QUESTION: We have recently
moved into a parlor with electronic
equipment and we were told that
component tests were unneces
sary. Is there a way to use compo
nent tests to help manage our
herd.?
ANSWER: The best way I
know to answer Is to refer to piece
that was written a year ago.
Component testing today can be
used in ways that are much mote
significant now than years past
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when butterfat and protein were
used mostly to identify superior
cows in genetic evaluation. Milk
payment basis also relies heavily
on these two tests, but in the past,
die way to increase pay was to
breed your cows to have higher
tests. Little was done to sharpen
management skills because of
component testing.
Today’s modem dairyman
works with on-farm professionals
who look at component testing in a
much broader scope.
DHIA fat and protein informa
tion can tell us a lot about the nutri
tional well-being of our dairy
cows. Providing individual data
that can be sotted into groups can'
help pinpoint specific places to
start our quest to improve our
nutritional management This is
much more useful than bulk tank
information which gives us ideas
that problems exist, but no infor
mation as to where we should
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begin to solve these problems.
Milk fat test is not only the old
est of the component tests, but still
the most important because it
reflected of rumen health of the
dairy cow. We know that cows
typically produce milk in the early
weeks of lactation and should have
a butterfat test above the norm.
As lactation proceeds, fat tests
will go down as milk peaks and is
then followed by a gradual
increase in fat test
Looking at butterfat tests for
cows in early lactation which are
below normal (3.8 percent in Hols
tcins) may not seem significant
now, but will rumen acidosis occur
causing taminiiis later in the
lactation?
What about high fat tests? Can
we learn from this or does it just
indicate higher prices forourmilk?
Very high tests in early lactation
might mean our cows are burning
fat reserves at a very rapid rate and
we may need to contact our vet
about cows with ketosis.
The key in using milk faqt as a
measure of rumen health is to try
and ward off problems that may
rob us of profits later. Poor perfor
mance and having to treat sick
cows ate huge profit robbers.
Milk protein b«s overtaken but-
Lancaster
. Farming
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? .Ot#
%eb
Site
www.lancasterfarming.com
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, September 4, 1999-A29
terfat as the largest basis of pay
ment to farms, except for a rare
situation. This is reason enough to
learn to use the component test to
help manage our nutrition
program.
Low protein tests tell us more
than the fat that we will receive
less money for our milk.
Low protein tests along with
high butterfat usually indicates
low dry matter intake, which is
often associated with metabolic
disorders such as ketosis.
Drops in protein test alone indi
cate a shortfall in energy con
sumed by our cows. This may be
due to reduced dry matter intake or
a lack of fermentable carbohy
drates in the diet.
Try to evaluate the cause of the
low protein test and you will be on
track to solve the problem.
Factors that relate to cow com
fort are targets when dry matter
intake is the problem.
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Poor ration formulation or
delivery can be causing low pro
tein tests even when the cows'
environment is at an optimum.
MUN testing is the newest com
ponent test available in PA DHIA
and can have significant impact on
the bottom line performance in our
herds.
Individual cow testing for
MUN, like butterfat and protein,
can help us to evaluate nutritional
performance and gives insight to
pinpointing problems associated
with the nutritional needs of our
cows. In general, high MUN val
ues tell us that protein utilization is
not what it should be.
Overfeeding protein, of course,
may be the problem but more often
than not the problem is a combina
tion of less-than-desirable car
bohydrate levels and too much or
the wrong land of protein.
The use of MUN, along with
protein tests, can lead the way to
successfully feeding our cows.
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