Producers in dry areas should pay close attention to the greenfeed and silage offered to their cattle herds this winter.
John McKinnon, beef chair with the University of Saskatchewan’s department of animal and poultry science, said a recent study has shown high potassium levels in feed can cause tetany and milk fever in animals at calving time.
The study examined downer cows from five farms in west-central Saskatchewan during the drought conditions of 2000 and 2001. Researchers discovered calcium-related deficiencies were caused by high potassium rates in greenfeed.
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McKinnon said dry conditions again this year heighten the need for farmers to check the nutritional content of their feed, especially cereal greenfeed and silage used in winter feeding regimens.
He suggested changing the forage content if it is high in potassium to reduce the potassium ratio level or implementing a mineral feeding program high in magnesium and calcium.
The study, initiated in response to 50 herds with downer cows in the drought-stricken Saskatchewan region, found animals in the latter stages of pregnancy experiencing tetany-like problems.
Milk fever and grass or winter tetany are two metabolic diseases that produce symptoms like nervousness, convulsions and paralysis in cattle. The first is caused by either low blood calcium while tetany relates to low blood magnesium. It occurs almost exclusively in females at or around calving.
“If untreated, the cows would die,” said McKinnon.
The university will continue its research this fall on how tetany-like conditions affect beef cattle and what dietary ratios lead to milk fever in cows.
