16. ”Where are my missing milksolids?” Part One - Calving through to peak lactation

In theory, our pasture-fed cows should simply eat pasture and produce milksolids. Shouldn’t they? Well yes, but sometimes on a whole herd basis, we might track the herds milk production and wonder why the herd is not producing as much as they should. In this latest Rumen Room Podcast we’ll explore different aspects of the lactation curve of a spring calving dairy herd, looking for clues to explain why New Zealand spring calving cows might not be delivering the milksolids we’d been expecting. The first in a three-part series, this podcast focuses on the early to peak stages of the lactation curve of a spring calving herd. Factors that might result in cows producing fewer milksolids during early lactation are explored including calving rate, cow body condition score, metabolic disease, amount and quality of pasture and supplementary feeds, and milking frequency, once or twice a day milking. Tune in and see if any of these reasons might explain where your missing milksolids have gone during early lactation. In the second and third parts of this three part series “Where are my missing milk solids” we’ll delve into the post-peak period of the herds lactation curve, exploring reasons for rapid post-peak decline for New Zealand spring calving dairy herds. Risk factors for short lactation length in New Zealand spring calving dairy herds will be covered in a further podcast early in 2023.