In principle, it should be noted that the use of one type of food alone cannot meet all the needs of the animal, because on the one hand, the volume of the animal's rumen and digestive system is limited, and on the other hand, the animal's body needs a set of food. This set of food items is called food ration, which should be prepared and adjusted according to the maintenance needs, the production needs of the animal and the type of food and considering its financial aspects.
It should be noted that some food items for a certain category From animals it can be a complete food, if it is not so for another group. For example, milk is a perfect food for an infant calf, but after a certain age, this food alone cannot meet all the needs of the animal, so the ewes need more food during pregnancy. Improper and insufficient food has adverse effects on ewes and lambs, because the nutritional needs of the fetus are provided by the mother's food, and the lack of food, especially at the end of the pregnancy period, causes the production of thin and weak lambs, and the right food causes the rapid growth of lambs or calves. to be Also, in fattening, animals need dense and nutritious foods so that their extra weight is economical.
Types of diet
Briefly, ration refers to the set of food that an animal receives during a full day and night. In general, the rations are based on the type of foundation, which varies depending on the type and sex of the animals. If it does not have it, its ration is determined based on the animal's daily needs, which is called the maintenance ration. The female is considered pregnant and their ration is adjusted according to the stage of pregnancy. 3- Production ration: This ration is also based on livestock production (milk, meat wool and...) is adjusted.
What is a concentrate or balanced food?
As mentioned, livestock needs a set of food items for proper production, and it is obvious that all the required food items cannot be found completely in one type of fodder, therefore, to solve these deficiencies, a number of food items with a combination After grinding together, a specific amount of new compressed feed, which is called concentrate, is produced to meet the minimum needs and needs of maintenance and production in the farm. In other words, concentrate or balanced feed is a combination of a number of foods that can provide all the necessary elements and substances of the animal's body sufficiently.
Principles
1- A balanced ration is prepared with awareness of the animal's needs and the composition of its constituent nutrients. 2- A balanced ration provides enough energy and protein needed by the animal. >3- The balanced ration is palatable and has a very high digestibility. 4- The balanced ration contains all the mineral elements and vitamins needed by the animal in the required amount. 5- A balanced ration is free of harmful elements and toxic substances for the animal's body. 6- The cost of a balanced ration is economically reversible, in other words, the price of the ration is lower than the price of the materials produced by the animal. and earns enough profit for the farmer.
7- Balanced ration or concentrate, prepared according to health principles and does not harm the health of the animal and especially does not make the taste and smell of milk and meat unpleasant.
Important Tips in Concentrate
Although the consumption of concentrate is recommended, we must draw the attention of dear livestock farmers to these points, which are of special importance in feeding livestock:
1- If livestock concentrate is used for feeding ruminant livestock for the first time. , it should be slowly and gradually added to the animal's diet to replace the previous food. (at least 2 weeks) 2- In sheep, due to their greater sensitivity to sudden changes in the diet, the diet should be changed slowly and gradually. be done in a longer time. Enterotoxemia vaccine should be used in cases where it is necessary to change the diet quickly. This vaccine is injected when the animal is transferred from the stable to the plain to graze on green grass. 3- At the beginning of feeding with concentrate, a decrease in milk production or stoppage of daily growth of livestock is observed. This is a natural issue and is caused by a change in the diet. If the changes are gradual, this will not be observed. If the new feed continues to be consumed or the animal's digestive system gets used to it, these changes will be resolved and livestock production will gradually increase. 1200 grams, 80-70% of the ration is concentrate and the rest is wood fodder.
5- With the increase of the genetic power of the cow to produce milk, the higher the production, the less amount of feed is needed for each kilogram of milk.
6- Usually, the diet of dairy cows consists of 40% fodder and 60% concentrate.
7- In terms of moisture, every three kilos of corn silage is almost equal to one kilo of dry fodder. Therefore, it is suggested that if there is no silage corn, instead of every three kilos of forage corn silage, 1-1.5 kg of dry fodder should be added to the diet. It alone may harm the health of the animals, so always try to feed the concentrate with wood fodder. 9- In sheep fattening farms, the amount of concentrate can be increased according to the age and daily growth rate of the sheep. He considered the consumption between 300 and 500 grams and increased it up to one kilogram according to the growth and age of the animal. Use the concentrate that has the closest characteristics to the nutritional needs of the animals you are rearing. 11- It is recommended to use beet or sugarcane molasses in the rations of livestock during the cold months of the year to provide the energy deficit required by the animals. But its amount should not be more than normal.
12- To compensate for the lack of minerals in the ration, such as calcium and phosphorus, rock salt and lickable mineral supplementary bricks should be used in livestock mangers.