Hand-Rearing Kids

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         Hand Rearing Kids

  1. Make sure kids get adequate colostrum

The colostrum (or first milk) is rich in protein and energy, and contains a wealth of disease-fighting antibodies which are passed on to the kids soon after birth when they begin suckling. Without these antibodies the kids will remain susceptible to diseases present in the environment, and the mortality rate will be high. Economically, it may not be worthwhile raising kids that have not received adequate colostrum. (NB. Also check on the vaccination history of the does)

  • What to feed

Goats are ruminants, but like all ruminants they are functional monogastrics at birth. This means that they need milk until their rumen is properly functional. Bovasol Milk Replacer is a high quality milk replacer with a milk protein base which is suitable for feeding to kids.

  • Mixing Instructions

The recommended mixing rate for Bovasol Milk Replacer for kids is 150 g, made up to 1 litre with water (or 75 g made up to 500 ml with water). Bovasol Milk Replacer mixes easily in hot or cold water, but it is ESSENTIAL to feed the kids at the SAME temperature every day.

  • How to feed

An ordinary bottle with a teat will be suitable for feeding kids if there are only a few of them. If there are a number of kids to be fed, and time becomes an issue, a multiple feeding system will need to be adopted. Replace damaged teats so that kids don’t drink too fast.

Feeding Rates
1 – 3 days of age Feed 150 ml of milk, four times per day
4 – 10 days of age Feed 300 ml of milk, four times per day
10 – 14 days of age Feed 400 ml of milk, three times per day
14 – 21 days of age Start increasing morning and evening feeds and reduce midday feed until feeding 1 litre, twice per day
21 – 56 days of age Feed 1 litre, twice per day
56 days – 18 kg BW Feed 1 – 1.5 l, once per day
18 – 20 kg BW Reduce milk to 500 ml per day and then wean
  • Make sure the kids have access to fresh, clean water from about 1 hour after they have had a milk feed.
  • Introduce small amounts of a suitable, good quality creep feed from an early age to stimulate rumen development.
  • Allow access to hay and/or pasture from about 10 days old, or as soon as they start to nibble the creep feed.

WHY AREN’T MY RED ROCKIES RED?

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Salt licks are changing

Tithebarn’s Rockies Salt Licks are as balanced and nutritious as they always have been, specially formulated to give the correct amounts of essential minerals and trace elements to all manner of livestock. This year however you will notice that they have changed colour.

When?

All stock manufactured from January 2019 will be a pale grey or beige colour.
The exact colour of each Rockie product will depend on the levels and types of minerals and trace elements included and as these are all naturally occurring ingredients, there will always be variation from batch to batch.

The Regulation Part

From January 2019 Iron oxide is no longer permitted to be used in the manufacture of animal feed. In Rockies this is the ingredient that gives a small content of Iron but also gives the distinctive red or yellow colour that you are used to.

Why?

There is nothing wrong with Iron oxide but it is known to have less nutritional value than other forms of Iron and has therefore been removed from the list of ingredients approved for animal feed.

Do my animals still require iron?

The Iron is naturally present in many other elements and minerals and for this reason we have decided not to replace the oxide with any other form of iron. If you think you do need to supplement iron you should discuss this with your nutritionist for further advice.

Which is which?

Red Rockies will still be called Red Rockies, Yellows will still be Yellow Rockies and the packaging will look the same, it’s just the colour of the lick inside that will be new to you.

My Rockies are still coloured

You might not see this change straight away. Stock manufactured before 2019 can still be legally sold and used for the next year and in this way there is no waste of good product for merchants and customers alike.

Supplementing the Performance Horse

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Supplementing the Performance Horse

Debbie Odell MSc Agric Pr. Sci. Nat
Consultant Nutritionist Bovasol cc

Forage or roughage should form the basis of the diet of all horses, with the obvious exception of the very young. Often horses can survive and thrive on forage alone, but as we demand more of our horses in terms of performance, forage alone will no longer be adequate to supply all the nutrients required and supplementation will become necessary.

 

Critically, horses need about 1.5% of their body weight in dry matter from roughage. A mixture of pasture, pasture hay (e.g. eragrostis) and legume hay (e.g. lucerne) is recommended, as the contribution of essential amino acids by the legume hay is significant. Providing this quantity of roughage will assist in maintaining the health of the hind gut micro biome. The roughage component will also significantly contribute to the energy needs of the horse, as well as some of the vitamin needs. Roughage will also assist the horse with thermoregulation in cold weather, but the contribution of roughage to the total energy mix may need to be varied in very hot climates. Your nutritionist will be able to assist with this.

As mentioned, performance horses require nutrient supplementation to maintain their expected workload. Conveniently, there are many commercial concentrate feeds purpose-formulated for the performance horse. The decision to supplement with commercial feeds is often made on a visual basis, meaning that if one perceives the horse to be losing condition, the concentrates offered will be increased, and if the horse appears to be gaining condition the concentrates offered will be reduced. Horses may gain or lose condition for a number of reasons, and the challenge for the commercial nutritionist is to provide sufficient nutrients in the supplemental feed to provide for the full requirements of all horses. Practically, the best that can be done is to supply sufficient nutrients for the average horse. Let us assume that the average horse will require 3 kg of concentrates per day. Horses that require more than this to maintain body condition (energy) will probably receive more of the other nutrients (protein, vitamins & minerals) than they potentially need. In most cases this is not a concern as excess nutrients could be excreted or stored for later use. The challenge is to provide sufficient nutrients for the horse in good condition that receives very little concentrate. Although supposedly receiving sufficient energy to maintain body condition, these horses could be being undersupplied in other critical nutrients necessary for top performance.

The extra nutrients required by performance horses include quality proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals. Since each horse is an individual, some horses may benefit from higher levels of supplementation of these nutrients than the feed can supply. Some of the most common supplemental nutrients that provide considerable benefit are supplemental proteins (with the focus on supplying a balanced amino acid profile, rather than just increasing the overall protein level), B-vitamins like biotin, vitamin E organic minerals and additional fats (with a focus on supplying essential fatty acids).

PROTEIN & AMINO ACIDS

There are 10 amino acids that are considered to be essential to the horse, lysine being the first limiting of these, followed by threonine, methionine and probably tryptophan. Proteins are made up of amino acids and the essential amino acids must be supplied in the diet. If any of the essential amino acids are in short supply, protein synthesis in the body will be suboptimal, and performance may suffer. Since lysine is usually the first limiting amino acid, supplementation may be useful, particularly in young horses with growth requirements. Lucerne is a particularly good source of essential amino acids for horses.

VITAMINS & MINERALS

Biotin and other B vitamins are usually included in commercial diets; however supplemental biotin might be indicated if the hoof growth is of poor quality. Additionally, organic sources of zinc may also assist in the growth of healthy hooves. Vitamin E is a nutrient that tends to be undersupplied in general in commercial horse feeds. It is abundant in fresh pasture, and lucerne, but is low in stored hay and forages. Due to its antioxidant function, and depending on the total diet composition, supplemental vitamin E during the sporting season may be beneficial.

FATS

The two primary essential fatty acids are linoleic acid (omega-6) and alpha-linolenic acid (omega 3), but the long chain omega 3 fatty acids EPA and DHA have also been shown of particular value, especially in reduction of inflammatory responses to exercise.

ELECTROLYTES

Performance horses will need supplementation with electrolytes to replace those lost in sweat. Electrolytes are defined as minerals or their salts that are capable of ionizing in solution and can then conduct electrical impulses in the body. Electrolyte supplementation may be accomplished by simply providing a free choicesalt block, or by supplementing with a specializedelectrolyteproduct that contains sodium, chloride, potassium and preferably magnesium and calcium. Fresh water should always be freely available to horses supplemented with salt or electrolytes.

JOINT & GUT HEALTH

Each horse is an individual and other supplements may be required by particular horses. Joint supplements are among these, as well as supplements fortify gut health, including buffers and other products which may assist in the prevention of ulcers and maintain a healthy pH in the hind gut.Strike R8is an aid to the prevention of nutrition related ulcers, tying-up and laminitis.

HORSES AT GRASS

It is important to consider the off season diet as well. In the South African hot summer season, performance horses are often given a well deserved break at pasture. Body condition will generally improve on good summer pastures, so concentrate feeds are decreased or in some cases are not given at all. Care must still be taken to supplement the macro minerals, especially when the summer pastures of choice are oxalate accumulator species (kikuyu, setaria, panic, guinea, buffel, pangola, and signal). Oxalates are capable of binding calcium in the grass rendering it unavailable to the horse. Balancing of the calcium: phosphorus ratio is particularly important on kikuyu pastures as not only is kikuyu an oxalate accumulator plant, but it also naturally has an inverse Ca:P ratio. Prolonged grazing without supplementation will result in bone demineralization and reduction of connective tissue integrity and strength over time. This may result in bone fractures or ruptured tendons when the horse resumes the stress of high performance. Horses grazingkikuyupastures over the summer months must have their diet balanced for calcium and phosphorus. For horses kept extensively in the off season, a specially formulatedlick blockcan be provided to correct the Ca:P ratio, and provide sufficient salt and trace minerals.

Consultation with a registered nutritionist is recommended to assist with dietary requirements

Bovasol cc 2018.

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