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Cattle require good mineral program

After coming through a challenging winter, its important to make sure cattle are on a good mineral program.

Saskatchewan Livestock and Feed Extension Specialist Travis Peardon says in order for a cow to calve at the same time next year she must rebreed within 80-83 days after calving.

He notes having a good nutrition program is fundamental.

"Having a strong mineral program is really important for your cow herd. It has a positive effect on feed efficiency. It has an effect on growth, immune function and then most importantly fertility. Those are probably the biggest reasons we want to have a good mineral program for our cows."

When looking at your mineral program, the most talked about macro minerals are calcium and phosphorus and their ratio in the body, which should be at least two to one.

The type of forage or pasture will influence this ratio as legumes are generally high in calcium while grasses tend to be lower.

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Trending Video

What Happens When Pigs Adapt to High Soybean Meal Diets? - Gustavo Lima

Video: What Happens When Pigs Adapt to High Soybean Meal Diets? - Gustavo Lima



In this special rerun episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Gustavo Lima, PhD candidate in Animal Science at Iowa State University, discusses how grow-finish pigs respond to high soybean meal diets. He explains the initial drop in feed intake, changes in backfat, later adaptation, energy efficiency, amino acid utilization, and the rise in nitrogen excretion at higher inclusion levels. Listen now on all major platforms!

Click here to read the full research article: https://academic.oup.com/jas/article/...

“Once they got adapted to the diet, they can handle higher levels of inclusion of soybean meal.”

Meet the guest: Gustavo Lima / gustavo-lima-a9867127 is a PhD candidate in Animal Science at Iowa State University whose work focuses on swine nutrition, ingredient characterization, energy metabolism, caloric efficiency, and applied data analysis. With more than 15 years of experience in swine production across Latin America, Gustavo also brings expertise in environmental control, performance evaluation, barn ventilation, and grow-finish housing. Learn more from Gustavo Lima on The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, available on all major platforms.