Milk prices are forecast to be well up this season with the Fonterra midpoint now quoted at $10.00/KgMS.
This increase in milk value supports maximising milk production from now until the end of the season, and as summer progresses, so does the challenge of feeding cows through a period of hot weather and lower quality summer pastures (low protein, low carbohydrate, high NDF).
So, what do you need to do to keep the girls milking both through the summer and well into autumn?
In a nutshell, maintaining cow condition and driving production through adequate feed quantity and optimal feed quality are key areas to focus.
Ensuring adequate feed quantity
o DMI’s fall due to either cows being offered insufficient feed OR cows not being able to
eat the feed in front of them. To avoid this:
Do regular, accurate pasture assessments. These are crucial for managers to know what the cows are getting out of the paddock and helping with round length
Remember that cows require approx. 7 KgDM to maintain their BCS, and an additional 7 KgsDM per KgMS.
A cow producing 1.5KgMS/day needs (7 KgDM Maintenance + (7KgDM/KgMS produced x 1.5)) = 17.5 KgDM
Note: While cows in good condition can maintain higher production with less feed, it will be at the expense of body condition. Low BCS cows tend to be dried off earlier/ have shorter lactations.
Make sure cows have plenty of good quality water.
The importance of water is often underestimated – cows with poor access to water do not eat as much, especially on hotter days and production can be up to 20% lower. Cows in peak production require ~ 70 liters of drinking water a day and many cows demand a significant proportion of this within 2 hours of entering the paddock.
Farmers with feedpads can supply additional water by wetting the feed in the wagon prior to feeding, for very high DM/ fibrous feeds such as hay, water can be included at a rate of up to 50% of the DM weight.
Make sure the cow can physically eat what is offered.
Feeds with high NDF (summer grass/ poor quality silage) fill cows up and can physically prevent them from eating what they need to. Most cows will not be able to eat more than 12 – 13 KgDM of poor quality feeds. Also, fibrous feeds such as hay and poor-quality silage generate A LOT of heat when being digested adding further heat load to an already hot cow!
Manage cows to minimise heat stress
Hot cows do not eat as much.
Altering milking routines, selecting more shaded or drafty paddocks, investing in and using more ‘cow friendly’ infrastructure (herd homes, fans & sprinklers) are all options to be considered.
Ensuring optimal feed quality
o Without getting too technical, summer pastures tend to be low in protein, low in carbohydrate (sugars) and high in NDF, therefore selecting supplements to complement this is important.
Milk components such as milk solids, milk protein percentage and milk urea percentage will help farmers decide on what feeds would be good additions to complement the summer diet.
Protein deficiency is a common issue when pasture ‘browns off’ and total dietary protein drops below what is required to support lactation. Feeds such as chicory, lucerne, good quality grass silage, DDG, Soy meal are all good options.
Consider these feeds if Milk solids, Milk protein and Milk urea are falling.
Carbohydrate deficiency can occur in very hot weather when pastures themselves are ‘heat stressed’ and feeds such as molasses, maize silage, tapioca, kibbled maize or any other feeds with high starch content can be used.
Consider these feeds if Milk solids and Milk protein is falling and Milk Urea is rising.
To summarise, optimising milk production requires cows being offered sufficient feed with the correct nutrient balance to support lactation AND ensuring the cows are able to ingest the feed.
We are more than happy to answer any questions and queries people have when considering their options for feeding cows this summer.
Comments