Agri
Dry Cow Management
In This Section:
Dry Cow Management
Ideally dry the cow off in the condition you want her to calve down. Manage body condition score (2.5-3.0) to minimise number of over fat cows (see our section on Managing Dry Cow Body Condition for more information on managing fat cows).
Fat cows will have problems with:
- Calving
- Increased risk of metabolic disease and infections
- Poorer production
- Poor fertility
Over fat cows are likely to be a problem if they are dried off in good condition and have a long dry period.
Energy requirement for the cow in the 7th month pregnancy is roughly 40kgs of 68DMD silage. She could eat up to 60kgs. In the 8th month of pregnancy she will eat 43kgs of silage. In the 9th month of pregnancy there is a requirement for her to eat 50kgs of silage but she may not eat this much. The objective is to minimise body condition loss so you should introduce some concentrate for at least the last two weeks if she is losing condition.
Other issues around the dry period are:
- Space – over-crowding or not enough feed space variation in condition score.
- Cows can be bullied and experience social stress
- Poor feed intakes especially in the cows close to calving
As the dairy herd expands it is important that facilities are properly expanded. There is no point adding on 30-40 cubicles and not adding the feed space.
It is advisable to get silage tested.
Some reports on acid silage recommend that you should not feed bicarbonate to dry cows as it increases the risk of milkfever, and related diseases such as retained placenta, metritis, lDA’s etc.
It is always important to feed a pre-calver mineral which should have:
- At least 15% magnesium
- Good levels of vitamins A,D,E which are important for the cow but even more important for the calf.
Feed recommended amount of mineral and spread over the silage twice per day. Feed for 8 weeks before calving and where you have a history of problems around calving, seek advice
