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The Significance of Mixing Instructions on Feed Bags

Mixing
Posted by on 12 December 2024 and filed under

The rainy season has not yet quite picked up after Namibia's current drought period. Pastures are dry and of low quality. Therefore, urea-containing protein licks are still widely used to help ruminant animals digest dry, lignified grass.

Urea, a non-protein nitrogen, has a protein equivalent of 281%. The nitrogen in the urea is used as a building block for microbial protein. Although urea contains no other nutrients except nitrogen, it makes animal lick supplements more cost-effective. Urea is hydrolyzed in the rumen to ammonia. Rumen microbes use ammonia for their metabolism and the formation of microbial protein. If more ammonia is released than is being utilised by the microbes, toxic levels can be reached as the liver cannot detoxify all the ammonia to be excreted into the urine.

The signs of urea poisoning are tetany (muscle tremors), rapid breathing, bloating, and abdominal pain. The pH in the rumen also rises, killing the essential microbiota. The onset of urea poisoning is very fast. The first signs can show after ten minutes.

Furthermore, Urea poisoning is often fatal. Due to the severity of this type of poisoning, treatment with vinegar, sugar, and cold water is rarely successful.

Thus, it is of the utmost importance to follow feeding and mix instructions for animal feed to prevent animal losses. Lick concentrates must always be further mixed as per the instructions on the bag tickets stitched into the bags. If used correctly, Feedmaster products are safe and beneficial nutrition for ruminants.

Protein/winter licks should be introduced gradually throughout a two-week adaptation period. It is also advisable to feed a phosphate lick, such as Futterfos P14 mixed with salt, one-on-one before feeding protein licks to satisfy the animal's salt hunger, thus preventing overheating on the urea-containing lick.

Care should be taken not to let urea-containing licks rain wet. The urea dissolves into the water together with the molasses from the lick, forming tasty water that the animals like to drink, which can subsequently lead to urea poisoning.

The clients are further advised not to rely on technical advice from the loading personnel at their outlet, as they are not trained to give nutritional advice. Instead, Call Feedmaster on t. 290 1300 and ask for a nutritionist.

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