m OP | Daily (V. I. \Mi- Pipeline fMy*' :m s ** <1 ■;■-■ ' T : ' Chewing The Fat About Fat Test Problems It’s that tune of the year again when we start getting more calls about butterfat depression problems. This past week 1 talked to a good dairyman .who ex perienced such a problem. His herd had been very productive and he had a good test for his level of production, also giving turn good fat .production records. Then, his test began slipping, until the herd eventually tested about 3.2%.' And that was late in the year when you’d nor mally expect fat tests to start improving. He was feeding good quality hay and some com silage during this period of tune. He was also feeding a high quality grain high energy, MHA, beta carotene, by-pass protein, and all those other goodies high producing cows need. And, the cows responded well with more milk, but total fat production declined rather significantly. In desperation he switched to a different gram feeding program. Within a month, fat tests climbed to about 3.6, and eventually up to 3.8. He continued feeding the same forages, but more of it. What caused fat tests to increase? 1 suspect the additional forage in- was the major contributing .factor. The change in the grain feeding program may also have been responsible, but it would be interesting to know what the cows would have done on the "old” grain program had they been consuming the same amounts of forages. My point is this. Before being too quick to switch away from feeds and feed men who have worked well fur you in the past, look first at your forage feeding program, and keep these basic truths in mind: U) A cow’s rumen has to be functioning normally for her to test well. U) When a cow’s rumen is upset she can vary as much as 1.0% in test from one day to the next; in other words, she can drop from a 3.8% down to a 2.8% - or lower! (3j A cow is a ruminant and she BARN PAINTING ROOF PAINTING BIN PAINTING MASONRY & EPOXY COATING • Sandblast preparation Barn Painting In Lane., York, Adams, Harford, Baltimore, Carroll & Frederick Counties All work is guaranteed satisfactory. GEBHART & HUMMEL’S Agriculture • Industrial - Commercial P.O. Box 7 Hanover, PA 17331 Ph: 717-637-0222 By Glenn A. Shirk Extension j Dairy Agent j needs a certain minimum amount of forage and effective fiber to keep her rumen functioning nor mally. (4) Too much gram, especially Tf fed at one tune, can overload the rumen and create acidosis; that kills appetites and fat tests. Notice that 1 referred to "ef fective” fiber. For fiber to be useful to a cow she has to be able to utilize it. So, let’s be sure our forages are of good enough quality to allow her to digest it. The faster she digests it, the faster it moves through her digestive system and the more she will eat. That’s good! Old t mature) stemmy forages and mature, dried up pasture grasses are high in fiber, bu{ they are also less digestible due to the higher lignin content of the plant. That’s bad for those cows you expect to produce well and to test well! Let’s assume we do have im mature good quality forages with digestible fiber. Now, let's be sure we do not destroy its effectiveness by chopping or grinding it too fine. That applies to grains, too. And remember, that when we auger it out of the silo and as we further mix it and auger it on its way to the cows we make it even finer than what it was when it first went into the silo! That could be a problem. Different Results on Different Farms With these concepts in mind let’s try piecing a few things together. Kemember, everything is relative; that’s why what appears to work for one farmer may not work for another. You have to consider your entire feeding program and herd situation, as well as that of anyone else you are trying to compare yourself to. For example, two farmers may be -feeding the same amount of about the same quality hay, and the same amount of com silage and gram mix. However, one farmer has a finer-chopped silage and he’ll probably have to feed mure hay to maintain the same fat test. Or, both farmers are feeding the same amounts ami same quality corn silages and gram mixes. However one farmer is feeding long-stemmed hay while the other farmer is feeding the same amount and the same kind and quality of hay crop forage - but as chopped haylage. The farmer feeding haylage may have to feed more hay crop dry matter to maintain the same fat tests, and if he chopped his haylage (or other feeds) too fine, he’ll have to feed still more hay crop dry matter to maintain his test. Haylage in Large Bales As we’re focusing on length of chop, let me relate some ex periences of dairymen I’ve visited with recently who have been trying long-stemmed (unchopped) haylage put up in large round bales. It appears to be working very well for them as long as the material is baled at approximately 50-65% moisture. Cows crave it, even in hot weather. The dairymen have been able to maintain cows’ appetites, forage intakes, production and fat tests better than ever before! The Europeans have been using long-stemmed haylage for years with similar good results; they think we’re crazy for chopping it; maybe they are correct. This technique requires a whole new concept of handling, storing, and feeding haylage, and it may nut be as convenient as what you are doing now. However, it is something to think about. Fellow have been hoisting the bales with a rear mounted spear lift, slipping a specially made plastic bag over the bale and tying the open end after the bale is placed in storage and the spear is removed. At feeding tune they open the bag, spear the bale, slip off the bag, and drop it in a large bale feeder for the cows' enjoyment. DHIA and Plant Tests Are A Clue Back to our original farm example. When the farmer had a 3.2% herd test, most of the cows were testing low. In other words, he probably had a serious feeding problem with the entire herd. The test remained consistently low on L)HIA, and with the milk plant. This summer, his herd fat test started dropping down to about 3.6%. On his DHIA reports some cows, especially his high producers, tested very erratically. They may have been normal last month, but very low this month - the kind of situation that would lead you to suspect that you got a bad test from the DHIA lab. But, his protein tests on these same cows were fairly normal - not much variation from one month to another. This situation (erratic fat tests, near normal protein tests) causes me to suspect that these high producing cows had digestive disturbances that day. To me, this is a sign that the forage feeding program (the forage and fiber intake levels) were marginal for this herd. The first cows to be affected were the high producers - those cows that were consuming lots of grain, and perhaps only twice daily. With high grain in takes, chances are, their forage to Shoemaker’s to host Lancaster Guernsey Field Day LANCASTER Plan to attend the Lancaster County Guernsey Breeders’ Field Day to be held on Thursday, August 4, 1983, at the farm of Scott & Susie Shoemaker’s, HD 1, Box 310, Kirkwood, PA. The first event of the day will begin at 10:30 AM. Several classes of Guernseys will be judged followed by a noon luncheon, guest speaker Glenn Shirk, Lancaster Co. Dairy Agent, and a presen tation of prizes to field day win ners. The cost of the luncheon will Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 30,1983—C7 gram ratio was already marginal, if not already on the low side. On hot days, it’s hard to keep these high producers on full feed. It they go off feed, it’s probably on hay - and we’re already short on hay intake, considering the amount of gram they are con suming. If they are on pasture, the quality of the grass (and fiber ) has deteriorated, and they now need more hay to compensate for these losses, but chances are, they are not getting it. In summary then, be sure to get adequate amounts of good quality forage and fiber into the cows first, then become concerned about gram intake. And don’t destroy the effectiveness of the fiber m your feeds, especially if you need all the fiber you can get; don’t chop and grind your feeds too fme. When feeding large amounts of gram, blend it with the forages or feed it more frequently and in smaller quantities at each feeding. Keep the ration balanced and use buffers when necessary. To improve cow comfort and feed intake, and to help lower rumen temperatures, provide shade and ventilation (breezes) to keep the cows cooler. be $3.50 per person. Children under 8 years of age pay Vz price. There will be a calf drawing for 4-H and FFA members. Directions to Scott Shoemaker’s are as follows: Take Rt. 472 South out of Quarryville. Travel to Noble Road and turn right. Travel to Maple Shade Road and turn right. Shoemaker’s are the first farm on Maple Shade Road. Don’t miss this exciting event. Plan to attend.
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