EHAL Magazine May 2019

Everything Horses and Livestock Magazine ®

in goats as attested to by many customers over the years. So, what are the simple things that accomplish this: 1. Fiber digestion improvement – there are several things that can improve the digestibility of fiber in a ruminant animal. a. Feed the bacteria as if they are the main cells being fed and allow them to grow more rapidly and they digest fiber more quickly and completely so the goat gets more nutrients from each bite and uses less fiber. b. Feed the proper levels of trace minerals and more importantly the best and most bioavailable minerals. c. Check the fiber and digestibility of the source of grass and hay and know when the goats need to be supplemented. Forage assays are very cheap compared to being surprised after you realize the animals are not performing. d. Know when added protein is needed in the program. This is a false economy to not feed protein when needed to save money – it costs profit. 2. Feed the most soluble and digestible supplemental product when it is needed in the program. a. Whole grains and pellets are not as soluble and digestible as extruded product. 3. Include Ascophyllum nodosum in the feeding program to enhance not only the digestive tract health and digestibility, but also enhance fertility (multiple births) in females and sperm quality in males. 4. Provide a good mineral program free- choice all year. This is one of the least expensive and performance enhancing parts of any program; and make sure it contains the most bioavailable trace minerals and Ascophyllum nodosum. These are just some simple things the make a good program complex, but not complicated.

39 Everything Horses and Livestock® | May 2019 | EHALmagazine.com