Meeting the feeding requirements of cows with greater genetic potential

摘要

Fertility problems in Ireland can be traced back to poor silage which is not meeting the nutritional requirements of the modern dairy cow. Richard Halleron reports. The increasing use of Holstein semen in commercial dairy herds is creating new management challenges for farmers North and South of the Irish border In both spring and autumn calving situations, producers are finding out that unless cows are maintained in a proper nutritional balance, significant infertility problems will arise. County Limerick, in the south west of Ireland, is home to 70,000 spring calving dairy cows and is also the main catchment area for nutritional consultant David Thompson, who began noticing an increase in fertility problems within herds during the spring of 1994.