The six feeding principles
Feed your cows healthy and nutritious
Do you feed according to a strategy? And do you know you can influence the quality of your feed? It all starts with taking care of the soil and nutrients. Then, by selecting the right crops, seeding, growing and harvesting, you can influence the taste and consistency of the feed. Also, the optimal fibre length is worth to discover. The six feeding principles below are your starting point for a strong feeding strategy, to feed your cows healthy and nutritious.
Feed your cows healthy and nutritious
1. Calculated rations, for every group of animals
Every group of animals is unique. Rations should be adjusted based on age, lactation stage, milk production level, available resources, and season. This ensures that cows receive a balanced meal in every bite. You can achieve this by carefully combining home-grown feeds, such as silage, hay, and cereal crops, with purchased feed components like protein flour, minerals, and by-products to fill nutritional gaps.
2. Mixed rations, so every bite is balanced
Perfectly mixed rations prevent sorting behaviour. For each group of animals, you want every bite to be the same and so it’s time to mix well and make choices on the loading sequence. This can stimulate rumen health and decrease the chance of rumen acidosis.
3. The perfect fibre length
Fibre comes with precision. Fibre stimulates rumination, which produces saliva that buffers the rumen’s PH level, keeping the cow comfortable and helps preventing acidosis. Offer a mix of fibre sources with adequate particle length to promote chewing and proper digestion. And monitor rumination activity as an indication of rumen health. Access the fibre content at your rations regularly, for example with a forage box.
4. Feed always available
Irregular feeding or long gaps between feeding times can cause hunger stress, increased competition, and disruption of natural eating patterns. External circumstances such as the weather could influence the eating behaviour of your cows. Especially the submissive ones in the herd. Over feeding your cows can result in an increased amount of rest feed, which can have a high impact on feeding costs. Consistent feed availability is vital for the well-being, behaviour, and overall health of your cows.
5. Taste matters
You can influence the taste of your cow’s feed. One of the biggest influences is the harvesting process. Subject of influence to improve your silage quality are sugars, dry matter, ash content and particle length and ingredients you purchase to complement the rations. For grazing herds time of the day you graze and grass length has a tremendous impact on intake and taste.
6. Feed within reach
Cows have their own rythm and any time she visits the feed fence. The feed must be within reach all time. Pushing the feed within reach is beneficial, to stimulate valuable feed intake. This also can reduce competition with other cows, lower pressure on the front hooves and prevent stretching their neck.
