While body condition is one of the key factors to watch out for in cows that are in-calf, ensuring in-calf cows are receiving adequate supplementation of minerals in the lead up to calving is another aspect which should not be overlooked.
Feeding the correct amount of minerals to cows in the run up to calving will reduce the risk of animal health issues at calving and improve the colostrum quality.
There are a number of ways minerals can be administered to cows in the lead up to calving. These include: through dusting on silage; boluses; mineral buckets; drinking water; and through concentrate feed.
Minerals
Different farmers will have different preferences on the means of supplying minerals to cows ahead of calving, but whatever the method, farmers should follow guidelines on how they are administered and be careful not to overfeed or underfeed minerals.
Where minerals are being dusted on top of silage, all cows should have access to the feed face at any one time, and the mineral supplementation should be weighed and dispersed according to the guidelines of the product.
Cows can have a high body condition score (BCS) but still be lacking in minerals. Ideally, cows will be ‘fit not fat’ at calving, so farmers need to be weary of this when concentrates are being fed ahead of calving.
According to Teagasc, cows with a BSC of between 2.5-3 will manage on moderate-quality grass silage with a dry matter digestibility (DMD) of approximately 65-67% and this can be fed to appetite. These cows will generally not require meal feeding.
Farmers should also remember that mineral levels in Irish silage can be highly variable and according to Teagasc, factors such as soil type, the date of cutting, the type of pasture that is cut for silage and soil fertility, can all have an impact in the level of minerals available in the silage.
The Teagasc recommendation is for farmers to feed pre-calver minerals to cows from four to six weeks in advance of calving.
Most local agri-stores will stock a range of pre-calver minerals.