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The influence of age and winter environment on Rumax Bovibox and Bovibox HM supplement intake behavior of winter grazing beef cattle on mixed-grass rangelands

The influence of age and winter environment on Rumax Bovibox and Bovibox HM supplement intake... Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 The influence of age and winter environment on Rumax Bovibox and Bovibox HM supplement intake behavior of winter grazing beef cattle on mixed-grass rangelands †,1 † † † ‡ Samuel A. Wyffels, Cory T. Parsons, Julia M. Dafoe, Darrin L. Boss, Tyrell P. McClain, || ‡ Boone H. Carter, and Timothy DelCurto † ‡ Northern Agricultural Research Center, Montana State University, Havre, MT 59501; Department of Animal || and Range Sciences, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717; and PerforMix Nutrition Systems, Nampa, ID 83687 © The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Society of Animal Science. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribu- tion, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Transl. Anim. Sci. 2020.4:S37–S42 doi: 10.1093/tas/txaa093 However, data are limited relative to sources of INTRODUCTION variation with beef cattle supplemented in herd Chronic cold and wind exposure associated groups in extensive winter environments. The with northern winter grazing environments often lack of information is related to the difficulty in expose cattle to conditions below their lower crit- measuring intake of free-choice supplements in ical temperature, resulting in animals increasing extensive production environments (DelCurto their resting metabolic rate and overall energy and Olson, 2010). Therefore, research is needed expenditure in an effort to maintain homeothermy to refine supplementation strategies that optimize (Webster, 1971; Christopherson et  al., 1979; nutrient delivery to diverse groups of animals in Keren and Olson, 2006). Cattle typically respond extensive environments. to severe cold conditions by increasing intake Potential changes in energetic requirements to to meet thermoregulatory demands (Baile and maintain homeothermy could alter supplement Forbes, 1974; Ames and Ray, 1983; Arnold, 1985). intake during winter months. Short-term behavio- However, low-quality forage limits intake on win- ral responses may be critical to the energy balance ter rangelands at northern latitudes. Supplemental of domestic animals under extreme weather con- protein is often provided to increase intake of ditions (Senft and Rittenhouse, 1985). Therefore, dormant forages to meet the nutritional needs of the goal of this research is to examine the effects grazing beef cattle and maintain a desired level of of cow age and winter weather conditions on sup- productivity (Lusby et  al., 1967; Bowman et  al., plement intake behavior of cattle grazing winter 1995; Bodine et al., 2001). Winter protein supple- rangelands offered Rumax Bovibox supplement. mentation strategies assume that all animals con- We hypothesize that supplement intake behavior sume a daily target quantity of supplement and is altered by the interaction of cow age and winter deviation from the targeted intake can have neg- environmental conditions. ative impacts on animal performance (Bowman and Sowell, 1997). Cow age has been shown to be MATERIALS AND METHODS an influential factor affecting individual supple- ment intake and foraging behavior (Adams et al., The use of animals in this study was 1986; Kincheloe et al., 2004; Wyffels et al., 2018). approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of Montana State University 1 (#2018-AA12). Coresponding author: samwyffels@montana.edu A commercial herd of nonlactating bred cows Received March 13, 2020. Accepted June 19, 2020. (Angus, Simmental × Angus) ranging in age from S37 Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 Wyffels et al. S38 1 to 12 yr of age were assigned to one of six age An Onset HOBO U30-NRC Weather Station classifications (1-, 2-, 3-, 4-, 5- to 7-, and ≥8-yr-old (Bourne, MA) was placed near the supplement feed- cattle) and winter grazed on a 329-ha rangeland ers and programmed to collect ambient air temper- −1 pasture (~1.5 AUM ha ) for 2 yr (291 cows year ature and wind speed every 15 min for the entirety 1 and 316 cows year 2)  with an average weight of of the grazing period. Temperatures adjusted for 562.93  kg and body condition of 5.5. The winter windchill (T ) were calculated using a modified windchill grazing period occurred from mid-November to version of the National Weather Service formula early-January 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020. All (Osczevski and Bluestein, 2005; Tucker et al., 2007; cattle had free-choice access to Rumax Bovibox Graunke et  al., 2011). Daily average weather con- HM (2018 to 2019)  and Rumax Bovibox protein ditions were paired with daily supplement intake blocks (2019 to 2020; Table 1). The daily target sup- readings for each individual animal for the dura- −1 −1 plement intake range was 0.45 to 0.91 kg∙cow ∙d . tion of the grazing period. Each day was then clas- Each individual animal was equipped with an elec- sified as below average (< −1 SD below the mean), tronic ID tag (Allflex USA, Inc., Dallas-Ft. Worth, average (±1 SD from mean), or above average (>+1 TX) attached to the interior of the left ear for the SD above the mean) T within each year of the windchill measurement of daily individual supplement intake grazing trial (Table 2). −1 −1 (kg∙cow ∙d ) and time spent at the supplement This study was conducted at the Thackeray −1 feeder (min∙d ) using a SmartFeed Pro self-feeder Ranch (48°21′N 109°30′W), part of the Montana system (C-Lock Inc., Rapid City, SD) with a total Agricultural Experiment Station located 21 km of eight feeding stations. Variation in supplement south of Havre, MT. Climate is characterized as intake, measured as coefficient of variation, was semi-arid steppe with an average annual precipitation based on daily intake estimates for individual ani- of 410  mm. Vegetation is dominated by Kentucky mals. Supplement intake behavior was recorded bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.), bluebunch wheatgrass for 45 d, and individual cow was considered the (Pseudoregnaria spicata [Pursh] A. Love), and rough experimental unit. fescue (Festuca scabrella Torr.). The production and quality of pasture vegetation was estimated by sam- Table 1. Supplement composition for cattle winter pling 10 randomly located plots prior to grazing each grazing rangeland in 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020 year. Clipped samples were placed in a forced air at the Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT (as-fed basis) oven at 60 °C for 48 h and then weighed. Vegetation samples from each plot were ground to pass a 1-mm 1 2 Bovibox HM Bovibox screen in a Wiley mill and sent to a commercial lab Crude protein 28.7% min 30% min to be analyzed for crude protein, neutral detergent Crude fat 1.45% min 1.5% min fiber, acid detergent fiber, and total digestible nutri- Crude fiber 5.0% max 5.0% max ents as indicators of vegetation quality (Dairy One, Calcium 1.3% min 1.3% min Ithaca, NY; Table 3). 1.8% max 1.8% max Phosphorus 0.7% min 0.7% min Daily individual supplement intake, the coef-fi Salt 23% min 23% min cient of variation (CV) of supplement intake, and 26% max 26% max time spent at the supplement feeder were analyzed Potassium 1.5% min 1.5% min using ANOVA with a generalized linear mixed Magnesium 2.5% min 1.0% min model including cow age, year, T , T × cow windchill windchill Manganese 856 ppm min 880 ppm min age, cow age × year, T × year, and T × windchill windchill Zinc 1,074 ppm min 1,100 ppm min cow age × year as fixed effects, and individual cow as Copper 213 ppm min 220 ppm min the random effect. An alpha ≤ 0.05 was considered Copper (from chelate) 108 ppm min 110 ppm min significant. Orthogonal polynomial contrasts were Cobalt 15 ppm min 16 ppm min used to determine linear and quadratic effects for Iodine 26 ppm min 25 ppm min each analysis. Means were separated using the Tukey Selenium 3.3 ppm min 3.3 ppm min method when P < 0.05. All statistical analyses were 3.6 ppm max 3.6 ppm max Selenium yeast — 1.7 ppm performed in R (R Core Team, 2017). Vitamin A 12,000 IU/lb 40,800 IU/lb Vitamin D 4,000 IU/lb 4,500 IU/lb RESULTS Vitamin E 25 IU/lb 50 IU/lb NPN not more than 9.7% 9.9% Average daily supplement intake displayed a T × cow age × year interaction (P  =  0.02; Supplement used 2018 to 019. windchill Supplement used 2019 to 2020. Figure  1). In year 1, there was no effect of age Translate basic science to industry innovation Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 Rumax Bovibox intake and winter grazing cattle S39 −1 Table 2. Average temperature (°C), wind speed (km∙h ), and temperature adjusted for windchill (T ; windchill °C) below average, average, above average weather conditions, and overall year means (± SE) for the 2 yr of grazing (2018 to 2019, 2019 to 2020) at the Northern Agricultural Research Center Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT Weather classification Below average Average Above average Overall mean Year 1 Temperature, °C −8.10 ± 1.13 0.91 ± 0.61 8.20 ± 0.30 0.58 ± 0.83 −1 Wind speed, km∙h 5.89 ± 0.70 22.77 ± 0.99 42.56 ± 2.10 22.90 ± 1.64 T , °C −18.69 ± 1.23 −7.10 ± 0.61 1.46 ± 0.43 −7.17 ± 0.90 windchill Year 2 Temperature, °C −9.87 ± 0.54 −0.86 ± 0.57 6.94 ± 1.14 −1.22 ± 0.81 −1 Wind Speed, km∙h 6.08 ± 0.71 22.20 ± 1.66 42.27 ± 1.20 22.19 ± 1.99 T °C −17.89 ± 0.74 −8.31 ± 0.53 −0.15 ± 1.33 −9.12 ± 0.84 windchill, −1 Table 3. Average annual grass production (kg∙ha ), crude protein (CP, %), neutral detergent fiber (NDF; %), acid detergent fiber (ADF; %), and total digestible nutrients (TDN; %) of the experimental paddock for the 2 yr of grazing (2018 to 2019, 2019 to 2020) at the Northern Agricultural Research Center Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT −1 Production (kg∙ha ) CP (%) NDF (%) ADF (%) TDN (%) Year 1 1,790 5.4 63.2 41.9 56.0 Year 2 1,456 5.4 66.9 39.9 55.0 on daily supplement intake at below average and in supplement intake than all other age classes of above average T (P ≥ 0.07; Figure 1A and C). cattle (P  <  0.01; Figure  2A–C), with 4-yr-old cat- windchill Age displayed a quadratic effect on daily supple- tle having less variation in supplement intake than ment intake at average T in year 1 (P < 0.01; 2-yr-old cattle during average T conditions windchill windchill Figure  1B); however, this effect was limited to 3- (P  =  0.01; Figure  2B). In year 2, at below T windchill and 4-yr-old cattle consuming more supplement conditions, 3-yr-old cattle had less variation in sup- per day than yearlings (P ≤ 0.02). In year 2, cow plement intake than yearlings, 5- to 7-, and ≥8-yr-old age had quadratic effects on supplement intake for cattle (P ≤ 0.02) with yearlings having less variation all T conditions (P < 0.01; Figure 1D–F). At than 5- to 7-yr-old cattle (P = 0.05; Figure 2D). At windchill below average T conditions in year 2, 2- and average T conditions in year 2, yearlings had windchill windchill 3-yr-old cattle consumed more supplement per higher variation in supplement intake than all other day than 5- to 7- and ≥8-yr-old cattle (P  <  0.01; age categories (P < 0.01), with 3-yr-old cattle hav- Figure  1D). Average T conditions in year 2 ing less variation in supplement intake than 2-, 5- to windchill resulted in yearlings consuming less supplement 7-, and ≥8-yr-old cattle (P ≤ 0.01; Figure  2E). At than all other age groups (P  <  0.01), whereas 3- above average T conditions in year 2, 3- and windchill and 4-yr-old cattle consumed more supplement per ≥8-yr-old cattle had less variation in supplement day than 5- to 7- and ≥8-yr-old cattle (P  <  0.01; intake than yearlings (P = 0.03; Figure 2F). Figure 1E). At above average T conditions in Time spent at the feeder per day exhibited a windchill year 2, 3-yr-old cattle consumed more supplement year × cow age interaction (P  <  0.01; Figure  3A per day than yearlings, 2-, 5- to 7-, and ≥ 8-yr-old and B). Cow age displayed quadratic effects on cattle (P ≤ 0.01), with 4-yr-old cattle consuming time spent at the feeder per day in both years more supplement per day than yearlings (P = 0.03; (P < 0.01); however, effects in year 1 were limited Figure 1F). to yearlings spending less time at the feeder than Variation in supplement intake (%  CV) also all other cattle (P ≤ 0.01; Figure  3A). In year 2, displayed a T × cow age × year interaction 3-yr-old cattle spent more time at the supplement windchill (P = 0.05; Figure 2), where age exhibited quadratic feeders than yearlings, 5- to 7-, and ≥8-yr-old cat- effects on variation in supplement intake across all tle, with 2-yr-old cattle spending more time at the T conditions during both years (P  <  0.01). feeders than yearlings and 5- to 7-yr-old cattle (P windchill However, the quadratic effects of age in year 1 ≤ 0.01; Figure  3B). Time spent at the feeder per were limited to yearlings having higher variation day also displayed a year × T interaction windchill Translate basic science to industry innovation Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 Wyffels et al. S40 −1 −1 Figure 1. Influence of cow age, year, and temperature classification (adjusted for windchill) on average daily supplement intake (kg∙cow ∙d ; ± SE; target intake range indicated by dashed lines) by cattle grazing dormant northern mixed grass rangeland in 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020 at the Northern Agricultural Research Center Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT. (P  <  0.01). In year 1, cattle spent more time at than that of year 2, whereas time at the feeders were the feeder during average T conditions similar for both years. windchill (12.24 ± 0.42 min) than below and above average Past research that quantified supplement intake (P < 0.01; 9.43 ± 0.42 and 10.57 ± 0.54 min), with behavior of mixed age herds of cattle have found no effect of T on time spent at the feeder in that older cows typically consume more supple- windchill year 2 (P ≥ 0.08). ment and are less variable in their daily supple- ment intake than younger cows (Bowman et  al., 1999; Sowell et  al., 2003; Kincheloe et  al., 2004). DISCUSSION Our results contradict this conventional idea as The results of our study suggest that the inter- we found 3- to 4-yr-old cattle to have the highest action of cow age, winter weather conditions, and supplement intake with the least variation across year can have a significant impact on supplement weather conditions. Recent research evaluating the intake behavior. However, the year effects observed effects of winter weather conditions and cow age for all supplement intake variables is likely related on supplement intake behavior suggests that sup- to the difference between Rumax Bovibox HM and plement intake decreases with cow age at cold tem- Bovibox as weather and forage conditions were peratures (Wyffels et al., 2018). Although the effects similar for both years of the study. Both Rumax observed in our study were quadratic in nature, Bovibox HM and Bovibox supplements are formu- yearling cattle did increase Rumax Bovibox intake lated similarly, however, Rumax Bovibox HM con- with decreased variation during below average tem- tains 2.5% MgO (1.0% in Bovibox), which increases perature conditions. However, yearling cattle only bitterness/hardness and may have led to cattle con- consumed target supplement intake with Rumax suming below the target supplement intake range Bovibox at below average temperature conditions the first year of our study. Furthermore, average and were highly variable consumers suggesting supplement intake in year 1 was approximately 50% that supplementing with self-fed protein blocks in Translate basic science to industry innovation Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 Rumax Bovibox intake and winter grazing cattle S41 Figure 2. Influence of cow age, year, and temperature classification (adjusted for windchill) on the coefficient of variation of supplement intake (%; ± SE) by cattle grazing dormant northern mixed grass rangeland in 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020 at the Northern Agricultural Research Center Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT. −1 Figure 3. Influence of cow age and year on average time spent at the supplement feeder (min∙d ; ± SE) by cattle grazing dormant northern mixed grass rangeland in 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020 at the Northern Agricultural Research Center Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT. Translate basic science to industry innovation Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 Wyffels et al. S42 responses of bison and cattle. Can. J. Anim. Sci. 59:611– a mixed-aged cow herd may not provide adequate 617. doi:10.4141/cjas79-077 nutrients for yearlings. DelCurto, T., and K. Olson. 2010. Issues in grazing livestock nutrition. In: B. W. Hess, T. DelCurto, J. G. P, Bowman, ACKNOWLEDGMENTS and R.  C.  Waterman, editors, Proceedings 4th Grazing Livestock Nutrition Conference. Western Section Appreciation is expressed to PerforMix American Society of Animal Science, Champaign, IL. p. Nutrition Systems, the Nancy Cameron 1–10. Endowment, the Bair Ranch Foundation, and the Graunke, K. L., T. Schuster, and L. M. Lidfors. 2011. Influence of weather on the behaviour of outdoor-wintered beef cat- Montana Stock Growers Association for research tle in Scandinavia. Livest. Sci. 136:247–255. doi:10.1016/j. funding and to the employees of MSU Northern livsci.2010.09.018 Agricultural Research Center for their assistance Keren, E. N., and B. E. Olson. 2006. Thermal balance of cat- with this project. tle grazing winter range: Model application. J. Anim. Sci. 84:1238–1247. doi:10.2527/2006.8451238x Kincheloe, J., J. Bowman, B. Sowell, R. Ansotegui, L. Surber, LITERATURE CITED and B.  Robinson. 2004. Supplement intake variation in grazing beef cows. In: Proceedings Western Section Adams,  D., T.  Nelsen, W.  Reynolds, and B.  Knapp. 1986. American Society of Animal Science. p. 331–334. Winter grazing activity and forage intake of range cows Lusby, K., D. Stephens, L. Knori, and R. Totusek. 1967. Forage in the Northern Great Plains. J. Anim. Sci. 62:1240–1246. intake of range cows as affected by breed and level of doi:10.2527/jas1986.6251240x winter supplement. Oklahoma Agricultural Experiment Ames, D. R., and D. E. Ray. 1983. Environmental manipula- Station Research Report MP-96. p. 27–32. tion to improve animal productivity. J. Anim. Sci. 57:209– Osczevski,  R., and M.  Bluestein. 2005. The new wind chill 220. doi:10.2527/animalsci1983.57Supplement_2209x equivalent temperature chart. Bull. Am. Meteorol. Soc. Arnold,  G. 1985. Regulation of forage intake. Bioenergetics 86:1453–1458. doi:10.1175/BAMS-86-10-1453 of wild herbivores, Vol. 81. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL. R Core Team. (2017). R: A language and environment for statis- p. 101. tical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Baile, C. A., and J. M. Forbes. 1974. Control of feed intake and Vienna, Austria. https://www.R-project.org/. regulation of energy balance in ruminants. Physiol. Rev. Senft,  R.  L., and L.  R.  Rittenhouse. 1985. A model of ther- 54:160–214. doi:10.1152/physrev.1974.54.1.160 mal acclimation in cattle. J. Anim. Sci. 61:297–306. Bodine,  T.  N., H.  T.  Purvis, 2nd, and D.  L.  Lalman. 2001. doi:10.2527/jas1985.612297x Effects of supplement type on animal performance, Sowell, B. F., J. G. Bowman, E. E. Grings, and M. D. MacNeil. forage intake, digestion, and ruminal measurements 2003. Liquid supplement and forage intake by range beef of growing beef cattle. J. Anim. Sci. 79:1041–1051. cows. J. Anim. Sci. 81:294–303. doi:10.2527/2003.811294x doi:10.2527/2001.7941041x Tucker,  C.  B., A.  R.  Rogers, G.  A.  Verkerk, P.  E.  Kendall, Bowman, J. G., and B. F. Sowell. 1997. Delivery method and J. R. Webster, and L. R. Matthews. 2007. Effects of shelter supplement consumption by grazing ruminants: A review. and body condition on the behaviour and physiology of J. Anim. Sci. 75:543–550. doi:10.2527/1997.752543x dairy cattle in winter. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. 105:1–13. Bowman,  J., B.  Sowell, and J.  Paterson. 1995. Liquid sup- doi:10.1016/j.applanim.2006.06.009 plementation for ruminants fed low-quality forage Webster,  A.  J. 1971. Prediction of heat losses from cattle diets: A  review. Anim. Feed Sci. Technol. 55:105–138. exposed to cold outdoor environments. J. Appl. Physiol. doi:10.1016/0377-8401(95)98203–9 30:684–690. doi:10.1152/jappl.1971.30.5.684 Bowman, J. G. P., B. F. Sowell, D. L. Boss, and H. Sherwood. Wyffels,  S.  A., A.  R.  Williams, C.  T.  Parsons, J.  M.  Dafoe, 1999. Influence of liquid supplement delivery method D. L. Boss, T. DelCurto, N. G. Davis, and J. G. P. Bowman. on forage and supplement intake by grazing beef cows. 2018. The influence of age and environmental conditions Anim. Feed Sci. Technol. 78:273–285. doi:10.1016/ on supplement intake and behavior of winter grazing s0377-8401(98)00279-x beef cattle on mixed-grass rangelands. Transl. Anim. Sci. Christopherson,  R., R.  Hudson, and M.  Christophersen. 2(Suppl 1):S89–S92. doi:10.1093/tas/txy046 1979. Seasonal energy expenditures and thermoregulatory Translate basic science to industry innovation http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Translational Animal Science Oxford University Press

The influence of age and winter environment on Rumax Bovibox and Bovibox HM supplement intake behavior of winter grazing beef cattle on mixed-grass rangelands

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Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 The influence of age and winter environment on Rumax Bovibox and Bovibox HM supplement intake behavior of winter grazing beef cattle on mixed-grass rangelands †,1 † † † ‡ Samuel A. Wyffels, Cory T. Parsons, Julia M. Dafoe, Darrin L. Boss, Tyrell P. McClain, || ‡ Boone H. Carter, and Timothy DelCurto † ‡ Northern Agricultural Research Center, Montana State University, Havre, MT 59501; Department of Animal || and Range Sciences, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717; and PerforMix Nutrition Systems, Nampa, ID 83687 © The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Society of Animal Science. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribu- tion, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Transl. Anim. Sci. 2020.4:S37–S42 doi: 10.1093/tas/txaa093 However, data are limited relative to sources of INTRODUCTION variation with beef cattle supplemented in herd Chronic cold and wind exposure associated groups in extensive winter environments. The with northern winter grazing environments often lack of information is related to the difficulty in expose cattle to conditions below their lower crit- measuring intake of free-choice supplements in ical temperature, resulting in animals increasing extensive production environments (DelCurto their resting metabolic rate and overall energy and Olson, 2010). Therefore, research is needed expenditure in an effort to maintain homeothermy to refine supplementation strategies that optimize (Webster, 1971; Christopherson et  al., 1979; nutrient delivery to diverse groups of animals in Keren and Olson, 2006). Cattle typically respond extensive environments. to severe cold conditions by increasing intake Potential changes in energetic requirements to to meet thermoregulatory demands (Baile and maintain homeothermy could alter supplement Forbes, 1974; Ames and Ray, 1983; Arnold, 1985). intake during winter months. Short-term behavio- However, low-quality forage limits intake on win- ral responses may be critical to the energy balance ter rangelands at northern latitudes. Supplemental of domestic animals under extreme weather con- protein is often provided to increase intake of ditions (Senft and Rittenhouse, 1985). Therefore, dormant forages to meet the nutritional needs of the goal of this research is to examine the effects grazing beef cattle and maintain a desired level of of cow age and winter weather conditions on sup- productivity (Lusby et  al., 1967; Bowman et  al., plement intake behavior of cattle grazing winter 1995; Bodine et al., 2001). Winter protein supple- rangelands offered Rumax Bovibox supplement. mentation strategies assume that all animals con- We hypothesize that supplement intake behavior sume a daily target quantity of supplement and is altered by the interaction of cow age and winter deviation from the targeted intake can have neg- environmental conditions. ative impacts on animal performance (Bowman and Sowell, 1997). Cow age has been shown to be MATERIALS AND METHODS an influential factor affecting individual supple- ment intake and foraging behavior (Adams et al., The use of animals in this study was 1986; Kincheloe et al., 2004; Wyffels et al., 2018). approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of Montana State University 1 (#2018-AA12). Coresponding author: samwyffels@montana.edu A commercial herd of nonlactating bred cows Received March 13, 2020. Accepted June 19, 2020. (Angus, Simmental × Angus) ranging in age from S37 Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 Wyffels et al. S38 1 to 12 yr of age were assigned to one of six age An Onset HOBO U30-NRC Weather Station classifications (1-, 2-, 3-, 4-, 5- to 7-, and ≥8-yr-old (Bourne, MA) was placed near the supplement feed- cattle) and winter grazed on a 329-ha rangeland ers and programmed to collect ambient air temper- −1 pasture (~1.5 AUM ha ) for 2 yr (291 cows year ature and wind speed every 15 min for the entirety 1 and 316 cows year 2)  with an average weight of of the grazing period. Temperatures adjusted for 562.93  kg and body condition of 5.5. The winter windchill (T ) were calculated using a modified windchill grazing period occurred from mid-November to version of the National Weather Service formula early-January 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020. All (Osczevski and Bluestein, 2005; Tucker et al., 2007; cattle had free-choice access to Rumax Bovibox Graunke et  al., 2011). Daily average weather con- HM (2018 to 2019)  and Rumax Bovibox protein ditions were paired with daily supplement intake blocks (2019 to 2020; Table 1). The daily target sup- readings for each individual animal for the dura- −1 −1 plement intake range was 0.45 to 0.91 kg∙cow ∙d . tion of the grazing period. Each day was then clas- Each individual animal was equipped with an elec- sified as below average (< −1 SD below the mean), tronic ID tag (Allflex USA, Inc., Dallas-Ft. Worth, average (±1 SD from mean), or above average (>+1 TX) attached to the interior of the left ear for the SD above the mean) T within each year of the windchill measurement of daily individual supplement intake grazing trial (Table 2). −1 −1 (kg∙cow ∙d ) and time spent at the supplement This study was conducted at the Thackeray −1 feeder (min∙d ) using a SmartFeed Pro self-feeder Ranch (48°21′N 109°30′W), part of the Montana system (C-Lock Inc., Rapid City, SD) with a total Agricultural Experiment Station located 21 km of eight feeding stations. Variation in supplement south of Havre, MT. Climate is characterized as intake, measured as coefficient of variation, was semi-arid steppe with an average annual precipitation based on daily intake estimates for individual ani- of 410  mm. Vegetation is dominated by Kentucky mals. Supplement intake behavior was recorded bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.), bluebunch wheatgrass for 45 d, and individual cow was considered the (Pseudoregnaria spicata [Pursh] A. Love), and rough experimental unit. fescue (Festuca scabrella Torr.). The production and quality of pasture vegetation was estimated by sam- Table 1. Supplement composition for cattle winter pling 10 randomly located plots prior to grazing each grazing rangeland in 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020 year. Clipped samples were placed in a forced air at the Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT (as-fed basis) oven at 60 °C for 48 h and then weighed. Vegetation samples from each plot were ground to pass a 1-mm 1 2 Bovibox HM Bovibox screen in a Wiley mill and sent to a commercial lab Crude protein 28.7% min 30% min to be analyzed for crude protein, neutral detergent Crude fat 1.45% min 1.5% min fiber, acid detergent fiber, and total digestible nutri- Crude fiber 5.0% max 5.0% max ents as indicators of vegetation quality (Dairy One, Calcium 1.3% min 1.3% min Ithaca, NY; Table 3). 1.8% max 1.8% max Phosphorus 0.7% min 0.7% min Daily individual supplement intake, the coef-fi Salt 23% min 23% min cient of variation (CV) of supplement intake, and 26% max 26% max time spent at the supplement feeder were analyzed Potassium 1.5% min 1.5% min using ANOVA with a generalized linear mixed Magnesium 2.5% min 1.0% min model including cow age, year, T , T × cow windchill windchill Manganese 856 ppm min 880 ppm min age, cow age × year, T × year, and T × windchill windchill Zinc 1,074 ppm min 1,100 ppm min cow age × year as fixed effects, and individual cow as Copper 213 ppm min 220 ppm min the random effect. An alpha ≤ 0.05 was considered Copper (from chelate) 108 ppm min 110 ppm min significant. Orthogonal polynomial contrasts were Cobalt 15 ppm min 16 ppm min used to determine linear and quadratic effects for Iodine 26 ppm min 25 ppm min each analysis. Means were separated using the Tukey Selenium 3.3 ppm min 3.3 ppm min method when P < 0.05. All statistical analyses were 3.6 ppm max 3.6 ppm max Selenium yeast — 1.7 ppm performed in R (R Core Team, 2017). Vitamin A 12,000 IU/lb 40,800 IU/lb Vitamin D 4,000 IU/lb 4,500 IU/lb RESULTS Vitamin E 25 IU/lb 50 IU/lb NPN not more than 9.7% 9.9% Average daily supplement intake displayed a T × cow age × year interaction (P  =  0.02; Supplement used 2018 to 019. windchill Supplement used 2019 to 2020. Figure  1). In year 1, there was no effect of age Translate basic science to industry innovation Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 Rumax Bovibox intake and winter grazing cattle S39 −1 Table 2. Average temperature (°C), wind speed (km∙h ), and temperature adjusted for windchill (T ; windchill °C) below average, average, above average weather conditions, and overall year means (± SE) for the 2 yr of grazing (2018 to 2019, 2019 to 2020) at the Northern Agricultural Research Center Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT Weather classification Below average Average Above average Overall mean Year 1 Temperature, °C −8.10 ± 1.13 0.91 ± 0.61 8.20 ± 0.30 0.58 ± 0.83 −1 Wind speed, km∙h 5.89 ± 0.70 22.77 ± 0.99 42.56 ± 2.10 22.90 ± 1.64 T , °C −18.69 ± 1.23 −7.10 ± 0.61 1.46 ± 0.43 −7.17 ± 0.90 windchill Year 2 Temperature, °C −9.87 ± 0.54 −0.86 ± 0.57 6.94 ± 1.14 −1.22 ± 0.81 −1 Wind Speed, km∙h 6.08 ± 0.71 22.20 ± 1.66 42.27 ± 1.20 22.19 ± 1.99 T °C −17.89 ± 0.74 −8.31 ± 0.53 −0.15 ± 1.33 −9.12 ± 0.84 windchill, −1 Table 3. Average annual grass production (kg∙ha ), crude protein (CP, %), neutral detergent fiber (NDF; %), acid detergent fiber (ADF; %), and total digestible nutrients (TDN; %) of the experimental paddock for the 2 yr of grazing (2018 to 2019, 2019 to 2020) at the Northern Agricultural Research Center Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT −1 Production (kg∙ha ) CP (%) NDF (%) ADF (%) TDN (%) Year 1 1,790 5.4 63.2 41.9 56.0 Year 2 1,456 5.4 66.9 39.9 55.0 on daily supplement intake at below average and in supplement intake than all other age classes of above average T (P ≥ 0.07; Figure 1A and C). cattle (P  <  0.01; Figure  2A–C), with 4-yr-old cat- windchill Age displayed a quadratic effect on daily supple- tle having less variation in supplement intake than ment intake at average T in year 1 (P < 0.01; 2-yr-old cattle during average T conditions windchill windchill Figure  1B); however, this effect was limited to 3- (P  =  0.01; Figure  2B). In year 2, at below T windchill and 4-yr-old cattle consuming more supplement conditions, 3-yr-old cattle had less variation in sup- per day than yearlings (P ≤ 0.02). In year 2, cow plement intake than yearlings, 5- to 7-, and ≥8-yr-old age had quadratic effects on supplement intake for cattle (P ≤ 0.02) with yearlings having less variation all T conditions (P < 0.01; Figure 1D–F). At than 5- to 7-yr-old cattle (P = 0.05; Figure 2D). At windchill below average T conditions in year 2, 2- and average T conditions in year 2, yearlings had windchill windchill 3-yr-old cattle consumed more supplement per higher variation in supplement intake than all other day than 5- to 7- and ≥8-yr-old cattle (P  <  0.01; age categories (P < 0.01), with 3-yr-old cattle hav- Figure  1D). Average T conditions in year 2 ing less variation in supplement intake than 2-, 5- to windchill resulted in yearlings consuming less supplement 7-, and ≥8-yr-old cattle (P ≤ 0.01; Figure  2E). At than all other age groups (P  <  0.01), whereas 3- above average T conditions in year 2, 3- and windchill and 4-yr-old cattle consumed more supplement per ≥8-yr-old cattle had less variation in supplement day than 5- to 7- and ≥8-yr-old cattle (P  <  0.01; intake than yearlings (P = 0.03; Figure 2F). Figure 1E). At above average T conditions in Time spent at the feeder per day exhibited a windchill year 2, 3-yr-old cattle consumed more supplement year × cow age interaction (P  <  0.01; Figure  3A per day than yearlings, 2-, 5- to 7-, and ≥ 8-yr-old and B). Cow age displayed quadratic effects on cattle (P ≤ 0.01), with 4-yr-old cattle consuming time spent at the feeder per day in both years more supplement per day than yearlings (P = 0.03; (P < 0.01); however, effects in year 1 were limited Figure 1F). to yearlings spending less time at the feeder than Variation in supplement intake (%  CV) also all other cattle (P ≤ 0.01; Figure  3A). In year 2, displayed a T × cow age × year interaction 3-yr-old cattle spent more time at the supplement windchill (P = 0.05; Figure 2), where age exhibited quadratic feeders than yearlings, 5- to 7-, and ≥8-yr-old cat- effects on variation in supplement intake across all tle, with 2-yr-old cattle spending more time at the T conditions during both years (P  <  0.01). feeders than yearlings and 5- to 7-yr-old cattle (P windchill However, the quadratic effects of age in year 1 ≤ 0.01; Figure  3B). Time spent at the feeder per were limited to yearlings having higher variation day also displayed a year × T interaction windchill Translate basic science to industry innovation Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 Wyffels et al. S40 −1 −1 Figure 1. Influence of cow age, year, and temperature classification (adjusted for windchill) on average daily supplement intake (kg∙cow ∙d ; ± SE; target intake range indicated by dashed lines) by cattle grazing dormant northern mixed grass rangeland in 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020 at the Northern Agricultural Research Center Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT. (P  <  0.01). In year 1, cattle spent more time at than that of year 2, whereas time at the feeders were the feeder during average T conditions similar for both years. windchill (12.24 ± 0.42 min) than below and above average Past research that quantified supplement intake (P < 0.01; 9.43 ± 0.42 and 10.57 ± 0.54 min), with behavior of mixed age herds of cattle have found no effect of T on time spent at the feeder in that older cows typically consume more supple- windchill year 2 (P ≥ 0.08). ment and are less variable in their daily supple- ment intake than younger cows (Bowman et  al., 1999; Sowell et  al., 2003; Kincheloe et  al., 2004). DISCUSSION Our results contradict this conventional idea as The results of our study suggest that the inter- we found 3- to 4-yr-old cattle to have the highest action of cow age, winter weather conditions, and supplement intake with the least variation across year can have a significant impact on supplement weather conditions. Recent research evaluating the intake behavior. However, the year effects observed effects of winter weather conditions and cow age for all supplement intake variables is likely related on supplement intake behavior suggests that sup- to the difference between Rumax Bovibox HM and plement intake decreases with cow age at cold tem- Bovibox as weather and forage conditions were peratures (Wyffels et al., 2018). Although the effects similar for both years of the study. Both Rumax observed in our study were quadratic in nature, Bovibox HM and Bovibox supplements are formu- yearling cattle did increase Rumax Bovibox intake lated similarly, however, Rumax Bovibox HM con- with decreased variation during below average tem- tains 2.5% MgO (1.0% in Bovibox), which increases perature conditions. However, yearling cattle only bitterness/hardness and may have led to cattle con- consumed target supplement intake with Rumax suming below the target supplement intake range Bovibox at below average temperature conditions the first year of our study. Furthermore, average and were highly variable consumers suggesting supplement intake in year 1 was approximately 50% that supplementing with self-fed protein blocks in Translate basic science to industry innovation Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 Rumax Bovibox intake and winter grazing cattle S41 Figure 2. Influence of cow age, year, and temperature classification (adjusted for windchill) on the coefficient of variation of supplement intake (%; ± SE) by cattle grazing dormant northern mixed grass rangeland in 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020 at the Northern Agricultural Research Center Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT. −1 Figure 3. Influence of cow age and year on average time spent at the supplement feeder (min∙d ; ± SE) by cattle grazing dormant northern mixed grass rangeland in 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020 at the Northern Agricultural Research Center Thackeray Ranch, Havre, MT. Translate basic science to industry innovation Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/4/Supplement_1/S37/6043900 by DeepDyve user on 22 December 2020 Wyffels et al. S42 responses of bison and cattle. Can. J. Anim. Sci. 59:611– a mixed-aged cow herd may not provide adequate 617. doi:10.4141/cjas79-077 nutrients for yearlings. DelCurto, T., and K. Olson. 2010. Issues in grazing livestock nutrition. In: B. W. Hess, T. DelCurto, J. G. P, Bowman, ACKNOWLEDGMENTS and R.  C.  Waterman, editors, Proceedings 4th Grazing Livestock Nutrition Conference. Western Section Appreciation is expressed to PerforMix American Society of Animal Science, Champaign, IL. p. Nutrition Systems, the Nancy Cameron 1–10. Endowment, the Bair Ranch Foundation, and the Graunke, K. L., T. Schuster, and L. M. Lidfors. 2011. Influence of weather on the behaviour of outdoor-wintered beef cat- Montana Stock Growers Association for research tle in Scandinavia. Livest. Sci. 136:247–255. doi:10.1016/j. funding and to the employees of MSU Northern livsci.2010.09.018 Agricultural Research Center for their assistance Keren, E. N., and B. E. Olson. 2006. Thermal balance of cat- with this project. tle grazing winter range: Model application. J. Anim. Sci. 84:1238–1247. doi:10.2527/2006.8451238x Kincheloe, J., J. Bowman, B. Sowell, R. Ansotegui, L. Surber, LITERATURE CITED and B.  Robinson. 2004. 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Delivery method and J. R. Webster, and L. R. Matthews. 2007. Effects of shelter supplement consumption by grazing ruminants: A review. and body condition on the behaviour and physiology of J. Anim. Sci. 75:543–550. doi:10.2527/1997.752543x dairy cattle in winter. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. 105:1–13. Bowman,  J., B.  Sowell, and J.  Paterson. 1995. Liquid sup- doi:10.1016/j.applanim.2006.06.009 plementation for ruminants fed low-quality forage Webster,  A.  J. 1971. Prediction of heat losses from cattle diets: A  review. Anim. Feed Sci. Technol. 55:105–138. exposed to cold outdoor environments. J. Appl. Physiol. doi:10.1016/0377-8401(95)98203–9 30:684–690. doi:10.1152/jappl.1971.30.5.684 Bowman, J. G. P., B. F. Sowell, D. L. Boss, and H. Sherwood. Wyffels,  S.  A., A.  R.  Williams, C.  T.  Parsons, J.  M.  Dafoe, 1999. Influence of liquid supplement delivery method D. L. Boss, T. DelCurto, N. G. Davis, and J. G. P. Bowman. on forage and supplement intake by grazing beef cows. 2018. The influence of age and environmental conditions Anim. Feed Sci. Technol. 78:273–285. doi:10.1016/ on supplement intake and behavior of winter grazing s0377-8401(98)00279-x beef cattle on mixed-grass rangelands. Transl. Anim. Sci. Christopherson,  R., R.  Hudson, and M.  Christophersen. 2(Suppl 1):S89–S92. doi:10.1093/tas/txy046 1979. Seasonal energy expenditures and thermoregulatory Translate basic science to industry innovation

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Translational Animal ScienceOxford University Press

Published: Dec 1, 2020

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