ISSUE FOCUS 34 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE February 2024 “Delivering a consistent diet to cows day in and day out should be the goal for every dairy. Always remember to store feed properly, mix feed consistently, deliver feed routinely, and push feed frequently. When done correctly, it will pay significant benefits in cow performance, feed efficiency, and farm profitability.” A dairy operation’s ability to deliver a quality and consistent diet, day after day, has become an increasingly important goal for many nutritionists and producers. Why? Because the consistency of the ration, and feed and nutrition management, have influential impacts on the health of your herd and the operation’s bottom line. Here’s how to create a profitable, powerful, and performing program. 1. Store feed properly to avoid excess moisture, molds, or other factors that can cause shrink or degrade the feed ingredient Obtaining and maintaining high-quality silage requires good forage management, especially in the areas of harvest, storage, and feed out. Minimizing exposure to air, keeping silage coverings in place, ensuring a dense silage pile pack, maintaining a smooth feedout face, and managing removal rates based on times of the year are all examples of efforts that can significantly reduce shrink. Make sure you don’t have extra silage remaining overnight, as this will cause excessive heating. One of the most important things to remember when harvesting corn silage is whole-plant moisture level. The desired level of whole plant moisture will depend on whether the silage is stored in upright or horizontal silos. For bunkers and drive-over piles, the goal for wholeplant moisture is 66 percent to 68 percent and for vertical storage structures, 65 percent to 68 percent moisture. When it comes to feeding strategies, consider blending silages to reduce moisture and nutrient variation and to dilute out any potential mycotoxins. When facing silage piles, tilt the face back slightly to reduce the risk of avalanches and collapses for safety reasons. During extreme heat, a good rule of thumb is to face it twice a day. Be sure to remember to remove any moldy or spoiled silage before facing. 2. Mix feed consistently every time, and ensure equipment is in good working order How feed is mixed impacts variation, and minimal variation is very important in keeping cows healthy and maintaining high milk production. Worn mixing equipment will increase the amount of time it takes to mix properly and decrease the quality of the mix – creating an increase in fuel costs. Monitoring and repairing these items as needed, such as kicker plates, is essential to maintain a high-quality FEED WITH PRECISION: SUSTAINING DAIRY QUALITY AND CONSISTENCY Tom Oelberg, Ph.D. Ruminant Field Technical Specialist, Retired Diamond V
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