NEWS for North Dakotans
Agriculture Communication, North Dakota
State University
7 Morrill Hall, Fargo, ND 58105-5665
March 4, 1999
Specialist Offers Tips to Keep Dairy Cows from Sorting
Rations
Dairy producers who use a total mixed ration (TMR) may
experience problems with their cows sorting feed if they've
included hay in the ration, says an animal scientist at North
Dakota State University.
"Solutions to sorting problems are few, but there are
some steps producers can take to reduce the problem," says
J.W. Schroeder, dairy specialist with the NDSU Extension Service.
Schroeder offers these tips:
- Are you trying to feed more than 5 pounds of hay per cow
per day in your TMR? Sorting is almost impossible to
prevent when this amount or more hay is fed without
fine-grinding the hay first or having premium quality dry
alfalfa hay (160-plus relative feed value).
- Particle size your TMR. Between 6 and 10 percent of the
sample weight should be on the top screen of a
particle-size shaker box. Evaluate the top screen
material. Is it something cows will eat? It should not be
corn cobs or long coarse stems of hay or haylage. If you
have more than 15 percent of the sample on the top
screen, there is a good chance cows will be sorting
through the TMR.
- Particle size the weighback. Feed refusals or weighback
from a pen should ideally be the same as what was fed. If
the weight of material on the top screen is more than 10
percentage points higher than the TMR fed, cows are
sorting. For example, if your TMR has 15 percent on the
top screen and your weighback is 28 percent on the top
screen, this is a very good indication cows are sorting.
- Hay can be ground finer or reduced.
- If the material being sorted out is long haylage or corn
stalks and cobs, there are not many options. Reducing
amounts of the refused forages fed can worsen problems
when producers reduce fiber in the ration because cows
will likely continue sorting and thereby reduce fiber
intake even more.
"Addition of molasses or water if the TMR is too dry can
sometimes help," Schroeder concludes, "and so can
feeding more fibrous byproduct feeds, such as beet pulp or corn
gluten feed to replace some of the forage."
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Source: J.W. Schroeder (701) 231-7663
Editor: Tom Jirik (701) 231-9629