First of all, we must admit that almost all cows are more or less picky eaters. This may explain why the leftovers are all those coarse, large and poorly palatable feeds. However, it is clear that there are large differences in the degree of picky eating between different herds and different diets.

What we need to be concerned about is the extent of picky eaters and the impact on cows. In order to assess the extent of picky eaters, individuals feel that they need to pay attention to several "phenomena" to help dairy farmers determine whether picky eaters have affected their herds.

A lot of information can usually be obtained by observing the feeding behavior of cows, especially after each sprinkling. If the TMR diet is well mixed and palatability is good, the cow will usually bury its head in the trough after spreading the feed and feed quickly. The head of the cow usually stays at a certain point or moves only a little, the feed falls out of the cow's mouth very little, and the feed is very fast. One warning sign of picky eaters is that most cows use their noses in circles and only take small mouthes of food. At the same time, a large amount of feed falls from the cow's mouth. Finally, the cow extends its mouth directly to the bottom of the trough and then eats part of the concentrate, because the concentrate usually falls on the bottom of the trough, while the coarse material stays on the upper layer. If this phenomenon occurs more, the greater the change in feed composition, because cows will only choose the parts they like to eat. As a result, different cows ate different diets, resulting in fluctuations in fecal scoring results, acidosis and feed intake for different individual cows. The list goes on, but I'll share the most common causes of excessive pickiness.

This problem is exacerbated by the over-promotion of the silage corn "shredlage kneading" concept and longer cut lengths. There is a saying, "If the feed size exceeds the width of the cow's mouth, then the cow can pick it out." Especially the poor palatability part of the diet feed. Conversely, some dairy cows prefer to feed on long alfalfa hay to the other feeds in the TMR diet. The result of the two feeding behaviors is that the diets fed by cows are very different from the TMR diets at the beginning of the design. Pre-cutting of long-stemmed hay or straw prior to making TMR diets does work. If a TMR car is used, it takes time and reduces the particle size of other feed particles, and increases the mechanical wear of the TMR car.

Low dietary moisture will affect the palatability, and easy to produce coarse separation. TMR diet moisture should be maintained at 46-48% (dry matter basis) in summer and 48-50% (dry matter basis) in winter. Controlling the moisture content properly can minimize picky eating, and adding liquid additives such as molasses can also play the same role.

TMR cars are usually overused, and as wear increases, the efficiency of correct mixing decreases. Moreover, many ranches will overload TMR vehicles for efficiency, but lose control of the correct mix. An excessively worn TMR vehicle requires a longer mixing time, which will reduce the feed particle size and reduce the mixing effect. Check the scraper at the bottom of the vertical auger and the feed discharged from the TMR car. During my observation, I found that many TMR cars require maintenance related to wear and tear. If large pieces of fine or coarse material are found in the TMR car (usually at the beginning and end of unloading), the mixing time is too short or there is a problem with the operation of the TMR car. Overloading usually reduces the efficiency of the TMR car and increases the occurrence of picky eating. It will also cause poor mixing effect of TMR diet.

Picky eating can have health and economic effects on cows. Cows with heavy picky eaters cannot get a balanced diet. In most cases, cows eat too much concentrate and not enough fiber. This can be reflected by the change in the stool score. Cows that eat too much concentrate today will tend to eat fiber tomorrow to correct rumen pH. The end result isA decrease in milk production or milk composition.The worst outcome will beCauses intestinal bleeding syndrome and acute digestive disorders. The effect of picky eating on dairy cows will also be reflected in the lack of dry matter intake, which will lead to a varietyMetabolic disorders such as transposition of the true stomach, unfit of the placenta, ketosis, etc.. These metabolic diseases are closely related to the cow's own immunity. If the density of the enclosure is too large, under the condition of limited feeding trough space, the strong cows can grab more high-quality feed, while the weak cows can only eat the selected diet. Under these conditions, neither cow is getting the nutrients it needs. Sometimes we see that some cows are thinner than other cows in the same enclosure because they can't compete for enough food space and can only eat "leftovers". If you suspect that your cow has a picky eating problem, it is important to talk to a nutritionist and veterinarian to determine which factors are affecting your feeding program, and to determine the factors and their severity before finding an effective solution.

References:

1. 引自January 25, 2017, issue of Hoard’s Dairyman.Copyright 2017 by W.D. Hoard & Sons Company, Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin.

 

rumen-protected soybean mealIt is a rumen bypass protein product produced by international advanced rumen bypass technology, which is produced by combining high-temperature instantaneous Maillard reaction with low-temperature segmented heat treatment. The unique process design can take into account the rumen bypass rate and intestinal digestibility of the product. Higher content of rumen by-pass protein can provide more metabolizable protein for dairy cows. Higher intestinal digestibility can ensure the effective use of metabolizable proteins, significantly improve the production performance and health status of dairy cows, and obtain higher economic returns.

rumen-protected soybean mealThe main effect

Baiwei Tongbao™Rumen bypass protein can meet the needs of modern high-yield dairy cows for rumen bypass protein and high-quality amino acids. Compared with traditional rumen bypass protein products, the main features of this product are:

Dry matter intake: The unique flavor of the product can increase the appetite of dairy cows and increase feed intake. Milk production of dairy cows: advanced process treatment, can take into account the content of rumen protein and small intestine digestibility. Milk composition: high quality rumen protein and amino acid composition can improve the supply of milk protein precursor. Lactation Sustained Force:

The high content of rumen bypass protein and essential amino acids can meet the demand of high quality protein in mammary gland.

Baiwei Tongbao™Rumen-Protected Soybean Meal Advantages

High rumen bypass rate: to meet the needs of dairy cows for rumen bypass protein intestinal digestibility: in the production process of rumen bypass protein, the increase of rumen bypass rate sometimes leads to the decrease of intestinal digestibility of rumen bypass protein. The production process was designed to optimize the relationship between rumen bypass rate and intestinal digestibility of the protein. The advanced process design can ensure the perfect combination of rumen bypass rate and intestinal digestibility. High palatability: The product has a specific flavor, which can stimulate the appetite of dairy cows, thereby increasing dry matter intake and milk production. Product consistency: The consistency of rumen bypass protein products is very important. The product production process adopts real-time online monitoring of temperature, time and moisture to ensure the consistency of product quality.

Dosage and method of use

New cows: the recommended dosage is 0.5-1.0kg/head/day.

High-yielding cows: recommended dosage 1.0-2.0kg/head/day.

• Perinatal cows: recommended dosage 0.5-1.0kg/head/day.