Live yeast improves health and performance...
A simple low-cost dairy system is delivering results for one farmer in County Armagh. Jim Scott, who farms 80 acres in Killylea, runs a mixed herd with MRI cows, Brown Swiss and some Holsteins and averages nearly 7,000 litres of milk per cow per year.
Milk quality is excellent, with butterfats of 4.60% and protein levels at 3.94% which Jim puts down to the mix of cow breeds as well as good feeding.
Jim runs the farm single handedly so simple management systems are the order of the day. The herd is grazed in the summer months and then grass is cut and carried in the autumn to make the most of autumn grass.
During the winter months cows have access to self-feed grass silage and are given nuts in the parlour, which are supplied by a local feed mill. To make sure that rumen health is optimised Jim has fed a compound feed containing protected live yeast Actisaf for more than 10 years and he wouldn’t be without it.
“When we first put Actisaf in the feed we saw fewer overall problems with the cows. They seemed healthier and performance improved,” Jim explained.
And the overall health of the animals bears testament to Jim’s claim. Lameness and mastitis levels are generally low, and fertility is good.
“We had tried other yeasts, but they just didn’t deliver the same results,” Jim said. “I’m definitely sticking with Actisaf® and I wouldn’t take it out of my ration.”
Instead of rearing his own replacement stock, all of his cows are put to an Angus bull, with the resulting calves being reared on and sold as store cattle once they hit a target weight of 450-500kg.
Jim knows that to hit this target weight as quickly as possible it is best to maximise early growth – ideally aiming for target weaning weights of double birth weight within 8 weeks.
The combination of Actisaf® and Safmannan® supports high levels of feed intake and rapid growth rates, as well as supporting the immune system in the young calf.
Jim now feeds Actisaf® and Safmannan® as supplements to calves, which he buys as a pre-mixed calf bucket, and he adds into milk as soon as they are taken away from the mother.
“Calves are definitely growing faster, and intakes have improved,” Jim explained. “I am finding that a four-month-old calf is typically eating around 4-5kg of meal each day, which is significantly more than before I used Actisaf® and Safmannan®, yet dung remains consistent, and we haven’t suffered with scour. Feed conversion efficiency seems to have improved, and the calves are contented with good coats.
“My calves are doing much better now than they were previously,” concluded Jim, “and I’m confident that this will mean that they reach target sale weights earlier, so it will really pay off. I’m certainly going to continue using Actisaf® and Safmannan® with my calves in the future.”