Nutritional Requirements of the Cow Herd

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NUTRITION
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Water
Protein
Minerals
Vitamins
Carbohydrates
Fats
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Carbohydrates

• Made up of
• Carbon (C)
• Hydrogen (H)
• Oxygen (O)
• Primary function ENERGY

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Types of Carbohydrates

• Simple sugars (glucose)
• Starch
• a - linkages of several glucose molecules
• major component of diets for all species
• Cellulose (structural CHO)
• b - linkage of several glucose molecules
• requires microbial digestion
• primary user of cellulose the RUMINANT

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Fats Lipids

• Energy dense 2.25 X more energy than CHO
• Functions
• dietary energy supply
• source of essential fatty acids
• cell structure
• precursor of hormones (prostaglandins)
• serve as the carrier of fat-soluble vitamins

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Protein

• Only nutrient that contains nitrogen (N)
• a CP analysis is conducted by assaying for N
• 16 N 100 protein
• N x 6.25 crude protein (CP)
• Example
• feed analyzed to contain 3 N, then
• 3 x 6.25 18.75 CP

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Protein

• Composed of Amino Acids (AA)
• all amino acids are needed by the animal
• Essential Amino Acids
• essential AAs cannot be synthesized at the
  appropriate level
• essential AAs must be supplied in the diet
• Non-essential Amino Acids
• used by the animal, but they are also synthesized
  by the animal

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Protein

• Ruminants do not need a dietary supply of
  specific amino acids.
• Microbes break down feed protein
• Microbes synthesize bacterial CP from the N
• Ruminant then digests the end-products of the
  microbes to utilize the work of microbial
  digestion

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Vitamins

• 16 known vitamins
• organic nutrient needed in small amounts
• 2 classifications of vitamins
• Water-soluble C, B-complex
• Fat-soluble A, D, E, K

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Vitamins

• In ruminants, microbes synthesize
• water-soluble vitamins
• Vitamin K
• For most non-ruminants,
• all vitamins should be supplied in the diet

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Minerals

• Inorganic compounds

Macro- vs. Micro-minerals
Macro needed in larger amounts (Ca, P, Cl, K,
Na, S)
Micro needed in trace amounts (Fe, Cu, Se, Zn)
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Nutritional Physiology Terminology

• Digestion
• Preparation of food for absorption
• Reduction in food particle size
• mechanical - chewing
• chemical - HCl, bile
• enzymatic - lipase
• microbial

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Types of Digestive Systems

• Monogastric (Simple stomach)
• humans, swine, poultry
• Monogastric with a functional cecum
• horses, elephant, rabbit
• Ruminant (polygastric - 4 compartments)
• cattle, sheep, goats

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Basic Components of ALL Digestive
Systems(Monogastric)

• Mouth
• particle size reduction by mastication (chewing)
• Stomach
• storage compartment
• physical breakdown of feed
• chemical digestion (HCl, Pepsin) Acidic pH 2

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Basic Components of ALL Digestive
Systems(Monogastric)

• Small Intestine (pH 6-7)
• Enzymatic digestion
• from pancreas, liver, small intestine
• breakdown peptides to amino acids
• breakdown CHOs to sugars (glucose)
• Absorption of nutrients

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Basic Components of ALL Digestive
Systems(Monogastric)

• Large Intestine
• Water resorption
• Storage of undigested food
• Microbial fermentation (limited absorption)

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Animal NutritionFeedstuff Evaluation
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Terminolgy

• DM Dry Matter (no water)
• Extremely variable
• Grains 70 - 95 DM (30 - 5 water)
• Forages 5 - 95 DM (95 - 5 water)

• Nutrient profiles must be compared on an
  equivalent DM basis.

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Example
DM
DM
H2O
As Fed (diluted nutrients) (heavy weight)
DM Basis (conc. nutrients) (light weight)
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Terminology

• TDN
• Total Digestible Nutrients
• Measure of energy
• CF
• Crude Fiber
• Measure of lowly digestible material
• cellulose, lignin
• cellulose hemicellulose digested by microbes

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Terminology

• CP
• Crude Protein
• measure of amino acids / nitrogenous cpds
• CP N x 6.25
• True Protein AAs only (swine, humans)
• NPN Non-Protein Nitrogen
• contains N converted to protein by microbes
• may be fed to older ruminants

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Animal NutritionFeeds and Feeding
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Classes of Feedstuffs

• Dry Forages and Roughages
• gt 18 CF
• Dry gt 85 DM
• Low energy, high cell wall content
• Ex) Stalks, straw, hay
• Fresh Forages
• High moisture (5 - 20 DM)
• High CF

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Classes of Feedstuffs

• Silage
• Forage crops (whole plant)
• Preserved by fermentation under anaerobic
  conditions
• 30 - 60 DM
• Ex) Corn silage, haylage

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Classes of Feedstuffs

• Concentrates (energy feeds)
• lt 18 CF
• lt 20 CP
• Starch - CHOs
• Grains corn, oats, barley, wheat
• By-products molasses, citrus pulp

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Classes of Feedstuffs

• Protein Supplements
• gt 20 CP
• Plant sources
• Soybean meal - commonly used for swine
• Cottonseed meal
• Animal sources
• Blood meal
• Dried whey or milk
• NPN - urea (281 CP)

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Classes of Feedstuffs

• Mineral Supplements
• Dicalcium phosphate
• Limestone
• Vitamin Supplements

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Feeding LivestockBasic Considerations

• Type of animal being fed -- species
• Differences in digestive systems
• Ruminant cattle, sheep, goats
• Non-ruminants
• Monogastrics swine, poultry
• MG with a functional cecum horse

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Feeding LivestockBasic Considerations

• What are the nutrient requirements?
• Weight
• Maintenance reqts ? as body weight ?
• Stage of production
• Pregnant ? (? reqts)
• Lactating ? (? reqts)
• Growing ? (? reqts)

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Feeding LivestockBasic Considerations

• What are the nutrient requirements?
• Expected level of performance
• ADG 1.5 vs. 4.5
• Produce lots of milk or little milk
• Horses Are they loafin or workin?

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Feeding LivestockBasic Considerations

• What are the available feedstuffs
• Nutrient content
• variation among like feeds -- analyze it!
• NRC -- publish avg values of nutrient content
• Cost

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Feeding LivestockBasic Considerations

• What are the available feedstuffs
• Limiting factors
• cause metabolic or digestive problems
• difficulty of feeding or mixing
• palatability problems
• availability

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Mmmm, . LUNCH!
Nutritional Feeding Management of Swine
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Digestive System
Monogastric (Simple stomach)
Small Intestine
Large Intestine
Cecum
Example humans, swine, poultry
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Feeding Management

• Feedstuffs
• Corn Soybean Meal basis for most diets.
• Supplement synthetic AAs
• Lysine, Methionine, Tryptophan, Threonine
• Feeding Practices
• segregated early weaning wean _at_ 10-14 days
• split-sex feeding differences in composition
• market gilts receive a higher protein diet
• phase feeding change diet every 2 wks
• due to continual changes in body composition

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Digestive Physiology Feeding Management of the
Horse
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Digestive System of the Horse(monogastric with
functional cecum)

• All organs have the same function as in the
  monogastric, except for the
• Cecum
• microbial fermentation (similar to ruminants)

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Digestive System of the Horse
Monogastric with a Functional Cecum
Small Intestine
Example horses, elephants, rabbits
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Digestive System of the Horse(monogastric with
functional cecum)

• Cecum site of microbial fermentation in horse
• production of volatile fatty acids (VFAs)
• used as an energy source
• production of microbial protein
• synthesis of B-vitamins by the microbes
• limited usage no digestion
  post-gastric

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FEEDING PROGRAMS FOR HORSESPasture and Hay

• Forage is the foundation
• Pasture programs
• Quality hay green leafy free of mold, dust
• Legumes Ex) alfalfa, clovers -- gt protein,
  energy
• Cool season grass Ex) timothy
• Warm season grass Ex) coastal bermudagrass

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Nutritional and Feeding Management of Beef Cattle
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Types of Digestive Systems
Ruminant
Rumen
Example cattle, sheep, goats
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Ruminant Digestive System(Pre-gastric
fermentation)

• Mouth - functions to reduce particle size
• Initial mastication (chewing)
• Rumination (cud chewing)
• Regurgitation
• Remastication
• More saliva
• Reswallowing

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Ruminant Digestive System

• Rumen (50 gallon capacity)
• Storage
• Physical mixing
• Fermentation chamber
• Breakdown of cellulose by microbes
• Release of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) energy
• bacterial synthesis water-soluble vitamins K
• bacterial synthesis microbial protein

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Ruminant Digestive SystemSymbiotic Relationship

• MICROBE
• Use diet energy (CHO) and N for own growth
• Excrete VFAs as a waste product
• ANIMAL
• Digest microbes to retrieve protein vitamins
• VFAs (acetate, butyrate, propionate)
• absorbed through rumen wall
• serve as an energy source for the animal

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Ruminant Digestive System

• Reticulum
• Forces the cud back to the mouth
• Omasum
• Absorption of water
• Abomasum (true stomach)
• Acidic digestion
• Small and Large Intestines
• same as for the monogastric

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Feeding Management

• Feedstuffs
• 83 of feed used in the production of beef is
  from non-grain sources.
• Forages -- fresh, hay, silage, crop residue
• Grains (energy concentrates) -- Feedlots
• corn, milo, barley
• Byproduct concentrates -- Cow/calf
• used to supplement the forage
• molasses, cottonseed, soyhulls, citrus pulp, etc.

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Basic Feeding Management

• Nutrient Requirements -- cows
• lowest dry period highest lactation
• Body Condition Scoring
• Scores 1-9
• 1 emaciated
• 5 moderate
• 9 obese
• monitors the adequacy of your nutrition program
• Normal Consumption 2-3 of BW in DM

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Basic Feeding Management

• Cow Herd
• forage based diet supplement (as needed)
• feed to maintain weight moderate condition
• Calves
• dams milk is usually adequate
• may creep feed
• high energy, palatable feed offered to calves only

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Basic Feeding Management

• Stockers
• pasture -- native range, winter wheat
• Feedlot
• feed for maximum gains efficiency
• 80-90 grain (corn or milo)
• steam-flaked corn flakes -- improves
  utilization