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Journal of Dairy Science Vol. 68 No. 6 1507-1512
© 1985 by American Dairy Science Association ®
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Survey of Nutritional Management Practices and Metabolic Disorders in West Virginia Dairy Herds1

G. A. Varga2, W. H. Hoover and R. A. Dailey

Division of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, West Virginia University, Morgantown 26506

ABSTRACT

Sixteen farmers, representing three major dairy counties in West Virginia, were interviewed to determine current dairy management practices. Herd health records were used to determine the incidence of metabolic and digestive disorders. All feedstuffs used on these farms were sampled for chemical analyses. The total number of cows on the 16 farms surveyed was 1870 with an average herd size of 117 and 6387 kg milk produced per cow per year. Fourteen of the 16 farmers used forage testing services, obtained professional advice on feeding and nutrition, and attempted to feed according to production. Eleven of sixteen farmers increased grain 2 weeks prior to calving and all gradually adjusted the intake of grain to cows recently freshened.

Ration imbalance problems included both excesses and deficiencies of energy, protein, phosphorus, and calcium. Excess calcium, phosphorous, and crude protein were correlated (P<.01, r2 = .74) with the incidence of fat cows. The incidence of metabolic disorders in these herds was low to average and the most prevalent management problem encountered was low butter fat.

FOOTNOTES

1 Published with the approval of the Director of the West Virginia Agriculture and Forestry Experiment Station as Scientific Paper No. 1923. This research was supported by West Virginia Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station Project No. 194.

2 Ruminant Nutrition Laboratory, USDA, Animal Science Institute, Beltsville, MD 20705.






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Copyright © 1985 by the American Dairy Science Association ®.