What is the quality of the feedstuff you use for feeding?

What is thequality of the feedstuff you use for feeding?

Good nutrition is important for all living organisms. Animals need 10 to 14 % crude protein and all the energy they can get from feedstuff to be healthy. Pregnant cows require more to gestate, give birth and subsequently nurse healthy calves, meaning they benefit from higher quality feedstuff. And in cold weather outdoors, livestock need 10-15 % more energy than in the summer. This is why many farmers save the best feedstuff for January and February.

As for feedstuff, the protein composition in the leaves is 20-30 %, and in the stems — 6-8 %. At the same time, the relative feed quality (RFQ) of leaves is 400-500, and of stems — only up to 80. Thus, the feed can be called good if at least half of its composition is leaves.

The best way to test feeds for energy and protein content is to have a sample tested in a laboratory. This is not that expensive when compared with the losses from decreased productivity of the herd. However, visual analysis also provides some results.

Losses of feedstuff and reduction in its energy value

After mowing, legumes, as well as first-cut grasses, should have about 50 % leaves at the time of mowing. But the second and later mowings are even more, under 95 % of the leaves. If you have less than 50 % leaves in your forage after mowing, you have lost yield, protein and energy.

10 % crop loss during harvest is an average. But if your feedstuff contains only a third of leaves and the rest is stems, then you have lost at least 20 % of the harvest. So pay attention to what you pack. It doesn’t matter what kind of feedstuff packaging technology you use: wrapping with twine, bale net wrap, stretch film, in polymer sleeves or in silage pits.

It is also worth remembering that although heating makes feedstuff more palatable for animals, it is also accompanied by a loss of energy. Be sure to check your bales during storage. If you find sweet-smelling hay or haylage that is warm to the touch after 6 weeks of storage, something has gone wrong. Perhaps the place to store the bales is not suitable or the haylage is not well wrapped in film.

To ensure that your feedstuff has maximum energy value and you do not lose protein, take into account the tips later in the article.

For hay

Do you have easy access to bales in winter?
Are the bales in contact with the ground? If so, then they absorb water from there and rot. Your losses may be greater or less depending on the size of the bale, here you can find an infographic on this matter. But even 15-20 % loss from a small bale is actually critical.
Do you check your hay for mold during storage?
What is your hay loss when feeding? Perhaps you should think about replacing the feed dispenser?
Was the hay pre-shredded? Here we wrote why this is preferable.

For haylage

Was the humidity of the haylage during packaging within 50-55 %?
Have you chopped the herbs to the desired length?
Is the haylage packaged well? Is there no oxygen available? If you used beleage technology, then be sure to check the bales several times a month for punctures and correct them in a timely manner.
Do you monitor the condition of your haylage during storage? Is everything okay with the film that covers the bunker or silo?
Is the silage pit or trench properly sized to remove at least 1 pound from the surface of the haylage per day from the start of feeding?

Every year, analyze how your feed procurement is going and what then does not go exactly as you would like or plan. And also don’t forget to adjust your forage and feeding strategy depending on changes in the herd population.