Increased feeding frequency increased milk fat yield and may reduce the severity of subacute ruminal acidosis in higher-risk cows

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The objectives of this study were to determine whether feeding behavior is different between cows at higher or lower risk for subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA) and whether increasing feeding frequency could be used to reduce the severity of SARA in higher-risk cows. In preliminary studies, 16 ruminally cannulated lactating cows were fed high-grain diets once per day to increase the risk of SARA. After a 17-d diet adaptation, ruminal pH was measured every 30 s over 24 h. Cows were classified as higher-risk (n = 7) or lower-risk (n = 9) for SARA based on an acidosis index (area of pH <5.8/dry matter intake). Feeding behavior was recorded every 5 min over the same 24 h. The 24-h observation period was analyzed in 3 periods of 8 h after feeding. Although there was no significant difference in overall dry matter intake, higher-risk cows spent more time eating in the first 8-h period after feeding than lower-risk cows (186 vs. 153 min) and less time eating in the third 8-h period (19 vs. 43 min). In the primary experiment, 8 ruminally cannulated lactating cows were fed a high-grain diet once per day (1×; 0800 h) or 3 times per day (3×; 0800, 1500, and 2000 h) in a crossover design with 21-d periods (16 d of treatment adaptation and 5 d of data collection). Rumen pH and feeding behavior were measured over 72 h. Behavior data were summarized separately for the 3 periods (0800 to 1500, 1500 to 2200, and 2200 to 0800 h). Four cows were categorized as higher-risk and 4 as lower-risk, based on their acidosis index. The 3× feeding reduced eating time between 0800 and 1500 h (99 vs. 145 min) and increased eating time between 2200 and 0800 h (76 vs. 43 min) for all cows, regardless of category, compared with 1× feeding. For higher-risk cows, 3× feeding reduced the area below pH 5.8 (51 vs. 98 pH × min/d), but it did not affect rumen pH for the lower-risk cows. Milk yield was not different between groups, but 3× feeding increased milk fat yield (1.22 vs. 1.08 kg/d) for all cows, regardless of category, compared to 1× feeding. Our results suggest that cows at higher risk for SARA eat less evenly throughout the day; increasing feeding frequency may reduce the severity of SARA in higher-risk cows and may also increase milk fat yield.