Maximising forage, feed and performance in your dairy herd with Jimmy Goldie

Nutrition and cow performance are closely linked. A high producing dairy cow requires a diet that supplies the nutrient needs to ensure high milk production. Carbohydrates, amino acids, fatty acids, minerals, vitamins, and water are all required by the lactating dairy cow to produce milk and milk components. Much of this comes from forage dry matter so the quality of the diet offered to dairy cows is largely dependent on the forage that is fed and as a result plays a very important role in animal nutrition.

With fertiliser and feed prices on the increase it is even more important than ever to check that the balance is right between what you want to achieve from the herd and their diet. When aiming to increase the percentage of butterfat content in milk for example, the cow’s nutrition becomes even more important. Ensuring you grow enough quality forage for the herd to maximise milk from forage, then allowing the difference to be balanced with the processed ingredients.

The dairy herd at Potstown is split between Holsteins and Jerseys with the Jerseys being introduced to increase the butterfat and protein content in milk produced at the farm. As suppliers to Yewtree components are very important and key to the milk price. Butterfat is currently sitting at 5% and protein at 3.7%.

Jimmy Goldie from Carrs Billington has been working with the Owens at Potstown to help them maintain these component levels and potentially increase them. At a workshop held at the farm earlier this year, he explained that although the Holsteins and Jersey cows need a different diet, the Jerseys eat 80% of what the Holsteins eat, they still need a similar balance between energy, intake, fibre and protein.  This all impacts on how much milk from forage can be achieved.

Jimmy emphasised that the presentation of the diet and the environment in which the cow feeds is very important as it needs to have enough space to feed. He advises a 60 – 75cm of feed space for every cow in the shed, easy access to drinking water and good ventilation. Make sure that fresh feed is pushed up close to the cow and that it is directly in front of them so they get the same diet all the time.

One of the most important things to look at when assessing a dairy herd’s performance is its total dry matter intake. Check how much the cows are eating, how much of that is forage, and what quality it is, and how much of it they are getting. The amount of total dry matter fed to a cow should depend on its weight and can be calculated based on 3% of its total body weight fed as dry matter so a cow weighing 700 kg would need 21 kg of dry matter. Around 10-12 kg of this should be forage. Water can be added to the dry matter to improve its consistency and prevent the cow from digging down into the forage. 

You can supplement the dry matter with concentrate but, make sure they are getting enough forage first and foremost. The chop length of the forage is also important as it shouldn’t be too short, aim for 20-25 mm

Energy, intake, fibre and protein all dictate the correct diet. However, there is no ideal correct level of protein in a dairy diet as it all depends on the balance and how the cow digests the protein. From an environmental and cost point of view using less protein is good but it depends how the cow utilises it. You can assess this by monitoring the cow’s milk urea (blood urea) to give a good idea of the protein utilisation in the cow’s rumen and what it requires.

The type of protein that is fed to the cow is also very important, the cows at Potstown are fed protein from distillers, soya and protected soya, and fibre from soya hulls and sugar beet which gives a balance of just over 17% protein in the total diet.  You need to understand what is happening in the rumen to ensure the cow is making the most efficient use of the protein it is consuming. The correct mixture of energy and protein will make sure the cow performs. 

Check list

1. Check total dry matter intake
2. Check forage dry matter intake
3. Optimise rumen health and performance
4. Calculate milk from forage to match farm objectives
5. Home grown grass silage can provide a high level of protein.