Feeding livestock
Animals need carbohydrates and fats for energy, proteins for growth and milk, minerals and vitamins for health, and plenty of clean water. Ruminants (cattle, goats, sheep) eat roughage (pasture, hay, silage, crop residues) and concentrates (maize bran, cotton seed cake, sunflower cake). Non-ruminants (pigs, poultry) eat mostly concentrates.
| Feed type | Examples | Gives |
|---|---|---|
| Roughage | Napier grass, Rhodes grass, hay, silage | Fibre, bulk, some energy |
| Energy concentrates | Maize germ, molasses, rice bran | Energy |
| Protein concentrates | Cotton seed cake, fish meal, soya | Protein |
| Minerals | Salt lick, bone meal, lime | Calcium, phosphorus, salt |
A cow takes in dry matter (DM) at about 3% of her body weight per day, and needs 3 to 5 litres of water for every litre of milk produced.
A cow weighs 400 kg. How much dry matter does she need each day?
- 3% of body weight.
Answer: 12 kg of dry matter, which may be about 40 kg of fresh Napier grass (30% DM).
Housing, health and management
Housing must give shelter from sun, rain and wind, good ventilation and dryness, enough space, and ease of cleaning. Diseases are controlled by vaccination (for example against foot-and-mouth, anthrax and East Coast fever), dipping or spraying against ticks, deworming, quarantine for new animals, hygiene and veterinary care.
| Disease | Cause | Control |
|---|---|---|
| East Coast fever | Tick-borne protozoan | Dipping, vaccination |
| Foot-and-mouth disease | Virus | Vaccination, movement control |
| Newcastle disease | Virus (poultry) | Vaccination |
| Mastitis | Bacteria in the udder | Hygiene, treatment |
| Worms | Parasites | Deworming, rotation of pasture |
For a dairy cow: milk by hand or machine twice a day, with clean hands and clean udders; cool the milk quickly; keep records of yield. For poultry: brooding chicks at 32–35 °C, feeding chick mash, growers mash and layers mash, providing 1 square metre per 4 or 5 birds in a deep litter house.
Choose the weight of the cow and her milk yield.
Key terms
- Roughage
- Bulky feed rich in fibre.
- Concentrate
- Feed rich in energy or protein with little fibre.
- Vaccination
- Giving a vaccine to protect against disease.
- Brooding
- Keeping chicks warm in the first weeks.
Summary
- Livestock need energy, protein, minerals, vitamins and water.
- Ruminants eat roughage; pigs and poultry eat concentrates.
- Control disease by vaccination, dipping, deworming and hygiene.
- A cow eats dry matter equal to about 3% of her weight.