The optimal moisture content of green feed is: Determination of the chemical composition of feed. Lying area

This is an article for the magazine “Proposition”. The original can be downloaded from

One day, a livestock specialist from one of the departments of a large agricultural holding said the following phrase: “Yes, they force us to count dry matter, but we don’t do it”…. The problem is obvious: the specialist does not understand the importance of dry matter in feeding cows, and therefore resists innovation and slows down the increase in milk productivity. Let's figure out whether it is necessary to count how much dry matter animals eat and what this will give to the specialist and the enterprise.

The most important question that every technologist must know the answer to is: “How much dry matter did my cows eat today?” Because milk yield directly depends on this indicator. And the goal of all feeding comes down to a simple task - to make sure that tomorrow the animals eat more dry matter than today.

The amount of dry matter consumed by animals is a key indicator in feeding cows. Only maximum dry matter intake increases milk production! And once again: there is only one way to increase milk productivity: by ensuring that the cow eats more feed. The cow should be trained to consume a little more feed every day. Each additional 500 g of dry matter eaten per day increases the daily milk yield by 1 kg for the entire lactation period.

Why is it important to know how much feed a cow eats?

We can calculate a perfectly balanced diet. But it will remain so only on paper if we do not know how much food the animals actually eat. Let's look at an example. According to calculations, to obtain milk production of 30 liters, an animal must eat 20 kg of dry matter per day. But if you do not control the actual consumption of food, then the technologist remains blind; he does not understand what the animal actually receives. So what if this figure is actually only 13.5 kg? In our example (see tables below), the animal will not receive 42 MJ of NEL, 907 g of digested protein and will be able to reach a productivity of 17 kg instead of the planned 30 kg.

Another common mistake is feeding cows with very wet, bulky feed. Returning to the previous example, 8 kg of corn silage at 30% DM contains 2.4 kg of dry matter. And the same 8 kg of silage with an indicator of 20% DM - only 1.6 kg of dry matter.

So, objective control of feeding and a systematic increase in productivity can be carried out only by knowing the amount of dry matter in feed raw materials and the actual consumption of dry matter by animals.

How much dry matter do your cows eat?

8 – 10 – 12 or all 20 kg? It is this indicator that distinguishes low-productive herds from highly productive ones. The maximum dry matter intake lies, depending on the breed and type, between 18 and 26 kg. It averages from 3 to 3.5% of the live weight of the animal.

If the average weight of cows in your herd is 550 kg, then you need to aim for 16.5 kg of dry matter per day. All that remains is to figure out how much the animals actually eat.

This is difficult to do because different animals eat different amounts of food, and animals eat differently on different days.

To calculate how much food one animal eats, you need to do the following:

1) select a group of animals that are kept in the same room or part of the room, which are fed the same food from the same feed dispenser;

2) weigh the food that is distributed to the animals;

3) weigh the remaining feed;

5) divide the amount of food eaten by the number of animals;

6) determine the moisture content of the diet and recalculate the amount of food eaten per dry matter.

What influences food intake

So, the task is clear. Animals actually eat, for example, 12 kg of dry matter per day - we need them to eat 16.5 kg. To understand how to achieve this, first let's look at the factors that influence feed intake.

The amount of feed consumed depends on the following factors:

40-60% of the animal: body structure, feeding status and age, stage of pregnancy and lactation;
20-30% of the feed: energy, crude fiber and dry matter, amount of water consumed and amount of formula feed;
by 10-15% of the content: comfort for animals, barn climate;
by 10-15% of the technical support for feeding: feeding with a conveyor, in feeders, feeding with a reserve, feeding with a full mixed ration, etc.

Let's look at these factors in more detail.

Factor influencing food consumption: Animal

The influence of the stage of lactation on the amount of feed consumed

During the dry period, the amount of feed that a cow consumes decreases by 25-30%. For a good start in lactation, it is crucial to maintain the reduction in feed intake before calving as much as possible and to reach maximum dry matter intake as soon as possible after calving.

The highest feed intake should be in adult cows between days 40 and 70 of lactation, and in first-calf heifers around day 60, because peak lactation is reached just one month after calving. Since the cow by this time is releasing more energy through milk than she can consume through feed, she must mobilize her own energy reserves from the body (negative energy balance). The sooner high feed consumption is achieved, the less the cow “milks” herself.

At the end of lactation, there is a danger of overfeeding, since with decreasing milk production, feed consumption remains high.

Factor influencing eating: Food

The next most important factor that influences eating is food. The amount of dry matter that animals consume depends on the amount of structural fiber in the diet, the degree of digestion of bulky feed, the amount of concentrates in the diet, and the quality of feed raw materials.

Balance between energy and crude fiber

Diet rich in concentrated feed

It has a high energy content and is therefore easily digested. It does not remain in the rumen for long (little structural fiber). This frees up space for new food and increases food consumption.

But if the length of time the feed remains in the rumen is very short, these benefits are lost due to reduced microbial activity. Then food consumption is significantly reduced, and in critical cases, the functioning of the rumen can be completely disrupted. Milk yield and fat content in milk are reduced.

Diet rich in crude fiber

Excess structural crude fiber leads to a decrease in the energy content of the diet due to a lack of easily digestible carbohydrates. Poor digestibility is associated with this.
Undigested roughage remains in the rumen longer and thereby limits dry matter intake and reduces milk production.

The energy density in the basic diet should be at least 6 MJ PERSON/kg DM.

Quality of main feed

Digestibility

The most important criterion is digestibility, and therefore energy content.
The higher the energy content, the more energy the cow consumes. (see box below)
The more energy in the main feed, the lower the consumption of concentrates, which means the lower the cost of milk.
The energy content depends on the type of feed, the correct time of mowing, and therefore the content of crude fiber in the feed, the ensiling process, and so on.

These fluctuations can be evened out by balancing feed (i.e. by adding concentrates).

Quality

It is of great importance.
Heating the feed and the presence of mold greatly reduces the palatability of the feed.

The poor quality of the main feed cannot be compensated for by increasing the supply of concentrated feed, since then the amount of the main feed eaten is greatly reduced (displacement of the main feed due to the concentrated feed).

Amount of concentrated feed

Thanks to the addition of concentrates, the amount of nutrients and energy, as well as the digestibility of the entire diet, increases.
Concentrates are used only as needed - for milk yield, which cannot be provided from the main feed.
But be careful: it is possible to replace the main feed with commercial feed.

Basic rule for concentrates: as much as necessary, but: as little as possible.

Feed moisture

Wet silage, due to the much worse quality of fermentation (acetic acid, etc.) and increased losses during ensiling, is not eaten as well as silage with normal moisture.
Rations that are too dry are prone to separation, while rations that are too wet will become soggy in the mixer.
If the total dry matter is too high, water must be added to the main feed.

For mixed diets, the optimal number lies in the range of 40 – 55%.

Water consumption

Water intake influences rumen activity and thus dry matter intake.
Reducing water consumption by 40% reduces dry matter intake by 16-24%.
Therefore, it is very important that animals, both in barns and on pasture, always have access to water.
A cow needs 30-35 liters per day to maintain vital functions
3-5 liters per day are needed for EVERY liter of milk production

a cow whose productivity is 30 l/day needs 35+30x5=185 l of water per day

Factor influencing eating: Content

Comfort

Factors that take into account the physiological and instinctive needs of a herd animal:

herd animals eat or rest at the same time: loose housing and a separate place at the feeder and rest, as well as sufficient distances for movement;
competition when eating: the presence of feed grates;
forward movements: exercise yard, soft soil and soft bedding, combined paved and thatched areas
rubbing, scratching, licking: presence of brushes for carding in the barn

Lying area

Cows can and should lie for 10 to 14 hours a day.
Cows that rest lying down have increased blood flow through the udder than cows that stand and therefore produce more milk.
Chewing produces saliva, which regulates the acidity level in the rumen and is thus a natural defense against excessive acidity (acidosis).
While lying down, the hooves and joints are unloaded, the horny tissues of the hooves can dry out and thereby become harder.
For cows to lie down, a free space of 60 to 80 centimeters per head is required.
The resting place should be clean, dry and with soft bedding.
And good ventilation - otherwise gases accumulate below, and animals avoid lying down.

Feeders

Ideally, the feeding table is raised 10-15 cm above the floor.
Due to the clear subordination and the need to eat at the same time, the passages in the barn should be 3-4 meters wide and, ideally, there should be a place for each animal near the feeding table.
The feed table should have a smooth surface, be odorless and reduce the possibility of damage to the tongue of cows.
The cervical partition of the feeder should not put pressure on the animals’ necks from above, and the larynx should not be pressed against the bottom of the feeder.

Temperature

Higher feed intake is possible primarily at lower temperatures.
Animals that are stressed due to heat, although they drink more, eat less and produce less milk.
Cows tolerate cold, dry weather better than hot, humid weather.
For good productivity, optimal temperatures should lie between 7 and 17°C.
Stress begins when the temperature rises above 27°C and the relative humidity is more than 80%.
Cold stress primarily occurs when animals are damp or even wet and therefore the fur loses its insulating function.
The ventilation system must be able to remove excess heat and humidity.

Light

Light has a positive effect on general condition, feed consumption, milk production and reproductive qualities.
In this case, both the quality (frequency of light or “color”), as well as the intensity of light (lightness) and duration of illumination play a role.
In the feeding table area the light intensity should be stimulating, from 7,000 to 10,000 lux; in the rest area it can be darker.
Positive experiences have been gained in barns where animals live in natural light and in an environmental climate.

A barn with the possibility of walking allows free movement and improves lighting and air conditions for the animals.

Factor influencing eating: Feeding technology

The way in which animals receive feed also influences whether animals eat feed: is it a fully mixed diet or concentrates are fed separately. See below for more details.

Feeding roughage

Eating roughage should be possible around the clock.
At least once a day, it is necessary to remove any remaining food from the feeders and distribute fresh food.
If the feed remains in the feeders for more than two days, it heats up from the air temperature in the barn and is saturated with gases.
Due to a long stay in the feeder, the feed loses its nutritional value and quality and therefore the consumption of feed by animals decreases.

Feeding concentrated feed

To ensure healthy rumen function, it is necessary to feed a maximum of 3-4 kg of concentrated feed at a time, and if the concentrated feed consists mainly of grains, then only about 2 kg.
The rest of the concentrated feed must be distributed in such a way that it is fed at least 4 hours apart.
Automatic installations (feeding stations) provide a good opportunity to feed concentrated feed with the greatest benefit and in optimal proportion.

Completely mixed diet

From a physiological point of view, the combined supply of roughage and concentrated feed as a completely mixed diet is ideal.
For highly productive groups, each cow should have a place at the feeder.
For cows in the third period of lactation or dry cows, one feeding place can be designed for 2-2.5 animals.
If the main feed does not heat up quickly (at normal barn temperatures), then dispensing feed once a day is sufficient.

Constantly ask yourself questions

Did the cows eat everything today?

How much did they eat (kg DM/bird/day)?

Did they eat more or less yesterday?

Can I change this?

Does it make sense to encourage animals to eat more?

If yes, then how to do it?

Measure, weigh, count and record

Daily:

amount of feed consumed, minus residues, to calculate dry matter intake;
daily milk yield;
additionally: external temperature, hoof treatment, transfer to other groups, food changes, etc.

Weekly:

determination of dry matter content in a microwave oven or oven to adjust the diet accordingly

Monthly:

Determination of body condition by groups of cows
laboratory analysis of the nutritional value of bulk feeds as a basis for calculating rations

To ensure optimal feeding levels you must:

Offer fresh feed constantly, not just when cows return from milking.
If the food gets warm in the summer, it needs to be mixed and fed again several times. Especially in summer, it is necessary to feed haylage that is resistant to further fermentation. The food should not smell.
Frequent mechanical pushing of feed encourages cows to consume more feed and limits the cow's ability to sort feed.
The feeding table must be cleaned regularly. Do not allow food residues to remain in the corners.
Feed by offering 5-10% more feed than required to ensure the cow is well fed. Leftover feed is not considered waste, but is an indicator of good feeding management and can be used, for example, for feeding young animals.
In highly productive groups, each animal should be given a place to feed. Only 10% of the larger population is allowed. If possible, keep the first calf in a separate group.
The cow must have constant, free access to feed. When kept in a box, the feeding passage should be as wide as possible (at least 3.5 meters).
The diet must be balanced in accordance with feeding standards.
Changing the diet should be very careful, have its own justification and understanding of the reasons.
It is necessary to monitor the quality of mixing (homogeneity, required structure).
Control over selective consumption of the diet (observation of animals, comparison of leftover feed with the original diet).
The feeding control function must be officially established and included in the job description of the employee to whom it is assigned.

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Determination of initial moisture is carried out immediately after the feed arrives at the laboratory. Moisture that evaporates from a sample of natural food at a temperature of 60-65 o C is called initial. The essence of the method: the gravimetric method is based on weighing the sample before and after drying, the difference between the first and second weighing is expressed in %.

The initial moisture is calculated using the formula: Хп = m/ Н*100%, m is the mass of water, the evaporated sample of feed, g, H is the mass of the sample of feed.

Determination of hygroscopic moisture. Food brought into an air-dry state contains a small amount of water and is called hygroscopic. The method is based on drying a sample of feed at a temperature of 100-105 o C. The difference between the weight of the feed before and after drying shows the mass fraction of hygroscopic moisture in the sample. Хг= m/Н*100%.

Total humidity is calculated based on the results of determining the initial and hygroscopic moisture using the formula: X = Xn + Xg (100-Xn)/100%

The dry content of a given feed (%) is determined by subtracting the percentage of total moisture from 100.

1. Features of feeding poultry. Dry and combined types of feeding.

Currently, rationing of poultry feeding is carried out according to 38 indicators. In feed rations, birds control metabolic energy, crude protein, fiber, fat, calcium, phosphorus, sodium, manganese, zinc, iron, copper, cobalt, iodine, lysine, methionium, cystine, tryptophan, arginine, histidine, leucine, ozoleucine, phenylalanine , threonine, valine, glycine, vitamins A, D, E, K, Bl B2, B3, B4, B5, B6, B12, Bc, H.

Poultry has its own peculiarities of digestion. It has no teeth in the oral cavity, the bird grabs food with its horny beak and swallows it whole, the salivary glands are poorly developed. In chickens and turkeys, the esophagus expands before entering the chest cavity, forming a goiter. When food enters the crop, it swells and softens under the influence of temperature and humidity. From the crop, food first enters the glandular stomach, then into the muscular stomach. Typically, the gizzard contains small pebbles, sand (gravel) and other objects that the bird swallows. In the intestines of birds, the reaction is slightly acidic, lactic acid microorganisms predominate, and food does not remain for long. The entire digestion process ends quickly; in young animals and hens, food passes through the entire digestive canal in 4-5 hours, so the digestibility of feed is somewhat reduced compared to other animals. In the body of birds, amino acids and vitamins B and K are insufficiently synthesized.

Rationing of energy, nutrients and biologically active substances for poultry with the dry type of feeding is carried out per 100 g of dry feed mixture (compound feed), with a combined type of feeding - per head per day.

Poultry's need for vitamins and microelements is normalized by guaranteed additives per 1 ton of feed or per 1 kg of a mixture of concentrated diet feed.

Guaranteed additives of vitamins and microelements are introduced into mixed feed as part of premixes at the rate of 10 g per 1 kg of compound feed or dry feed mixture. Doses of guaranteed additives correspond to the poultry’s need for these substances, without taking into account their content in the main components of the feed mixture.

TYPES OF FEEDING: With the dry type of feeding, recommendations are used for rationing the energy and nutritional content in the feed. This type of feeding involves the use of complete feed (PC), in the recipes of which the content of individual feeds is determined in %. When compiling rations for poultry, their structure and optimal rates of input of individual feeds are taken into account. The nutritional value and composition of finished feed depend on the type, age of the bird and the specifics of the resulting product. The amount of feeding of ready-made complete feed is determined by the bird’s daily need for energy, protein and other ingredients.

One of the advantages of the dry type of feeding is that when using complete feed, you can mechanize feed distribution and significantly increase labor productivity.

With a combined type of feeding, the birds are given both complete feed (once a day) and wet mash (1-2 times a day). If necessary, grain is poured into the feeders at night. When using feed of different moisture content in the diet, the norms are applied per 1 head per day.

The advantage of this type of feeding is the use of cheaper raw materials, which makes rations more economical, but complicates the mechanization of feed distribution.

Monitoring the condition of the grass stand, silage and feed ration is accompanied by a visual or instrumental assessment of moisture content, i.e. the quantitative relationships of two components – dry matter and plant moisture – are monitored and managed online. In the process of preparing the raw materials, these relationships are realized during the drying of the grass, gradually bringing them closer to a certain type and quality of feed. Further preserving them during canning and storage of food.

The scheme of target stages for determining moisture and controlling the processes of preparation and silage of feed, according to our observations, is as follows:

Stage I – field: during the pre-harvest period of grass growth and development – 2-3 times (to select the priority indicator of the grass stand and start harvesting the grass);

Stage II is also field: during the period of tedding and weeding of grass - every hour of withering of grass (to control technical means of mechanization of work and preliminary assessment of the quality of feed, as well as determining the optimal timing and technologies for harvesting withered grass);

Stage III – segment-trench: during segmental loading of the trench - non-sampling determination of the moisture content of the silage mass from each vehicle (to control the intensive processes of loading the segment and fermentation of the mass);

Stage IV - trench: during maturation and storage of feed - once after laying the silage mass in the trench, approximately after one month (for receiving and transferring feed stored for storage);

Stage V - feeder: when feeding feed - without selectively, when distributing or preparing feed (to assess the water content of the feed ration).

There are various methods for measuring feed moisture. Today, the most accurate, covering the entire range of possible moisture content of raw materials and feed, is the thermostat-weight method. Such devices include SESH-3M, green mass moisture meter VZM-1 and laboratory drying cabinets.

Samples of green mass or canned feed, silage, haylage, grain haylage, rolled grain are dried at a temperature of 130 o C for 20...100 minutes, depending on the device used, the type of feed and its preparation.

Sampling and moisture determination should be in accordance with generally accepted methods or instrument operating instructions. The table shows the standards for total moisture and dry matter in prepared feed.

Many farms in the Leningrad region still have a Wile-35 moisture meter with a Wile-353 senoprobe. Capacitive moisture meter Wile-35 is designed to measure the moisture content of wheat, barley, oats, cocksfoot seeds, meadow fescue, timothy, meadow clover; herbal flour; and in combination with the Wile-353 hay probe, you can also measure the moisture content of hay in bales and loose hay of various densities, haylage and silage raw materials.

Wile-251 – probe sensor 45 cm long;

Wile-252 – probe sensor 90 cm long;

Wile-253 – parabolic sensor.

Wile-25 is commercially available. The Agrophysical Institute is currently repairing forage harvesting devices and equipment.

Standards for total moisture and dry matter for preliminary and final assessment of feed quality (%)

Type of raw material	Preliminary assessment of raw materials	Final evaluation of finished feed
	Quality classes

Corn silage, no more
Annual silage:
Legumes, no more
Bean-cereal mixtures, no more
Cereal herbs, no more
Silage mass of perennial wilted grasses, no more
Silage mass of perennial uncured grasses, no more
Silage with the use of preservatives/annuals, perennials and their mixtures, no more
Hayage mass:
Legumes and leguminous-cereal grasses
Cereal herbs

Note: numerator – moisture content, %

denominator – dry matter content, %

Source: Zubets V.S., Nazarova N.P. State Scientific Institution AFI of the Russian Agricultural Academy, St. Petersburg

The scheme of target stages for determining moisture and controlling the processes of preparation and silage of feed, according to our observations, is as follows:

Stage I – field: during the pre-harvest period of grass growth and development – 2-3 times (to select the priority indicator of the grass stand and start harvesting the grass);

Stage IV - trench: during maturation and storage of feed - once after laying the silage mass in the trench, approximately after one month (for receiving and transferring feed stored for storage);

Stage V - feeder: when feeding feed - without selectively, when distributing or preparing feed (to assess the water content of the feed ration).

Samples of green mass or canned feed, silage, haylage, grain haylage, rolled grain are dried at a temperature of 130 ° C for 20...100 minutes, depending on the device used, the type of feed and its preparation.

The modern moisture meter Wile-25 is designed for green mass, hay, haylage and silage. It has a wide humidity measurement range from 10 to 70%. Humidity measurement error ±2.0%. Stores and averages up to 99 measurement results. Additional equipment includes:
Wile-251 – probe sensor 45 cm long;
Wile-252 – probe sensor 90 cm long;
Wile-253 – parabolic sensor.
Wile-25 is commercially available. The Agrophysical Institute is currently repairing forage harvesting devices and equipment.

Standards for total moisture and dry matter for preliminary and final assessment of feed quality (%)

Type of raw material	Preliminary assessment of raw materials
	Quality classes
	I	II	III	I	II	III
Corn silage, no more	80/20	82/18	85/15	74/26	80/20	84/16
Annual silage:
- legumes, no more	72/28	74/26	75/25	72/28	74/26	75/25
- legume-cereal mixtures, no more	75/25	80/20	82/18	75/25	80/20	82/18
- cereal herbs, no more	80/20	80/20	82/18	80/20	80/20	82/18
Silage mass of perennial wilted grasses, no more	70/30	70/30	75/25	65/35	65/35	70/30
Silage mass of perennial uncured grasses, no more	75/25	78/22	84/16	-	-	-
Silage with the use of preservatives/annuals, perennials and their mixtures, no more	85/15	82/18	85/15	85/15	82/18	85/15
Hayage mass:
- legumes and legume-cereal herbs	45-60/55-40	45-60/55-40	45-60/55-40	45-60/55-40	45-60/55-40	45-60/55-40
- cereal herbs	40-60/60-40	40-60/60-40	40-60/60-40	40-60/60-40	40-60/60-40	40-60/60-40

Note: in the numerator – moisture content, % in the denominator – dry matter content, %

One of the most popular types of feed for cattle, pigs, sheep and horses is sugar beet pellets. They are made from sugar beet pulp, after extracting the sugar from it. During the production of these granules, especially during drying, it is very important to measure the moisture content. In order for a product to granulate easily, it must have the proper moisture level at the dryer outlet. Excessive humidity can cause mechanisms to jam and cause mold damage to the product during storage. If the granules are too dry, they become brittle and disintegrate, making them unusable.

The drying process is extremely energy intensive and therefore expensive. Installing a moisture sensor at the dryer outlet is a simple and cost-effective way to save money by regulating the moisture content of sugar beets during processing. An automated system with microwave sensors measures the moisture content of food leaving the dryer with an accuracy of +/- 0.5%. In this case, information is transmitted to the control system in real time. As a result, it is possible to regulate the temperature / drying time / speed of movement through the dryer and guarantee the output moisture level of the product that is necessary for granulation or storage.

Advantages

Dryer efficiency increases by reducing energy costs
Guaranteed product quality at the output
Waste reduction
Elimination of dust and color influences

Hydronix microwave humidity sensors are easy to install and can be integrated into new or existing systems. There are two main installation methods. The first is used for uniform flow systems where the screw conveyor is always full. The second is intended for variable flow installations where the screw conveyor can only be partially filled. This type of installation may require a bypass system to ensure a uniform seal and constant flow of product across the sensor surface.

Hydronix recommends installing a Hydro-Mix XT moisture sensor in systems that use a screw conveyor to move product. The Hydro-Mix XT sensor is designed for flush mounting and can therefore be easily installed in either a conveyor or bypass system without obstructing product flow. The Hydronix digital measurement method provides the highest sensor stability and linearity of measurement results. This means that the sensor only needs to be calibrated once during installation and then only tested as part of the manufacturer's quality assurance program.

According to customer reviews, the payback period for sensors in most cases is only a few weeks. The sensors feature an extremely robust and reliable stainless steel construction with a highly wear-resistant ceramic faceplate. The service life of sensors on feed crushers reaches 10 years.