Livestock feeds are classified as concentrates and roughages.
The concentrates have a low fibre-less than 18 percent and possess a
high total digestible nutrient value.
They include cereals, oilseeds, oilcakes, and cereal
and animal by-products. The feeds having a fibre content above 18 percent
and a low total digestible nutrient value are classed as roughages,
e.g. cultivated fodders, silages, hays and straws.
Cereals, pulses and their by-products
The cereals are rich in starch, with a low percentage
of crude fibre, and are greatly relished by livestock. Their protein
content is low and they lack in essential amino acids.
Oilseeds and oilcakes
Oilseeds and oilcakes are protein-rich feeds. They are
highly palatable, easily digested and are generally used to balance
rations of farm stock in respect of protein. They are rich in phosphorus
but poor in calcium content.
Legumes
Among the green forage crops, legumes occupy a place
of particular importance. Of all the common roughages, they are the
richest in carotene, calcium and protein. They contain high-quality
protein, which can supplement effectively the deficiencies of protein
in cereal grains.
Straws
Of all the foodstuffs, straws are perhaps the poorest
in protein and have the largest percentage of crude fibre. They are
comparatively poor in phosphorus, in available calcium and also in trace
element, but are rich in sillica.
Hay
The nutritive value of hay depends upon the stage of
maturity at which the herbage is harvested for conversion into hay.
While the early cuttings are more nutritious, late cuttings yield a
larger weight.
Silages
The most economical method of raising livestock is to
feed them on grasses and legumes directly from the fields.
Ikisan - Fodder for cattle
Fodder for cattle
Conservation of fodder
Napier grass
Para grass
Jo war grass
Preservation of fodder without much loss of nutrients
is the main aim of conservation.
Fodder is cut before maturity ensuring optimum
availability of nutrients.
Fodder could be preserved by sun drying (HAY),
in artificial driers (DRIEDGRASS) and in airtight chambers (SILAGE)
SILAGE is a fermented green forage product prepared under anaerobic
conditions.
Good silage is yellow-brown color, with a characteristic
acid fruity smell and just exude moisture when squeezed.
Jowar and maize are the best crops suitable for
ensiling. All non-leguminous fodder crops except turnip and rape.
Hybrid Napier, Sudan grass, Berseem, Oats cow pia,
millets are also suitable crops.
They have to be wilted for 3-4 to increase dry
matter to around 35% before ensiling. The crop is chaffed 2-4 cm in
length and packed air tight in trench silo. A m3 of silage weighs 650
kgs.
The forage crop from 0.3 ha in a circular silo
3m diameter and 2.5m depth is enough to feed 5 animals @ 20 kg / day
for 150 days.
To increase the sugar content of pure legume tonnage
adds 2-3 gallons of molasses and water each for one ton of green forage.
The airtight pit stacked with fodder would be
ready in 90 days with a PH of 5.8 and a lactic acid % of 0.1.
Excess of butyric acid formation would lead to
more proteolysis there by reducing the digestibility and intake of silage
by cattle. Best quality silage has a PH of 4.2, lactic acid 10.5% and
Butyric acid 0%.
Ikisan - Fodder Development for higher production
Fodder Development for higher production
The fodder production in the State is only marginal. By and large
the cattle, buffaloes, sheep and goat subsist on crop residues.
Fodder is grown in only 3% of the agricultural land as against 8%
recommended.
As such the state is facing deficit of about 100 lakh metric tons
of fodder every year and milk production is seriously constrained due
to this deficit.
The thrust of the department has therefore been on promoting nutritious
fodder production by popularising the cultivation of high yielding fodder
and pasture varieties and distribution of different varieties of fodder
seed.
Fodder production is also being taken up on large-scale utilising
wastelands, community lands and fallow lands.
Silvipasture and hortipasture development is undertaken by DRDA, DPAP,
and Vanasamrakshana.
The following are the different preparation ratios of
feed mixture using locally available feeds
S.No.
Feed Ingredients
Feed mixtures
1
2
3
4
5
6
1
Cereal grains
30
20
20
30
40
30
2
Wheat Bran, Rice Bran
32
50
40
50
10
-
3
Ghani Cake
25
20
20
20
20
25
4
Bengal gram, green gram and black gram bran
-
-
20
-
30
25
5
Cotton seed meal
-
-
-
-
-
20
6
Jaggery
10
7
-
-
-
-
7
Mineral mix
3
3
3
3
3
3
In the above mixtures 68-70% digestible Carbohydrates
and 14-16% digestible Proteins will be available.
Green Fodder, Hay and feed request for the
milch cattle:
Milk production (kgs)
Green grass (kg)
Hay (kg)
Feed in kgs
Buffaloes
Cow
When plenty of green grass is available:
5
30
4
-
-
5-8
30
4
1.5
1.0
8-11
30
4
2.00
1.5
11-15
30
4
3.00
2.5
When scarcity of green grass:
5
4
8
2.0
1.5
5-8
4
8
3.0
2.5
8-11
4
8
4.5
3.0
11-15
4
8
5.0
3.5
Ikisan - Hay Making for the livestock
Hay Making
Good quality herbage at the flowering stage is
cut early in the morning and left in the field.
After 4-5 hrs the cut fodder is turned and by next
day afternoon the moisture content would come down to 25% crops cut
at hay making stage may contain 20-25 lt of water/ha.
For safe storage moisture content should not be
more than 15% which can be ensured by frequent turning and spreading
the hay over a wide area.
Legume and non-legume forage crops can be used
for HAY making.
Ikisan - Feeding concentrates to mulch cows
Feeding concentrates to mulch cows
Concentrates are an important and integral part
of a ration for a dairy cow as they supply energy (TDN) and proteins
(DCP) in right proportion.
Some of the salient features are
They should have 15% DCP and 70% TDN
1/3rd of dry matter (DM) requirements should be
met by concentrates
Concentrates should not constitute more than 60%
of the ration. It may lead to milk fat depression
Pregnant animals above 6 months of gestation should
be given an extra 1-2 kg of concentrate mixture
For every 2 kg of milk produced, buffaloes require
1 kg of concentrate feed
For every 3 kg of milk produced, cows require
1 kg of concentrate feed
Cows in first and second lactation will still
be growing so they are provided 20% and 10% more ration over the maintenance
allowance respectively
NRC recommends 17% crude fibre (CF) in the total
ration DM to prevent milk fat depression
Provide an extra allowance of 1-1.5 kg concentrate
mixture during first 2 months after calving
Plenty of fresh water should be provided as its
requirement is 4 times that of DM consumption
If a dairy cow consumes 2% DM when dry, it will
consume 4-5% DM while yielding 20-30 of milk / day
If the milk yield is 15-30 kg / day then the DCP,
TDN requirements are more by 10%
