High prices for concentrated feed for cattle: what to do?

High concentrate prices cannot be compensated by simply eliminating expensive feed from the diet of productive animals, German cattle nutrition experts say

“If feed prices are too high, there is a temptation to replace expensive concentrates with cheaper analogues, or to abandon them altogether, but this should not be done,” German cattle experts Manfred Hoffmann and Markus Pahlke advise in an article published on Agrarheute.com. - The rise in price of concentrated feed encourages to reduce the proportion of concentrated feed in the diet. It should be borne in mind that animals have a corresponding need, even at high feed prices, which still operates and must be satisfied. Deviations are possible here, but they are the smaller, the higher the level of productivity in the herd. The consequences of insufficient supply are serious for animal health and from an economic point of view. On the other hand, values ​​of more than 60 percent of feed costs in revenue indicate the need for urgent action,

Anyone who spontaneously and spontaneously reduces the consumption of concentrated feed provokes a lack of crude protein and energy. This leads not only to a drop in milk production, but also to metabolic disorders. If the daily energy requirement drops below 15 percent, this leads to health problems, in particular ketotic stress. Further consequences include:

reduced milk protein content below 3.2 percent, stressed, dysfunctional and damaged liver, reduced feed intake, increased somatic cell content in milk, more abomasum shifts, cases of lameness and uterine infections; Fertility disorders are serious (impaired postpartum period, delayed estrus and ovulation with impaired follicle growth).

In addition to lack of energy, a lack of protein also has a serious impact on the health of animals. Protein deficiency reduces feed intake, bacterial protein synthesis in the rumen, and fiber digestibility. Milk yields fall, and in extreme cases, the protein content in milk also decreases. In addition, a lack of protein impairs fetal development, leading to hard stools and possibly manure eating.

Therefore, it is important to make appropriate adjustments to the concentrated feed carefully and only in small steps. How to adjust the diet in connection with the high prices for the concentrate? First of all, you need to know the norms of need per animal per day. Then the diet is calculated in three doses:

Step 1: Correctly calculate the roughage ration: combine silage (and straw) until the necessary amount of fiber is exhausted. Determine the milk potential of the animals, equal to the amount of milk per animal per day.

Step: Leveling the ration: Supplement the roughage with grains and/or rapeseed meal until the milk potential from energy and crude protein is equal. This means that liters of milk from feed energy and liters of milk from crude protein must be calculated. The difference between them should not exceed 2 liters (preferably 1 liter).

Step: Calculate the current mixed ration: supplement the balanced ration with by-products (e.g. spent grains) and/or dry concentrates until the estimated milk yield is reached.”