you could feed more in the trough just depends if you want to target it more to certain cows if they are at different dim, 30l in the trough. Why are you growing whole crop if you can grow maize. I’ve made a lot of assumptions but best to get a nutritionist to run it through a program with your forages

Slightly less wheat, not too far off otherwise, less maize than grass. They don’t cope with the cake is the issue I think, whether it’s too much fizz for the rumen or disrupts energy protein balance I don’t know - hence wanting to put it through a programme, but as cake reduces cows usually firm up.. unfortunately ration/feeding isn’t entirely how I’d like it to be and I can’t change that at all currently, again an external person might carry more weight!
Growing wholecrop for a few reasons now; dry cow diet, maize seed cover (or lack thereof), badgers/TB amongst others. Could probably use chopped straw and maize but literally no space to put chopped straw.

 

[happycows]

Not a huge fan but has its place when needs must.
Would NIS maybe to aid rumen function/buffer and as a fibre source if storage for straw is short.

 

[epfarms]

Not a huge fan but has its place when needs must.
Would NIS maybe to aid rumen function/buffer and as a fibre source if storage for straw is short.

Maybe, but id want to ensure that this is the right thing over our other feeding options and that we’re not missing something else before I went buying expensive fibre!

 

[dinderleat]

Slightly less wheat, not too far off otherwise, less maize than grass. They don’t cope with the cake is the issue I think, whether it’s too much fizz for the rumen or disrupts energy protein balance I don’t know - hence wanting to put it through a programme, but as cake reduces cows usually firm up.. unfortunately ration/feeding isn’t entirely how I’d like it to be and I can’t change that at all currently, again an external person might carry more weight!
Growing wholecrop for a few reasons now; dry cow diet, maize seed cover (or lack thereof), badgers/TB amongst others. Could probably use chopped straw and maize but literally no space to put chopped straw.

What cake are you feeding through the parlour? Caustic or maxamom treated wheat will probably work a treat.plus you could feed more of it which will raise the energy of the diet which by the sounds of it your lacking

 

[buffalo_soldier]

Consider a molasses type product. Feed the bugs that feed the cow.
Energy dense supplements are also a good option.

 

[dinderleat]

Consider a molasses type product. Feed the bugs that feed the cow.
Energy dense supplements are also a good option.

That’s another good option what level of megalac type product could you feed?

 

[epfarms]

Initially, treating wheat or feeding megalac doesn’t seem like the right thing, megalac particularly will be pushing feed costs up significantly. I know of similar farms feeding a less complex ration than us and getting better results so I’d rather balance what we have if possible. Easy to add NIS, megalac, treated wheat, molasses and start Kexxtone on any cows over second lactation but that’s what we’re looking to avoid if possible on the advice of a nutritionist. If it turns out that that’s the only option, we’ll go for it

 

[pappuller]

Does anyone have someone that they would recommend? We calve seasonally through late Summer and Autumn and often find that cows don't do as well as they should. I think our main issues are poorly balanced buffer feeding when out at grass, poor protein/energy balance when housed usually resulting in loose dung and poor fertility performance. We have good maize, good wholecrop, good grass silage, rolled wheat, soya and cake feeding in parlour - so I'd hope someone could make a sensible ration from this, but not what we're currently getting. I'd rather they were independent, but will listen to company affiliated guys as long as they don't just turn up with a sales pitch for their products.

Cheers

What are you aiming to achieve from an output pov ? Are you high input or low ? Tight block or extended ?

 

[epfarms]

What are you aiming to achieve from an output pov ? Are you high input or low ? Tight block or extended ?

That’s a good question!
9000L 4.2BF 3.4Protein. (Currently 8500, but with better constituents), happy with an extended block from a management point of view but it’d be nice for cows to get in calf easier, at the moment we probably use too much semen getting the results we get.. I’d like to be confident to use some sexed semen in cows, for example!
The cows are genetically very very good, so we’re not limited by that. Infrastructure is a limiting factor if we were pushing yields etc. to the limit I think but that’s not really the aim. Cow health is pretty good, but when anything goes wrong it ration related in my eyes

 

[pappuller]

That’s a good question!
9000L 4.2BF 3.4Protein. (Currently 8500, but with better constituents), happy with an extended block from a management point of view but it’d be nice for cows to get in calf easier, at the moment we probably use too much semen getting the results we get.. I’d like to be confident to use some sexed semen in cows, for example!
The cows are genetically very very good, so we’re not limited by that. Infrastructure is a limiting factor if we were pushing yields etc. to the limit I think but that’s not really the aim. Cow health is pretty good, but when anything goes wrong it ration related in my eyes

Is your dry cow management sensible for those yields ?

 

[dinderleat]

That’s a good question!
9000L 4.2BF 3.4Protein. (Currently 8500, but with better constituents), happy with an extended block from a management point of view but it’d be nice for cows to get in calf easier, at the moment we probably use too much semen getting the results we get.. I’d like to be confident to use some sexed semen in cows, for example!
The cows are genetically very very good, so we’re not limited by that. Infrastructure is a limiting factor if we were pushing yields etc. to the limit I think but that’s not really the aim. Cow health is pretty good, but when anything goes wrong it ration related in my eyes

Sounds like a management issue, cows not getting incalf quick enough? causing fat cows which then calve and cause issues? Treating the wheat is no different to getting it rolled as has been said feed the rumen Fill the tank. Plus don’t worry what your neighbor is doing

 

[jimmer]

1 contract
2 keep it simple
3 contract
4 keep it simple

 

[epfarms]

Is your dry cow management sensible for those yields ?

Inconsistent but somehow ends up ok. Ketosis negligible, milk fever could be better. It’s after housing in October, annoyingly just before service, when they’re on a consistent ration that I see issues - which is when I’d hope to see the least!

Sounds like a management issue, cows not getting incalf quick enough? causing fat cows which then calve and cause issues? Treating the wheat is no different to getting it rolled as has been said feed the rumen Fill the tank. Plus don’t worry what your neighbor is doing

No, they don’t stay in the herd if that happens. The result is a too high exit rate (sale or cull) and therefore too high replacement rate for what we want. By AYR standards figures would look ok. Things with a 360 day calving interval get on no better than any others, even though these won’t get served until 90DIM when service starts.

1 contract
2 keep it simple
3 contract
4 keep it simple

This is what we want. Simplicity that works. Just looking for the person with the knowledge to advise

 

[O'Reilly]

Sub clinical ketosis

 

[More to life]

To be fair a good nutritionists will start with dry cows