Farmers can boost milk production in dry dairy animals by feeding them some salt supplements. Mineral nutrients boosting salts also help in preventing after-parturition diseases such as downers and milk fever, as well as boosting the health of the calve and mother.
The salt contains some minerals, such as copper, manganese, zinc, cobalt, selenium, and molybdenum, that are essential for the overall production of the cow.
According to Coopers Kenya Limited animal and crop officer Joseph Karanja, the productivity of an in-calf cow depends on the minerals feeding rations and mineral supplementation in the two drying months ahead of parturition.
“The calf is growing rapidly from the seventh to the ninth months of pregnancy. The cow is sharing crucial minerals like calcium, sodium chloride, and phosphorus with the calf. These minerals have to be replenished for a healthy mother and calf after the gestation period,” he said.
How your low-yielding dairy cow can start making you more money
Karanja notes that mineral deficiency can attract diseases such as downer, a condition where the cattle lie down, unable to get up or gets up with a lot of difficulty.
The condition is caused by a deficiency of calcium, phosphorus, and other essential minerals resulting in weak bones in animals.
Besides the calcium and phosphorus being used in the formation of the bones of the calf, the minerals are also drawn from the rest of the body to the mammary glands for the formation of colostrum milk.
“The deficiency predisposes the cow to milk fever and hypocalcemia, which lead to a coma and death if no treatment is administered,” added Karanja.
The common characteristics of milk fever are loss of appetite, shuffling of hind feet, dullness, cold ears and dry nose, and apparent loss of coordination of limbs during walking.
With a loss of appetite, milk yields drop drastically, and the cow losses consciousness before slipping into a coma and death.