Many producers will be making use of cereal crops for grazing this winter, and recent rain has given crops a much-needed drink. Cereal crops are a valuable resource for both sheep and cattle producers, filling the winter ‘feed gap’, and providing the opportunity for cutting hay or harvesting grain later in the year.
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When grazing cereal crops there are a number of animal health issues to look out for. In most cases, sensible preventative management will keep you out of trouble.
Some diseases – like hypomagnesaemia (‘grass tetany’) in cattle, or hypocalcaemia or rickets in young sheep – are associated with mineral imbalances or deficiencies in cereal crops.
Cereal crops often contain calcium and phosphorus in ratios which don’t fit the nutritional requirements of livestock – in these cases, mineral supplementation is useful.
Winter cereal crops can also have high potassium levels, which can inhibit the uptake of magnesium in the rumen, increasing the risk of grass tetany in cattle.
Cereal crops often contain calcium and phosphorus in ratios which don’t fit the nutritional requirements of livestock
- Nigel Gillan
In this area, we see cases of grass tetany in cattle each year. It’s a disease which is hard to predict, but it tends to occur in older, lactating cows grazing young, rapidly growing pasture or cereal crops in winter. Periods of inclement weather also increase the risk.
Early symptoms of grass tetany include excitability, bellowing, a staggering gait, or tremors. The disease can progress very rapidly, and often affected animals are simply found dead.
Providing a loose lick (such as coarse salt, lime, and ‘CausMag’ in equal proportions) can help ensure a balanced mineral intake, and in some cases may also have production benefits. If the risk of grass tetany is high, CausMag can be sprinkled on hay to increase intake.
Enterotoxaemia (‘pulpy kidney’) in sheep is a risk on any good quality feed source, and cereal crops are no exception. It’s important to keep clostridial vaccinations (like ‘5-in-1’ or ‘6-in-1’) up-to-date to reduce the risk.
For sheep on very high quality feed, vaccination for pulpy kidney might need to be administered more regularly than the standard annual booster. For cattle, it may be prudent to give a clostridial vaccine.
