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Effect of Calcium-Deficient Roughages Upon Milk Yield and Bone Strength in Cattle

Department of Animal Husbandry, Florida Agricultural Experiment Station, Gainesville, Florida

ABSTRACT

Typical rations used in feeding the Jersey cows at the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station during a period of years supplied an excess of protein, energy and phosphorus, but were low in content of calcium. Addition of bonemeal as two per cent of the concentrates was sufficient to render the calcium level adequate for a commercial dairy herd.

This increase in calcium level in the rations allowed 12 Jersey cows to attain an increase of four pounds of milk per day in subsequent lactations, and to be more persistent producers throughout longer lactation periods. At the same time, these cows attained a stage of mineral storage in the skeletal tissues such that the leg bones from nine of them had average breaking strengths in excess of 3,000 pounds. On the other hand, in absence of the calcium supplement, several of these same cows previously had withdrawn mineral reserves from the skeleton to such an extent that an unusual proportion of them had suffered broken hips and ribs.

The possibility of corn silage, grown on low-calcium soils, as a source of roughage for use in studies of calcium metabolism is suggested.