Winter 2019

Page 27

The Science Behind Feeding for Success: Consistency & Simplicity stress if they are fed, exercised and rinsed on a schedule as part of a routine. And, even though we can’t see it and often don’t think about it, their digestive system also adapts to a schedule to keep it healthy and in proper working order. Digestion varies based on several factors. Feed particle size and quality are two of the biggest factors that impact digestion. The smaller particle size, higher-quality feedstuffs takes a shorter amount of time to digest. And of course, different sized animals digest at different rates. Beef cattle take at least twice as long to digest their feed as other small ruminants or pigs. Feeding approximately every 12 hours makes sense, not as just part of your schedule, but the livestock likely have everything digested from the last feeding and are feeling hungry again. “By the time you feed again, your animal should have digested a majority of everything you have fed before, eliminating disruptive swings in its pH level and allowing time to recover,” explains Lindsey Grimes-Hall, Nutrition and Field Sales Support for BioZyme® Inc. “Ideally we like pH levels to remain pretty neutral around six. But when we feed, especially a high-concentrate diet, and when digestion occurs increasing acid production, pH levels will drop. If you don’t allow enough time for your animal’s pH come back up to neutral, that’s when digestive problems such as acidosis can occur.” A lower pH is more acidic, and the animal needs time for the digestion to occur, the pH to drop and then to level back up to neutral. That is just one reason from a digestive standpoint to keep your animals on a schedule. If you were to stretch feedings apart further than 12 hours and your animals’ stomachs get too empty, that pH level can decrease www.sullivansupply.com

Feeding your show livestock is part of a daily routine. But did you know there is a science behind that routine? It might seem convenient to feed your livestock twice a day, approximately 12 hours apart, but that routine plays into the consistency that animals rely on and need to keep their digestive tract working at its maximum efficiency, something we don’t often think about as livestock exhibitors. Like most humans, animals are “creatures of habit” and they are better adjusted to daily habits, thus decreasing

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The Boer Goat - 25


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