Feeding your stock this winter

By EDMOND CURTIN, B.Arg.Sc

Dry cow:

Cows in the wrong body condition score (BCS) need to have this rectified 2-3 weeks before calving starts. From then on a greater proportion of the energy fed to the cow is partitioned to the calf and the cow won’t gain much weight.

Conversely, fat cows need to lose excess BCS before this point, as underfeeding the cow leading up to calving leads to excess negative energy balance at calving and all the subsequent issues:

• Milk fever
• Retained cleansing
• Lower immune status
• Increased NEB post calving = lower milk

BCS at calving depends on:

• BCS when dried off
• Length of dry period
• Quantity and quality of feed.

Feeding your weanling this winter:

In general, weaning performance is not good over the 1st winter with gains as low as 0 – 0.3Kg LWG being recorded. On-target heifers weighing 240kg need to gain 0.55 kg/day across the 1st winter. Only silage of 75DMD is capable of supporting this. Check your laboratory analysis. Light heifers weighing 210kg need to gain 0.7 kg/ day across the 1st winter.

Feeding Your Maiden Heifers This Winter:

Target LWG of 0.7 kg/day across the 2nd winter is required. 70 DMD silage diet will support 0.3kg/day.