The last few years have produced some challenging weather conditions for UK dairy farmers, with predictions suggesting extreme weather events may become more common place.With summer approaching, Wynnstay and QLF look at how molasses can help reduce your heat stress losses.
An amino acid is the building block of protein and needed for many vital processes like the synthesis of hormones, neurotransmitters, and cell structures. There are twenty that are required, with ten of those called essential, because the cow cannot produce them herself.
Transition cows are the next generation of milking cows in your herd, so every effort should be made to ensure that they have the best transition into milking and become profitable long-term herd members. Just letting one thing slip under the radar - such as diet, or space allocation - can unknowingly cause costly health problems later on.
Ruminants are fascinating creatures. What sets them apart from monogastric organisms with one simple stomach, is that they possess a huge fermentation chamber - the rumen. The rumen is full of a microbial population made up of bacteria, protozoa and fungi. This microbial population is able to break down forage and raw materials, that aren’t edible for humans into essential nutrients that can be used for body function and performance.
We are coming out of one of the toughest winters in terms of forage stocks in recent memory and although the grass is not blowing in the wind quite yet, there is light at the end of the tunnel. It is time to be planning forage stocks.
An annual pattern of milk composition has been well recognized on dairy farms across the world for years, with the highest milk fat and protein concentration in milk observed during the winter and lowest occurring in the summer. This trend is manipulated solely by season, and impacts housed and grazing cows similarly. So, when we get to spring, and then turnout for some, and milk butterfats start to decline- how do we know if this is real milk fat depression or not?
For the last few years, the industry has been advising grass silage producers to cut little and often to maximise the energy and protein yield form their silage ground.
The western side of the UK has the potential to be one of the best grass growing regions of the world. However, are we fully utilising this quality feed source to our advantage?
In the dairy industry where margins are often tight, making the most out of home-grown forages is key. Grazed grass is the cheapest feed on the farm yet often it is not utilized to its full potential.
When we talk farm costings, farm efficiency, and performance monitoring, we need to talk about figures that are relevant to everyone and lead to tangible information, leading to informed decisions. We believe forage utilisation per ha (FUH) is the best figure to do this.
