A new rumen bolus being trialled for the first time in the UK could help prevent problems such as lameness and poor fertility.
The Smaxtec bolus measures rumen pH and temperature and could allude farmers to problems such as sub acute rumen acidosis (SARA), which,by the time symptoms occur damage could already be done, said Westpoint Vet Group's Rob Drysdale.
"SARA can have an impact on levels of lameness and fertility, so by the time you see symptoms of SARA it could be too late. By measuring rumen pH, farmers can monitor the rumen and take immediate action if they see something going wrong."
Mr Drysdale is trialling the bolus on some of his client's farms, and said although the cost of £300 a bolus may seem expensive, the pay-back may be quite short.
"If you can get the rumen functioning at optimal performance then feed will be used more efficiently and you could produce more milk from the same amount of feed. So, essentially, saving feed costs and producing more milk is money in the pocket and makes the £300 investment worthwhile.
"That is without taking in to account potential reductions in SARA, lameness issues and better condition scores by feeding more accurately. Knowing what is going on in the rumen really could help farmers produce healthier cows," he said.
Mr Drysdale believes only a small portion of the herd would need to carry the bolus, which monitors pH for 50 days. "You could put it in before calving to monitor the transition period, or every time you change the base clamp, for example," he said.
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