a) Dietary cation anion balance as a means to reduce milk fever in dairy cows

:  Topical Issues in Ruminant Nutrition

Section A (60% mark allocation):

 

Write a report on one of the following topics. An alternative topic that is directly related to your work can be used after discussion and agreement with the Module Leader. Each topic can only be undertaken by one person.

a)    Dietary cation anion balance as a means to reduce milk fever in dairy cows

b)    Dietary supplementation with nicotinamide to reduce ketosis in dairy cows

c)    Organically bound (or chelated) minerals compared with inorganic sources: effects on dairy cow OR beef OR sheep performance, health and reproduction (one mineral only).

d)    Acidosis OR bloat in intensive beef systems: impact on health and performance, and dietary means to reduce

e)    Lucerne in the diet of high yielding dairy cows: inclusion and appropriate supplementation

f)     Urinary calculi in intensively finished lambs: occurrence and dietary control.

g)    Nutritional management of the high genetic merit dairy cow at grass

h)    Dietary strategies to reduce mastitis in dairy cows or ewes

i)      Mineral supplementation of the suckler cow (one mineral only)

j)      Lupins as a protein supplement for dairy cows

k)    Recent developments in forage additives to improve silage quality and animal performance

l)      Choline as a dietary supplement to either finishing beef animals or dairy cows: effects on performance, health and profitability.

m)  Effects of dietary fat level and type on the reproductive performance of dairy cows.

n)    Cobalt and vitamin B₁₂ and effects on health and performance of sheep, beef OR dairy cows

The report should be in the style of an article suitable for publication in an industry related journal such as Feed Compounder, Feed International, Feed Mix, Grass Farmer, International Dairy Topics or similar (any alternative journal should be agreed with the Module Leader). Whenever relevant the financial effects of the recommendations made should be included. A separate list of the reference sources used must be attached (but will not be included in the word limit). A wide variety of information sources may be used, but credit will be given to those that are more reliable (e.g. books, review articles or peer reviewed papers). Example reference sources and a guide on how to search for information sources will be provided once you have chosen your topic.

 

Section B (40% mark allocation: please note that this is not uploaded to Turnitin)

 

a) Prepare a 10 minute Powerpoint presentation on your article for a target audience of dairy, beef or sheep farmers (as appropriate).

OR

b) Prepare a poster suitable for use on your company stand at an agricultural show. You should also prepare a 5 minute talk explaining the poster.