Out to graze grass spring/summer. Silage bale/straw autumn then like I say in tranny group for last 3 weeks
High yielding dry cow diet?????
- Thread starter Blue.
- Start date
Barmyfarmer
Member
Just ad lib hay here plus dry cow rolls, the hay is old fashioned extensive type grass and it smells brilliant, keep them rammed full, dry cow rolls are expensive but they have something in which helps against ketosis as my cows tend to be on the plumper side but that's just the breeding of my cows, more of a 9,000 litre herd than a 10,000 litres herd though that's for sure
It’s something I just can’t get right,I absolutely hate calving due to complications afterwards.
Currently feeding 5kilo of chopped straw with the rest made up of the milk cow ration,dry cow minerals and 150g of mag chloride.
Averaging just over 10k litres with a third of the herd in 1st lactation.
Any suggestions?
Tia Eulb ....
Mine are in 2 groups. Less than ideal. Group one from dry off, is together with pregnant heifers. They get a lot of low quality grass silage, some maize silage and some straw, with minerales suited to heifers. 1 load is 150 kg straw, 2800 kg grass at 40% dm and 800 kg maize silage with 32% dm. 100 gram minerals.
Other group is from 3-4 weeks before calving. Also together with heifers who will calf in the same periode.
They get 12 kg dm/day. 5 straw, 4 maize silage, 2,5 osr cake, 0,5 grass and 150 gram standard dry cow minerals.
They have ad lib feed and we adjust with straw so they don't get more energy than we want them to.
My yield is about 11.000 with 25% in first lactation.
multi power
Member
- Location
- pembrokeshire
Why didn't it work? What was wrong ?
You say your cows are high yielders could it be the case they have a long calving interval hence they get fat at calving fat cows have serious problems ketosis milk fever at calving you could have the perfect diet and still get problems.
What's in your milking cow ration? Have you got any of the "poor" Dcab ingredients like caustic wheat or molasses going in? What forages at what ratio? I would of thought get rid of the MF and alot of the follow on problems like DAs will reduce. I know you don't have maize but we went to approx 30kg maize, 5kg straw, 3kg soya 100 dry cow min and 100 mag, last year 2 cows clinical mf and 1 da in 240. 8500 l cows though so I appreciate lower yields. We have added 5kg BGs as we have them at the moment and mf is running higher than last year, - up to 2-3%. Are you getting many twins? I reaĺly f#$king curse when a cow has twins.
Cows 'n grass
Member
- Location
- Modbury, South Devon
Diet of a low yielding dry cow.
A group of 200 get
1 acre kale / turnips
2 or 3 round bales depending on spacing.
1 400kg bale barley straw.
Ad lib fresh air.
There have to be some advantages to only getting 4000l
A group of 200 get
1 acre kale / turnips
2 or 3 round bales depending on spacing.
1 400kg bale barley straw.
Ad lib fresh air.
There have to be some advantages to only getting 4000l
HasthorpeGrange
Member
- Location
- Lincolnshire
Ad-lib straw and 4kg dry cow rolls a day with a brinicom easy calver bucket available at all times. Don’t make them eat every scrap of straw, if they eat 75% use what’s left as bedding.
Also, what condition score are they at?
Works out about £1.65 a day last time I calculated it I think but only on it for 3 weeks. Grazed grass or second cut silage before that
Also, what condition score are they at?
Works out about £1.65 a day last time I calculated it I think but only on it for 3 weeks. Grazed grass or second cut silage before that
Wishful Thinker
Member
- Location
- Northern Ireland
Diet sounds ok, what is your procedure just before and after they calf. I see you have said in to a straw pen before and after but how close is it to dry cows and milking parlour? Is it awkward to get to?
Do they get warm water once they calf?
What’s the build up of meal like?
Do they get warm water once they calf?
What’s the build up of meal like?
- Location
- Northern Ireland
Not too much wrong with your diet @eulb . I'm sure you do a good job. Main problem is the fickle breed, combined with production. Haven't had a DA here since I stopped using Holstein, which is just as well, as our vets have stopped operating on them anyway. No point beating your head against a wall, I found. Sorry, I know some people don't like to hear that.
HasthorpeGrange
Member
- Location
- Lincolnshire
Mainly Holsteins at home, no DA’s for about 8 years, over 200 calvings a year
Holsteinfriesian90
Member
- Location
- Cornwall
They are looking well especially for the weather we have had.
Cows 'n grass
Member
- Location
- Modbury, South Devon
They really need to be in good condition if they are staying out. There's a group of 80 thinner/older cows that are still out on good grass but will be fully housed in Friday. These ones will only be in a week or two before they're due and then they're straight back to grass again once calved.
- Location
- somerset
ideal, same as us, cows now at 7000, the extra point I would add, is iodine, we got caught out when we started feeding rape to dry cows = dopey caves.
Cows 'n grass
Member
- Location
- Modbury, South Devon
Yeah, I forgot that bit, they all have a tracesure CUI bolus in them already and the will have free access iodised salt when they come in as well as mag chloride in the water and old pp silage
- Location
- somerset
when we had hols, straw, dc rolls x 2 kg, and deferred grazing, or a tmr maize straw and blend, if in, all cows min bolus at drying off, mag in the water trough, and dc minerals. Always fed as late as possible in the day, then very few overnight calvings, (don't, knock it, it really works ! ),and of course very limited fresh grass. That virtually stopped mf, and da's a very rare occurrence. We now have xbreds, but use the same principle, no da's for 2 years, then 3 in the previous 2yrs. CMPD40, use about 24 bottles a year, mainly as an insurance, if a cow looks a bit iffy !
ollie989898
Member
Out of interest what sort of money per tonne?
multi power
Member
- Location
- pembrokeshire
In my experience ideal dry cow diet is hay, dry baled silage or standing hay along with a modest amount of milking cow ration and plenty of mag, not had a DA in 2500 calvings and under 2% get milk fever
Different cow to a 10k holstein
multi power
Member
- Location
- pembrokeshire
Not that different, plenty done 9k