Minerals

In general, forages are good sources of calcium,

while grains and animal products are fair to good
sources of phosphorus.
When planning a mineral supplementation program
for forage-fed cattle, it is important to realize that
bioavailability of minerals from forage may be low.
As a rule of thumb, mineral values in forages should
be discounted by 50 percent to account for
potentially low bioavailability.
Mineral content in forage often mirrors the
concentration of minerals in the soil.
Pasture fertilization schemes and stage of maturity of
the forage affect mineral content and mineral
bioavailability.

Calcium
During lactation-low plasma calcium--- the
production of parathyroid hormone (PTH)
increases
increase absorption from the astrointestinal tract
increase mobilization from bone.
when supply exceeds demand
the antagonist of PTH, calcitonin, reduces
absorption and increases calcium accretion into
bone.

Minerals

Calcium (cont)
At the beginning of lactation --the
depletion of calcium status occurs
suddenly, over about a 10-h period.
Colostrum contains about 2 g Ca l1
large outflow of calcium in milk, together
with a depressed appetite around
parturition-- paralysis (parturient paresis

Calcium (cont)
If calcium intake can be limited to 50 g day1 or
less during the latter part of the non-lactating
period, PTH production increases and the
mobilization of the substantial bone reserves
starts before the onset of lactation.
During lactation, calcium intake should be about
3 g kg1 milk.
Sources: bonemeal, lime, meat meal, fish meal,
milk, legumes, pulses, dicalcium-phosphate

magnesium
a mineral that can easily be deficient in lactating cows
grazing intensively managed pastures.
Some magnesium can be mobilized from bone tissue
during a deficiency.
The acute form of the disorder grass tetany
A chronic form of hypomagnesaemia also exists, with a
gradual loss of condition and a stiff gait.
Nitrogen fertilizer -- risk factor for deficiency
Magnesium requirements can be estimated factorially as
18 mg Mg kg1 live weight per day for maintenance
(endogenous losses) + 2.7 g kg1 live weight gain +
0.74 g Mg l 1 of milk +3g Mg day1 for the last 8 weeks
of pregnancy.

phosphorus
In many feeds most of the phosphorus is in the
form of phytate,
readily available to ruminants (rumen
microorganisms)
not to monogastric animals,
Problems are most likely, to occur in cattle on
range-lands -- declines as the plant matures.,
When the soil phosphorus status is low and the
forage is mature (Ternouth, 1990).

Phosphorus (cont.)

The absorption is mainly in the small intestine and is actively controlled by

vitamin D.
Absorption declines markedly with age, from nearly 100% in the suckled calf
to 43% for cattle over 1 year of age.
very high calcium:phosphorus ratio (>10:1) in the feed reduces phosphorus
availability.
Deficiency
stiff gait
bone abnormalities
reduced production (growth rate or milk production),
pica
Requirements
difficult to estimate because absorption varies widely. If it is assumed to be
60%, most rationing systems suggest that a dairy cow will require about
24 g day1 for maintenance and 1.5 g l1 for milk production,
or a phosphorus content in the ration of about 0.5% for a high-yielding cow.
Growing cattle are likely to require a phosphorus concentration in the ration
of about one-half of this value.

phosphorus
grazing conditions--the phosphorus contents of
herbage can be increased by phosphorus
fertilizer quite effectively.
provided as field blocks
Some phosphorus supplements, such as
dicalcium phosphate or superphosphate, are
well absorbed,
Rock phosphate is not well absorbed, is
unpalatable and may contain a high fluoride
content.

sodium and chlorine

Even though many feeds contain enough
sodium and chlorine, supplemental cobalt
iodized (blue) salt or trace mineral salt
should be available at all times.

Sulphur
Most feeds contain adequate amounts of
S for cattle.
Supplemental S may be necessary when
non-protein nitrogen sources are being
utilised in high grain feedlot diets.
The critical level in feeds is approximately
1g S kg1 DM.

Iron
Virtually all feeds contain enough Iron for cattle
The iron content of leaves is much greater than seeds or milk
iron deficiency does not occur in cattle fed forage-based diets.
should not be added to the diet of adult cattle at risk of
hypocupraemia,--inhibit the absorption of copper
Milk has a particularly low concen-tration of iron, in relation to other
minerals-- the suckling period -- store of iron at birth in the liver
(about 450 mg).
The restriction limits bacteria their growth in the mammary gland -prevent mastitis.
effectively recycled within the -- little urinary excretion.
Calves that suckle their dams at pasture invariably start consuming
a few leaves of grass before the anaemia --not at risk..

Zinc
Requirements are difficult to state precisely--extensive interactions with other elements, in
particular copper, calcium and cadmium.
3040 mg Zn kg1 of feed DM is generally
recommended for most classes of cattle, unless
the feed contains a high copper level-requirements will be greater.
If a supplement is required-- trace mineralized
salt or mineral supplement.

copper
several minerals will inhibit the absorption-competitive inhibition--- molybdenum,
sulphur, iron, zinc, cadmium and possibly
calcium.
The complexity of the interrelationships
between these elements makes the
prediction of copper availability difficult.
Copper deficiencies can cause a reduced
growth rate in cattle in susceptible areas.

Iodine (I) and Cobalt

Iodine (I) --- trace amounts by the thyroid gland,
which influences the rate of metabolism in the
body.
goitre.
Cobalt--Deficiencies are common where soils
have low cobalt concentrations
If soils are alkaline the uptake by the plant is low
and direct
Supplementation--a salt containing both of these
elements

Selenium
Selenium (Se) is deficient in some regions and surplus
in others. "Alkali disease" or "blind staggers" occurs
when cattle eat feed containing toxic or excess amounts
of Se (10 ppm) over a long period of time.
"white muscle disease" in calves, lambs
lower fertility and an increased incidence of retained
placentas
it is beneficial to increase selenium intake for early
lactation cows up to 4 mg day1
dietary concentration recommended to avoid muscular
dystrophy (0.1 mg kg1 DM)
Se can be added to salt or mineral mixes, or injected.

vitamin A

Animals on green grass can store vitamin A in the liver and draw on it for 23 months.
Although forages may contain sufficient carotene to meet all requirements, it
is good insurance to feed vitamin A, since the carotene content of a forage
declines in storage.
carotene concentrations are usually much less for conserved feeds
typically
straw contains 5 mg -carotene kg1 of feed DM, hay 1020 mg -carotene
kg1 of feed DM, grass silage 120 mg -carotene kg1 of feed DM and
maize silage 11 mg -carotene kg1 of feed DM.
Supplementation of dairy
cows with 200300 mg day1 -carotene is recommended if plasma carotene concentrations are below approximately 2500 gl1.

vitamin D

Compounded concentrate feeds usually contain 10002000 IU

kg1 of vitamin D, which is sufficient for most purposes.
Animals kept outdoors or fed sun-cured hay do not usually suffer a
deficiency, whereas animals kept indoors and fed silage may do so.
Inadequate vitamin D intake causes osteoporosis and reduced
fertility.
Large doses of vitamin D fed to dairy cows around calving mobilize
calcium from bone tissue and increase calcium uptake from the gut.
reduce the incidence of milk fever--the recommended intake for this
purpose being 40,00070,000 IU day1.

vitamin C and K

poultry and ruminants can synthesize vitamin C, but there is a

favorable response to supplemental C when these animals are
under stress.
Rumen bacteria make vitamin K in quantities to meet the needs of
cattle under most conditions. One exception is death loss from
internal hemorrhage or surgery that may occur when cattle are fed
moldy sweet clover hay or silage. Other moldy legumes can possibly
cause a similar problem.

B-vitamin complex
B-vitamin complex are thiamin, biotin, riboflavin,
niacin, pantothenic acid, pyridoxine, folic acid,
vitamin B12 and choline.
Once the rumen becomes functional, bacterial
synthesis is considered to supply the normal
requirement of cattle for B-vitamins.
Milk is a source of B-vitamins for the calf.
The lack of a trace mineral, cobalt, can result in a
vitamin B12 deficiency in cattle. This is because
cobalt is a part of the vitamin B12 compound and is
essential for rumen bacteria to manufacture this
vitamin.

vitamin E

Problem conditions
The need for vitamin E in cattle rations in has not been clearly
demonstrated. however, the following conditions might be
suspected as causing a deficiency:
High-grain rations with limited or no roughage, especially highmoisture harvested grains
Feeding grains or roughages that are low in selenium
Lengthy storage of feeds
High drying temperatures for feeds
Use about 50 IU per animal daily if vitamin E supplementation
of feedlot rations is deemed advisable.

vitamin E

Problem conditions
The need for vitamin E in cattle rations in has not been clearly
demonstrated. however, the following conditions might be
suspected as causing a deficiency:
High-grain rations with limited or no roughage, especially highmoisture harvested grains
Feeding grains or roughages that are low in selenium
High fat levels in ration
Lengthy storage of feeds
High drying temperatures for feeds
Feeds that have a small portion of their vitamin E assay value
from alpha-tocopherol. Use about 50 IU per animal daily if
vitamin E supplementation of feedlot rations is deemed
advisable.

300 kg Cow
5 kg milk production (mid lactation)
Milk Fat 5%
Previous production (mid lactation) 10 kgpotential
Step 1. Determining Nutrient Requirement
Mid lactation
Energy= 5.55M+8.3L=13.85 Mcal
Protein=284M+1010=1294g=1.294kg
Calcium =7M+36.9 L=43.9 g
Phosphorus= 7M+22.8 L= 29.8 g

Step 2. Determining Forage Intake.

Total DM intake---2.5-3% of LBW

DMI may be 18 % less in early lactation
In high producers DMI may be more than 4 % in mid and late
lactation
Dairy cows should be fed all the forage they will consume.
However, there are limits as to how much forage dairy cows can eat.
Normally, the maximum consumption of high quality forage dry
matter will be about 2 1/2 percent of body weight when no grain is
fed.
Somewhat less consumption can be expected from lower quality
forages.
An average herd will consume about 1.8 percent of body weight as
forage dry matter when enough grain is fed to meet requirements.

Step 3. Calculate Nutrients from

Forages
CP%

Maize
12
Barley
10
Sub-total
Req
Def

NEl/k DM % DM
g
Need
ed

Feed
requi
red
(Asfed)

1.87 89
1.76 91

2
3.74 .24
2.25 3.52 .20
7.26 0.44
6.93 0.694
0.00 .254

2
2

NEl
provi
ded

CP
provid
ed

 Step 4. Calculate Nutrients required from

concnetates
Step 5. Calculate Concentrate Needed
(DM basis)
7.98/1.8=4.43
Step 6. Determine Protein contents of feed
Step 7. calculate replacement, if needed
Step 8. calculate and adjust phosphorus
contents in fed

Estimated nutrient Requirement of

animals

TDN (kg)
Maintenance
(400 kg B.Wt)
3.13
50 kg B.WT
0.28
Maintenance+Pregnancy
400 kg B.Wt)
4.15
50 kg B.WT
0.37
Lactation
Per kg milk prod
4% fat
0.322
0.5 % fat
0.021
Add 3 g calcium/kg mlik production

CP (g) Ca (g) P (g)

318
21
890
82

90
6

9
1

9
1

26
3.5

16
2

Thumb rule to meet the nutrient

requirement of animals
Formulate a concentrate mixture
containing 68-72 % TDN and 20 % CP
Cereals---25-35 %
Oil cakes---25-35 %
Cereals by-products---15-25 %
Protein Conc.5-20 %
Salt---1 %
Limestone 1 %

Thumb rule to meet the nutrient

requirement of animals

Maintenance
(400 kg B.Wt)
50 Kg B.Wt
Pregnancy
Crossbred/buffalo
Zebu cattle
Lactation
Crossbred/buffalo
(2.0 kg milk)
Zebu cattle
(2.0 kg milk)

wheat straw Conc.

4 kg
0.25

1 kg
0.25
+ 0 kg
1.75 kg
1.25 kg

1 kg
1 kg

As-fedDM basis conversion

Nutrient composition of feed
As fed= % nutrient (DM basis) x % DM
100

Concentrate

TDN (DM
basis)

CP% (DM
basis

Quantity

TDN (kg)

Total CP (kg)

Maize

80.00

12.00

35.00

28.00

4.20

Cotton Seed cake

63.00

23.00

25.00

15.75

5.75

Corn gluten feed 50

%

90.00

50.00

20.00

18.00

10.00

Rice polishing

90.00

12.00

17.00

15.30

2.04

97.00

77.05

21.99

Total

Add 1 % salt, 1% mineral mix., 1 % limestone

As DM values were used for TDN and CP calculation
and most of the concentrates contains about 90 % DM
so
Estimated TDN (as fed)= (77.05/100)*90=69 %
Estimated CP (as-fed)= (21.99/100)*90=19.8 %

Feeding a dairy cow (250 kg B.WT)

----maintenance requirement
DM basis

As fed basis

TDN %

DM %

CP%

CP%

Quantity

TDN (kg))

Total CP
(kg)

43

2.5

38.7

2.25

4.00

1.57

0.09

77

22

69.00

19.80

1.00

0.62

0.20

Total

2.26

0.29

Recom-mended

2.02

0.26

Wheat straw

Concnetrate

Assignment

Calculate the nutrient requirement (TDN, NE,

CP)
Feed by thumb rule
Compare the nutrient required and nutrient
supplied
1) Cow (300 kg B.Wt)
Pregnancy---last month
2) Cow (450 kg B.Wt)
Milk prod. 10 kg