Comparative Nutrition Commons^™

Three Beef Raising Systems For Butterfat Producing Properties, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

THREE-QUARTERS of the calves born in autumn on butterfat farms are not required as milking replacements and are thus available for beef production or immediate sale, at about $20 a head.

The profit from selling beef must be compared with that from selling excess calves off their mothers.

Such a comparison is being made by Department of Agriculture Beef Research Officer D. J. Barker in a series of trials at Bramley Research Station, Margaret River.

Dry Supplements Reduce Labour And Cost Of Calf Rearing, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

The conventional method of hand rearing dairy calves in Western Australia calls for the feeding of whole milk, skim milk and/or milk substitutes for periods of up to 16 weeks.

This requirement for milk and labour has often prevented beef production from becoming a major sideline on many wholemilk and butterfat farms.

The two trials reported below* were carried out at Bramley Research Station to see if milk consumption and time to weaning could be reduced by free-feeding hay and cereal based supplements.

Feeding Urea To Cattle, D J. Barker

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

RUMINANTS normally obtain the protein they require by digestion of the organisms that inhabit the forestomach (rumen), not by direct digestion of the dietary protein they chew up and swallow.

The organisms break down the dietary protein and then rebuild proteins in the form of more organisms.

High Pre-Mating Liveweights Improve The Lambing Performance Of Merino Ewes, R J. Suiter

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Analysis of lambing trials with Merino ewes has shown a highly significant association between pre-mating liveweight and lambing performance.

With May-June lambing ewes there was a 2.9 per cent, lambing increase for every extra 10 lb. liveweight; for July-August- September lambing ewes there was a 6.9 per cent, increase for every 10 lb. liveweight increase.

With the May-June lambing there was a critical weight below which twinning was negligible.

Rationing Standing Crops To Sheep, H E. Fels

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

This experiment was done at Merredin Research Station to develop and test a method of rationing standing crops to sheep, and also to find whether rationing would reduce the sheep's water consumption.

The experiment involved 60 sheep on 12 one-acre plots of drought affected Gamenya wheat.

Carrying Prime Lambs Through Summer, R J. Suiter

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

The annual lamb glut in September- October has caused many farmers to show interest in feed lotting and other methods of carrying over prime lambs for a higher priced market.

Unfortunately however, little information has been available on the necessary techniques under Western Australian conditions.

This report presents the results of the first year of a trial being conducted at Chapman Research Station to examine some of the problems associated with carrying lambs through the summer for later marketing.

Once Daily Calf Feeding Lowers Rearing Costs, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

The usual method of hand rearing dairy calves involves twice daily feeding of milk or milk substitutes.

This routine adds considerably to the labour necessary at milking time and may have prevented many farmers from putting much effort into dairy beef production.

The report below comes from a 1969 trial carried out at Bramley Research Station to see if once-daily calf feeding was as effective as twice daily feeding.

The trial's results should be considered as early findings from a series of trials being conducted into calf rearing regimes by both the Animal and Dairying Divisions of the Department of …

Lupins In Western Australia. 5. The Grazing Value Of Green And Mature Lupins, John Sylvester Gladstones

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

WHETHER or not lupins are grown primarily as a grain crop, grazing of standing crops and harvested stubbles will continue to be an important use. This article examines the uses of sweet lupins for forage, and the main problem of lupin grazing, lupinosis.

Supplementing Calves With Tallow : Results Of A Trial At Wokalup Research Station, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

THE removal of butterfat from milk by separation, reduces the energy content of the milk by about 50 per cent., and must slow the growth of calves unless extra energy is provided from some other source.

In the dairying districts of Western Australia, there has been considerable interest in recent years in the addition of homogenised tallow to skim milk to provide extra energy.

Good calves have been produced by this means.

Thirteenth Random Sample Laying Test : 1969-70, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

THIRTEENTH RANDOM SAMPLE LAYING TEST, 1969-70

SECOND PROGRESSIVE REPORT TO 1st MARCH, 1970 Average age of birds 215 days or 30 weeks and 5 days

Urea Or Grain Supplements For Stubble?, H E. Fels

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Three methods of supplementing sheep grazing stubble were compared at Merredin Research Station in 1970. The stubble used in the experiment was left after harvesting a nine-bushel crop of Gamenya wheat which was a weed-free second crop on new land. The land had never been sown to legumes.

Sheep : Experimental Basis For Urea Feeding Recommendations, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Recent scientific reviews have concluded that in spite of the great number of experimental observations recorded throughout the world there is no evidence yet to prove that urea can be used profitably for sheep on low quality roughages in genuine grazing conditions.

An experiment is in progress at Merredin Research Station this season, especially designed to demonstrate a response to urea by sheep grazing wheat stubbles, if such a response is possible.

Lupins In Western Australia. 4. Composition And Feeding Value Of The Seeds, John Sylvester Gladstones

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

PREVIOUS articles in this series have discussed the varieties of lupin available in Western Australia, and their cultivation.

This article deals with the composition and feeding value of the seeds.

Surplus Cereal Crops For Sheep Feed, H E. Fels

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

SINCE the introduction of wheat quotas many farmers have considered feeding unsaleable grain to sheep.

The three alternative methods of feeding this grain to sheep are

• as standing crops

• as grain supplements, fed in the paddock

• as grain plus hay, in a feedlot.

Crop Rationing : A Useful Drought Feeding Technique, H E. Fels

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

A TRIAL carried out during the 1969 drought demonstrated that rationing standing crop is a practical method of feeding it to sheep when feed is scarce.

Rationing will be mainly a drought feeding technique for that part of the crop which will definitely be used as sheep feed. Crop that may or may not be needed for sheep would normally be harvested and the grain kept as a contingency allowance.

Urea Block Supplements For Stubble, H E. Fels, R. J. Parkin

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

THERE was a great deal of controversy throughout the summer of Western Australia's 1969-70 drought over the feeding of supplements other than grain to grazing sheep.

This report summarises some of the experiments carried out by this Department to investigate various artificial means of supplementing sheep grazing stubbles and dry summer pastures.

Further details of the experiments can be obtained by contacting the authors.

The results failed to demonstrate economic responses to urea supplements for grazing sheep.

Urea Mixture Formulations, H E. Fels

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

This experiment was done once the experiment above (Urea or Grain Supplements for Stubble) had shown definite but uneconomic responses to a particular mixture of urea, molasses and minerals. The aim was to find whether the response depended on the content of various portions of the mixture, and whether the response to the "shotgun" lick could be explained by the presence of salt, sulphate or cobalt.

Experiments With Urea On Private Farms, R J. Parkin, G. Palmer, A. Haagensen, L. D. White, R. J. Suiter, H. E. Fels

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Many District Advisers have carried out trials on private farms to test the response to a variety of types of supplementary feeds. This report gives brief details of five such experiments carried out with urea supplements over the last five years. Table 1 summarises the details and results of these trials.

Look After The Tail Enders, B R. Beetson

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

IN Department of Agriculture drought feeding trials last summer, shy feeders lost weight and died while the bigger sheep grew fat. When drafted off and fed separately the shy feeders ate their share and survived the summer.