- Are your dry cows getting the right nutrition?1 October 2008
During dairy cows’ dry periods it’s essential farmers calculate and monitor feed requirements to avoid health problems after calving. Producers often pay great attention to milking rations but forget to plan dry cow rations just as carefully. It is just as important to balance requirements for dry cow rationing as for milking rations... - Balance feed to avoid acidiosis1 October 2008
As many as half – if not more – of UK dairy cows are thought to be suffering from Sub-Acute Ruminal Acidosis, which is eroding farm profitability. To help prevent acidosis, producers should spread balanced forage and concentrate feeds over the day, provide starchy feeds little and often, and limit parlour concentrate feeds to between 4kg and 4.5kg per milking, says Adam Clay, extension officer at DairyCo. They should also ensure separately fed forage is of a good quality and available ad-lib, and encourage maximum saliva production with salt or salt licks and adequate water... - New Slurry Calculator1 October 2008
Dairy farmers facing stringent new slurry storage requirements under proposed Nitrate Vulnerable Zone (NVZ) rules could benefit from a new slurry calculator program. The Slurry wizard, developed for DairyCo, enables farmers to work out their slurry storage requirements, and weigh up the cost benefits of different ways to tackle under-capacity...
