CATION REM – NUTRITIONAL SOLUTION FOR STEAMING UP/CLOSE UP PHASE THAT PREVENTS CLINICAL AND SUBCLINICAL HYPOCALCEMIA IN DAIRY COWS AND MANAGES FORAGE’S MINERAL VARIABILITY IN THE FEED RATION

In the steaming up/close up phase, it’s very important to add the right minerals’ amount, in compliance with the dairy cows’ needs proposed for some years now by the world bibliography, even if it is difficult to implement in daily practice. Infact, the fodder used in the steaming up/close up phase, often brings minerals in excessive quantities compared to the needs, especially as regards cations amount (K+ and Na+ in primis) risking formulating a ration with a high DCAD and exposing dairy cow to metabolic alkalosis and related induced hypocalcemia.

The mineral that, often, creates considerable problems is certainly potassium due to the considerable variability within the forages and the impossibility of relying on standard data to be applied in the rationing phase.

A further problem is given by the difficulty in quantifying the potassium supplied in the laboratory: today the current methods available  (Xrf, NIRs, wet chemistry) often lead to NOT precise or incorrect reporting, leading nutritionists to make rationing errors.
Furthermore, the very heterogeneous forage lots’ management further complicates the pre-calving management (a very important phase for the dairy cow in which the majority of future lactation performances are often affected).

GRANDA TEAM TRANSITION 4.0 PROGRAM

Granda Team, with the TRANSITION 4.0 program, worked trying to develop a solution which,  if it’s administered to the pre-calving ration, would make a portion of potassium ingested by the animal NON-ABSORBIBLE.

The field experience, the R&D department and the analyzes carried out by NUTRIL.HUB have led GRANDA TEAM to formulate a specific solution for the PRECALVING phase:

CATION REM solution, inserted in the ration 15 days before calving, allows a potassium absorption equal to 50% of the total intake in the ration. This makes it possible to balance the mineral intake, regardless of ration administered type, avoiding continuous checks, preventing clinical and subclinical hypocalcemia, simplifying daily management and reducing work stress.

The CATION REM solution allows you to balance the mineral intake in the pre-calving phase regardless of the ration administered, also avoiding subtracting other components that are essential for the correct animal’s nutrition.

In summary, the CATION REM solution is a valid alternative to the anionic strategy:

ANION STRATEGY: administration of anions to balance the excess of cations (potassium and sodium)
EFFECTIVE BUT STRESSFUL FOR THE ANIMAL

CATION REM STRATEGY: removal of excess cations to balance excess cations (potassium)
EFFECTIVE AND NOT STRESSFULL FOR THE ANIMAL

THE NUTRIL.HUB BY GRANDA TEAM ADDED VALUE

In order to correctly calculate the DCAD in a ration, it is necessary to know the total potassium quantity ingested by the cows in question: unfortunately, however, it is not possible to calculate it directly using specially formulated software, as the mineral’s variability in question is extremely wide even in fodder considered low in potassium (e.g. corn silage or straw) which are often introduced into the ration in order to reduce the overall intake administered.

THE NUTRIL.HUB ALLOWS:

• CONSTANT MONITORING ON THE ACTUAL QUANTITIES OF MINERALS PRESENT IN ANIMALS’ URINE
• THE RIGHT QUANTITY EVALUATION OF CATION REM TO BE USED TO ABSORB THE 50% OF POTASSIUM PRESENT IN THE PRE-CALVING RATION AND MAKE THE ADOPTED STRATEGY EFFECTIVE

CATION REM STRATEGY OBJECTIVES:

RESULTS OBTAINED BY FARM COMPANIES THAT HAVE MOVED FROM THE ANIONIC STRATEGY USE TO A CATION REM STRATEGY USE IN THE PRE-CALVING PERIOD: