Attention to detail pays dividends

Day length is increasing and hopefully we are now over half way through the winter feeding period. At Greenmount almost 70 percent of the herd has calved by the end of January. Performance of the herd is monitored closely. Monthly silage intakes and condition scoring are taken in combination with weekly checks on yield and concentrate feed levels, especially with the fresh cows. Management changes with the herd this winter allowed the cows to be batched according to stage of lactation, with three groups having been created:

Students have been involved in the feeding and management of the different batches of cows and heifers.

All heifers and fresh cows (up to approximately six weeks calved) have been housed together. This allows heifers to settle into lactation without having to fight for space and food. The cows and heifers in this group have access to out of parlour feeders, and are fed a partial mixed ration (PMR). This feeding system allows a smooth concentrate build up regimen, with an even spread of concentrate throughout the day, which can help prevent digestive upsets associated with increasing levels of concentrates in the ration.

When cows enter the milking group, they are given 1KG through the parlour plus access to the PMR, which contains 3KG of a concentrate blend. From this point they are built up, over 14 days, at a rate of 0.5KG/day to a total of 10KG (3KG blend, 4KG in parlour and 3KG out of parlour). The cows remain on this minimum level for a further 3 weeks. If cows are yielding at a level which justifies feeding above 10 KG, then can receive up to 15KG of concentrate per day, with the additional being fed through the out of parlour feeders. Heifers are fed using a similar system, being built up to 8KG, and allowed a maximum of 13KG.

Dietary Assessment: Fresh Calved Cows and Heifers

The intake of 20.9KG of dry matter will support maintenance plus 38 litres of milk, with the actual milk yield of the group being 41 litres. The fact that the actual milk yield is higher than that supported by the intake means that the animals are losing condition of approximately 0.5KG/day.

Once the mature cows have settled into lactation, they are moved to the mid-lactation group. The cows here are receiving a PMR with silage, whole crop wheat and 7KG of blend. This ration is designed to provide maintenance plus 30 litres. Cows yielding above 30 litres are fed at a rate of 0.4 KG per litre of milk above 30 litres, up to a maximum of 8 KG through the milking parlour. With a relatively high proportion of the concentrate being fed through the PMR, it is important that cow performance in this group is monitored closely, to avoid overfeeding. Once a cows yield falls below the 30 litres sustained by the PMR they come under consideration to be moved to the late lactation group, depending on health status, days in milk, condition score, and pregnancy diagnosis.

An examination of the intakes of the cows in January is shown below

Dietary Assessment: Peak/Mid Lactation Cows

The dry matter intake of the cows will support maintenance plus 40.6 litres, and with the actual yield average of the group being 40.7 litres. This examination of the figures shows that the requirements of the cows are being matched, as the average yield of the group, and the milk yield provided by the intake are almost identical. The diet crude protein for this group of cows is 17.5 percent, which is within the target range for cows at this stage of lactation (17 – 18 percent).

Closely monitoring the performance of the herd, in terms of body condition and feed intake has paid dividends in the bulk tank. The rolling annual average yield of the herd has lifted from 7800 litres in September 2005 to 8300 litres in January 2006, with a butterfat of 4.16 percent and milk protein of 3.28 percent on a rolling basis. The same principles can be followed on your farm to yield additional performance. For more information on monitoring feed intakes contact your local CAFRE, Dairying Development Adviser.

Farm Manager, Michael Graham and herdsmen Jim Fulton and Denis Torrens discuss the latest intake figures for the Greenmount dairy herd with Dairying Technologist, Dr Vicky Morrison.