Effect of concentrate supplementation on plasma minerals and performance of smallholder dairy cattle

An assessment of calf birth weight (CBWT), milk yield (MY) and plasma calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P) and copper (Cu) was done in supplemented (S) and control (C) cattle groups grazing tropical pastures. The supplemented group had compared to the control group higher P (5.1 vs 4.7 +/- 0.1 mg/dl; P<0.05), Cu (0.5 vs 0.4 +/- 0.02 mug/ml; P<0.001), MY (10.13 vs 7.63 +/- 0.07 1/day; P<0.001) and CBWT (26.01 vs 23.4 +/- 0.68 kg; P<0.05). The control group showed P and Cu deficiency and the production effect of supplementation with an appropriate mixture were was more than 0.5 kg milk per kg mixture and 10% heavier calves at birth.