Dairy

August 1, 2014

Types of Protected Fats

High energy levels in fats make them useful for boosting energy intakes of cows, to increase production, improve fertility or condition at key times during the year. Unsaturated fats can be toxic to rumen microbes at high concentrations, so may adversely affect fibre degradation. Therefore, supplementary fats must be “protected” from rumen activity if they [...]

Calf, Dairy, Publications

June 1, 2014

Benefits of Good Transition

Some of the biggest opportunities to increase production efficiency and reproductive health come from supporting dairy cows as they “transition” from late pregnancy to early lactation. Whilst many traditional systems have taken a “hands off” approach to the transition period it is now generally considered to be the most critical time of the year, with [...]

Dairy, Publications

April 1, 2014

Facial Eczema risk peaks between March and April despite cooler nights

Data collected by Assure Quality since 2005 highlights a marked elevation in spore counts during March and April, even though air temperatures start to decline. Although cooler nights have traditionally signalled the end of zinc dosing for many farmers, what these graphs (below) show us is that there is still a significant risk of disease [...]

Dairy, Forage, Publications

January 1, 2014

Roles of Zinc and Copper in Preventing Facial Eczema

Facial eczema is a disease of the liver caused by the toxin sporidesmin. Not all animals affected show physical signs or symptoms, yet unseen liver damage can limit performance long after facial eczema (FE) season. Production losses caused by FE are often greater than they appear. Even if liver damage is insufficient to cause clinical [...]

Dairy, Publications