SYSTEM Keenan Better Farming - Better Food Want to Reduce Cow Sorting in a Single Feeding WE PEtIVER - ANYWHERE YOUR DEALER Binkley a Hunt Bros. Inc. Offers New • Pre-Owned and Low Cost TMR Mixers Dair* Boaf and Sheep Herds all Over the East arc Reaping the Benefit of TMR Mxer Use. »vw - DON'T HAVE A NEW WXER IN YOUR BUDGET? • How about a mod ono for a fraction of now prico • $ PRICES REDUCED » BIWCLEMurst ,33 “S”' m - BROS. INC. —' LititZ, PA 17543-0395 m mm bbkrrk Enhance Dairy Cattle Nutrition (Continued from Page 44) severely lacking in fiber or too high in non structural carbohydrates (NSC), hindgut fermenta tion may be extensive, resulting in negative effects on cow health and production. Any feed particles or nutrients that are not digested and absorbed are ex creted in feces arid urine. Manure evaluation is not a precise science; it cannot provide definitive answers to nutritional questions. Manure evaluation may be a useful diag nostic tool for some health-related issues, but it merely gives the nutritionist or farm manager a hint of what might be happening during the digestive process. It is important to understand that there are no published scientific publications that demon strate specific effects of nutrition on manure color, consistency or nutrient content. However, since manure evaluation has some potential as a nutrition and health observation tool we have put together some of the known facts related to manure evalua tion to aid in interpreting the results. The Three C’s Of Manure Observations Manure evaluation can be described by three C’s: color, consistency, and content. Color. Fecal color is influenced by feed type, bile concentration, and the passage rate of feedstuffs and digesta. Typically, manure is dark green when cattle graze fresh forage and darkens to a brown olive if animals receive a hay ration. When cows consume a ration containing large amounts of grain, a typical TMR for example, feces are usually a yellow-olive color. This color results from the combination of grain and forage and will vary by the amount of grain and processing of that grain. If an animal experiences diarrhea, feces may change color. Animals undergoing medical treatment may excrete abnormal colored feces as a result of drugs that are administered. Dark or bloody manure may indicate hemorrhaging in the GI tract from watery dysentery, mycotoxins, or coccidiosis. Light-green or yellowish manure combined with watery diar rhea can result from bacterial infections such as sal monella. Consistency. The consistency of feces largely de pends on water content and is a function of feed moisture content and the amount of time feed re mains in the animal. Normal fecal material has a medium porridge-like consistency and forms a dome-shaped pile 1 to 2 inches high. Diarrhea may be caused by poisoning, infection, or parasites but also may result frorti extensive hindgut fermenta tion of carbohydrates and increased acid produc tion. Loose feces also may result from excessive (Turn to Page 46)
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