Effect of Mineral Premix Supplementation on Intake and Digestibility of Repeat Breeder Cows

Abstract

Repeat breeder is a problem faced by cattle farmers in Indonesia. The highest reproductive disease commonly occurring is repeat breeder conditions reaching up to 32.76%. Limited feed conditions cause cows to have a low Body Condition Score (BCS) so that the energy utilization process in the body is not optimal and there is a decrease in BCS which causes disturbances in reproductive performance. If there is a mineral deficiency in the body, the metabolic process will be disrupted, which causes the absorption of nutrients in the body to be less optimal. Feeding cows not only increases body weight but also becomes the basis for the success of the pre-breeding phase, the pregnancy phase, the pre-calving phase and lactation. Energy, protein, fat, and mineral needs need to be met in a balanced way. The level of consumption and digestibility of feed nutrients is a benchmark in meeting nutritional needs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of mineral premix supplementation on breeder cows’ feed consumption and digestibility. This study used the definite cows, which were repeat breeders selected from several farms in Yogyakarta’s Sleman district. The feeding trial lasted for 71 days with a predetermined feed arrangement. The feed provided was forage, commercial concentrate, High Quality Feed Supplement (HQFS) and mineral premix. Then, the data was analyzed by calculating the average value, standard deviation, and coefficient of variation. This study showed that mineral premix supplementation had no significant differences (p>0.05) in nutrient consumption body weight metabolites (DM, OM, CP, EE, ADF, NDF, NFE and TDN) in both treatment groups. In the nutrient digestibility of repeat breeder cows, it was found that there were significant differences in protein parameters (p<0.05), while in DM, OM, EE, NDF, NFE, and TDN, there was no significant difference in the two treatment groups. The digestibility of crude protein in the group given the mineral premix supplementation was higher than that of the group without mineral premix, P0 indicates digestibility of 35.1% and P1 is 45.1%. Consumption and digestibility are strongly influenced by the quality, quantity, and particle size of the feed given. The nutrient composition of the feed that did not differ between P0 and P1 caused consumption and digestibility to be not much different