Mineral Boluses

[DrDecColbert]

Hey all,
My PhD involved developing a new form of mineral bolus for cattle and sheep, if you have a spare 5 mins and want to help guide the research would you be willing to complete a 13 Q questionnaire linked below. I'm very much focused on providing what farmers actually want
Many thanks

Polybo

Please click the link to complete this form.

form.jotform.com

 

[DrDecColbert]

Just to add, my PhD work developing PolyBo was this week the recipient of the Research Emerging from 3rd Level Award at the National Ploughing Championships

 

[Newguy]

I filled it out the other day. Have you had much uptake? Only flaw in the questionnaire (that I noticed) is that it assumes that we only use one brand of bolus.

 

[DrDecColbert]

Hey Newguy, thank you so much for the feedback that's actually not something I considered since posting there's been 22 responses at last check. All the responses are genuinely incredibly appreciated

 

[Newguy]

Hey Newguy, thank you so much for the feedback that's actually not something I considered since posting there's been 22 responses at last check. All the responses are genuinely incredibly appreciated

Has there been a prevailing opinion between the 22, as to what farmers want from a bolus?

 

[neilo]

Has there been a prevailing opinion between the 22, as to what farmers want from a bolus?

Cheap?

 

[JD-Kid]

I filled it in even tho live in New Zealand
we were using drench capsules but these had a few problems over last year or so so now having to look at mineral bolus a lot more
2 peak times of the year I could see good gains on money spent pre mating to help mineral and vitamin levels targeted at pre mating needs and other time pre lamb to lift levels during lambing and milking

 

[DrDecColbert]

Has there been a prevailing opinion between the 22, as to what farmers want from a bolus?

So far there have been a few prevailing opinions:
-easier to administer
-cheaper
-smaller
-tailorable mineral inclusion
-better quality minerals
-longer duration

 

[neilo]

So far there have been a few prevailing opinions:
-easier to administer
-cheaper
-smaller
-tailorable mineral inclusion
-better quality minerals
-longer duration

A pet hate of mine is having to load several boluses into the gun between each ewe, be that a separate copper capsule or separate constituent parts.

All very well if you’re only bolusing a dozen, but a pita if you’re doing hundreds.

I’ve always wondered why boluses, especially smaller lamb boluses, couldn’t be made spherical, which would allow development of some kind of automatic dispenser?

 

[som farmer]

A pet hate of mine is having to load several boluses into the gun between each ewe, be that a separate copper capsule or separate constituent parts.

All very well if you’re only bolusing a dozen, but a pita if you’re doing hundreds.

I’ve always wondered why boluses, especially smaller lamb boluses, couldn’t be made spherical, which would allow development of some kind of automatic dispenser?

my pet hate is after getting into cows, they walk 10 metres from the crush, and cough the bloody thing out.

 

[Sharpy]

my pet hate is after getting into cows, they walk 10 metres from the crush, and cough the bloody thing out.

We bolus ours in self locking yokes, to stop this happening we bolus them then instantly give them half a bowl of meal. No regurgitation.

 

[DrDecColbert]

my pet hate is after getting into cows, they walk 10 metres from the crush, and cough the bloody thing out.

After browsing twitter for boluses I can see that this is a pretty common occurrence among some of the ones on the market sadly

 

[ladycrofter]

I have discovered that if you leave the gun in their mouth for a few seconds, they are trying to get it out and end up doing a few swallows. We haven't had any come out since starting doing that.

 

[som farmer]

we give each cow 2 boluses at drying off, along with fluke and wormer, and another to at the pre breeding check up. So use about 600 +a year.
it isn't many that cough them up, but we hold up ant 'suspicious' cow, to make certain she has swallowed them, its the odd one, that we are happy with, that then coughs them up, that's the annoying ones.

 

[crashbox]

we give each cow 2 boluses at drying off, along with fluke and wormer, and another to at the pre breeding check up. So use about 600 +a year.
it isn't many that cough them up, but we hold up ant 'suspicious' cow, to make certain she has swallowed them, its the odd one, that we are happy with, that then coughs them up, that's the annoying ones.

What bolus at drying off?

You worm adult cattle? Is it needed?

 

[crashbox]

So far there have been a few prevailing opinions:
-easier to administer
-cheaper
-smaller
-tailorable mineral inclusion
-better quality minerals
-longer duration

What I'd like to know is how to tell what minerals I need, if indeed I need any at all!

How do you tell? Blood test?

The next question is would the farmer actually save any money if you only needed one or two of the ingredients, as would require bespoke fabrication rather than bog standard multi mineral bolus.

 

[neilo]

What bolus at drying off?

You worm adult cattle? Is it needed?

A trace element bolus I assume.

 

[som farmer]

What bolus at drying off?

You worm adult cattle? Is it needed?

we use Dennis Brinicombe's ones, and have done for 20+ years, tried others, but always returned.

worming cows, that's opening a can of worms !

my view, fluke is essential, and would prefer to spend the money on a second dose of fluke, rather than wormer, l tend to think cows build up immunity to worms. But, not my decision, l advise.

what we both agree on, is the need to feed the cows correctly, through dry, transition and calving/fresh. The min boluses seem to work, or we perceive them to work, which is different. But, fertility is good, very few milk fevers, RFM's displace abomasum's dirty cows etc. Last years PNC produced 2 dirty cows, both of which never got i/c again. This year will be different, 4 sets of twins already, 3 in hfrs, 1 cow, hate twins, and we have only calved about 15 so far !

l reckon our calf feeding is good, and each calf gets a mineral dose. Having watched the wilsbro sale, on marteye, they must do something special, to get the size/age, like those through the ring, very impressive.

but, there again, they are in a totally different ball game, some of those cows/dams, were doing 17,000 litres in 305 days, the appliance of science to their rations, obviously works with their calves.

we have 1 cow that has exceeded 19,000 litres, but she has taken 2 years to do it !! A friesian cow, the oldest cow we have, born 09, certainly paid her way, and surprisingly bull caught her, pd+ve !

on the minerals, always been keen to use them, since l was told, a million litres of milk takes 1 tonne of mins, out of the soil. And, DB minerals don't contain a lot of salt, so cattle take what they want/need.

 

[crashbox]

we use Dennis Brinicombe's ones, and have done for 20+ years, tried others, but always returned.

worming cows, that's opening a can of worms !

my view, fluke is essential, and would prefer to spend the money on a second dose of fluke, rather than wormer, l tend to think cows build up immunity to worms. But, not my decision, l advise.

what we both agree on, is the need to feed the cows correctly, through dry, transition and calving/fresh. The min boluses seem to work, or we perceive them to work, which is different. But, fertility is good, very few milk fevers, RFM's displace abomasum's dirty cows etc. Last years PNC produced 2 dirty cows, both of which never got i/c again. This year will be different, 4 sets of twins already, 3 in hfrs, 1 cow, hate twins, and we have only calved about 15 so far !

l reckon our calf feeding is good, and each calf gets a mineral dose. Having watched the wilsbro sale, on marteye, they must do something special, to get the size/age, like those through the ring, very impressive.

but, there again, they are in a totally different ball game, some of those cows/dams, were doing 17,000 litres in 305 days, the appliance of science to their rations, obviously works with their calves.

we have 1 cow that has exceeded 19,000 litres, but she has taken 2 years to do it !! A friesian cow, the oldest cow we have, born 09, certainly paid her way, and surprisingly bull caught her, pd+ve !

on the minerals, always been keen to use them, since l was told, a million litres of milk takes 1 tonne of mins, out of the soil. And, DB minerals don't contain a lot of salt, so cattle take what they want/need.

Thanks.

We don't worm adult cattle here, but we do use Fluke as dry cows graze high risk ground (wet meadows) and proven incidents.

We have never mineral boluses dry cows, it's never occurred to me!

They get 3kg dry cow rolls for the last 3 weeks of the dry period before calving, must have some in.

 

[som farmer]

since the loss of trodax, nothing is licenced to kill all stages of fluke in dairy cattle, so if you leave the immature fluke..................... that's why a second dose 3/4 weeks after housing, is needed, to clear up. Or even a first dose 3/4 weeks after housing. Which here, doesn't happen !

minerals, we bolus, and we put 'dry cow mineral licks' out, as well, the cows tend to self regulate on them, often hardly touching them, then a sudden rush. So, if they have a 'rush', they probably need it. If the licks are high in salt and/or molasses, they go to them, because they 'like' the taste.

in the states and elsewhere, they often put several minerals out, individually, so stock take what they 'need'. Or that's the theory !

our system works well, any minerals not needed are simply passed out in p1ss or sh1t. Do we 'overdo' mins or is it a case of, 'what will happen if we stop' syndrome, l honestly don't know, its a cheap input, and a bit like silage additive, worried what will be the case, if we stop.