Results
Nutrition
The single most common feeding system that had been used for lactating cows in the survey herds for the previous two years was a Total Mixed Ration (TMR). Twenty five percent of the producers said they used TMR as the only feeding system for their lactating cows, and an additional 20 % used it in combination with other feeding systems.
The great majority of producers (94%) used a nutritional advisor to formulate the lactating herds' ration. Sixty percent of the producers pastured calves and/ or heifers. Feeding practices for bucket calves included milk replacer (35% of herds), whole milk (32%), and a combination of the two (32%).