Amaferm

[vclavin]

Doc said to add 1/2 lb soybean meal per cow per day for lactating cows. He thought they might be getting about a 1lb of protein from hay (HOPE) 1.2lbs protein from grain mix and rest of needed 2.5-2.7 lbs protein per cow would come from the soybean meal. Plan on feeding molasses tubs with Amaferm included.

Question: How slowly does this need to be introduced to their diet. One cow was off feed for several days so I assume my mistake was introducing it all at once..ooops.

How does Amafern affect feed digestion and/or intake?

Thanks
Blessings
Valerie

 

[TexasBred]

I wouldn't think that small amount of soybean meal would have any affect on your cows, let alone cause one to go off feed. As for Amaferm, it's a good product and an expensive one. It basically increases microbial population in the rumen (bacteria and fungi) allowing them to break down the parts of the diet that are less digestible and obtain the nutrients in them. Somewhat like Bovatec and Rumensin but it's not classified as an antibiotic like the ionophores. And unlike yeast products it is not activated until consumed by the cow. Milk butterfat as well as production usually also goes up about 8-10% but this only lasts about 30 days. You can remove the source of the Amaferm for a couple of weeks then put it back into the diet and you'll get the bump in butterfat and milk again. Although expensive cattle only need about 3 grams per head per day of the Amaferm. Hope this helps.

 

[vclavin]

I wouldn't think that small amount of soybean meal would have any affect on your cows, let alone cause one to go off feed. As for Amaferm, it's a good product and an expensive one. It basically increases microbial population in the rumen (bacteria and fungi) allowing them to break down the parts of the diet that are less digestible and obtain the nutrients in them. Somewhat like Bovatec and Rumensin but it's not classified as an antibiotic like the ionophores. And unlike yeast products it is not activated until consumed by the cow. Milk butterfat as well as production usually also goes up about 8-10% but this only lasts about 30 days. You can remove the source of the Amaferm for a couple of weeks then put it back into the diet and you'll get the bump in butterfat and milk again. Although expensive cattle only need about 3 grams per head per day of the Amaferm. Hope this helps.

Yes, thanks for the info. Is Amaferm a man made chemical?

Also, since it works differently than the yeast culture do I assume I should leave it in the feed?

Blessings
Valerie

 

[TexasBred]

Yes, thanks for the info. Is Amaferm a man made chemical?

Also, since it works differently than the yeast culture do I assume I should leave it in the feed?

Blessings
Valerie

Amaferm (Aspergillus Oryzae Fermentation Extract) is just that...an extract...it's grown in a laboratory environment, extracted and sprayed on a carrier..something like wheat midds and allowed to dry. It's a totally different strain of bacteria from your typical yeast products so won't hurt to leave the yeast in the mix. You might ask your feed company to switch to a different yeast product. Something like Lacto-Saac(a product of Alltech) . It contains 4 different yeast strains and has a much lower inclusion rate than normal yeast.