Since high quality forage is essential in a dairy ration, it is improtant to study new methods of preserving hay. In this trial, the effect of a commercial organic acid preservative on nutirent content and feeding value of alfalfa hay was evaluated. Alfalfa hay from a common field was baled at about 20 percent moisture for a control, and at about 28 percent moisture with addition of 0.1 percent...

We evaluated the effect of wet corn gluten feed and a novel product containing raw soybean hulls and corn steep liquor on performance in lactating dairy cows. Forty-six multiparous Holstein cows were used in a randomized incomplete block design. Cows were housed in tie stalls for the first 13 weeks of lactation and moved to group pens for the remainder of the study. Cows were blocked by calving...

Alfalfa hay was steam heated for an average of 47 min at 100 to 110°C; net ruminal protein escape (total escape minus ADIN x 6.25), estimated in vitro, was 50% versus 29% for control hay. Heating increased ADIN content from 4.6 to 15.3% of total N and increased NDF from 43 to 53% of DM. In trial 1, 14 cows averaging 81 DIM and 30 kg/d of milk were fed, in a switchback design, diets containing 1...

Three hundred fifteen crossbred steers (732 ± 9 lb) were used to determine the effects of feeding high levels of Sweet Bran ® during the grain adaptation period on steer performance and carcass characteristics compared with steers fed a steam-flaked corn and alfalfa-based adaptation diet containing 20% Sweet Bran. A traditional step-up procedure was compared to four strategies which utilized Sw...

Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of feeding legume hay (alfalfa; Medicago sativa L.) or mixed-grass hay on ADG and carcass characteristics of growing goats. In Experiment 1, 24 Spanish kids, equally representing female, intact male and wether goats, were pen-fed ad libitum either chopped alfalfa (16.8 percent CP) or mixed grass hay (9.4 percent CP) (3 pens/diet) and a corn/...

Ruminant-derived foods contain high proportions of saturated fats as a result of ruminal biohydrogenation that rapidly saturates and thus limits the availability of free unsaturated fatty acids for assimilation. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of glycerol on ruminal free-fatty acid (FFA) production rates and in vitro fermentation kinetics of alfalfa hay. In vitro incubat...

The disappearance of dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), and amino acids (AA) in steers after rumen incubation and intestinal passage of alfalfa hay, barley hay, corn silage, barley grain, corn grain, wheat bran, meat meal, fish meal, cottonseed meal, and soybean meal were measured in 3 steers using a mobile nylon bag technique. Ruminal degradation of individual AA differed between feedstuffs....

A feeding trial utilizing lactating dairy cows was conducted to compare Eastern gamagrass (Tripsacum dactyloides) and alfalfa hay. Response criteria included feed intake, weight change, and yield and composition of milk. Dry matter intake and milk yield of cows fed alfalfa hay exceeded that of those fed gamagrass hay. There was no significant difference in milk composition, and average weight c...

The great importance of legume hay is recognized by everyone interested in livestock production. Because of this importance, it is highly desirable to obtain data on the nutritive value of the proteins in these hays when they are fed alone and when fed in combination with the protein of corn and other farm-grown grains. It is apparent that the great value of legume hays in stock feeding is larg...