Alfalfa hay has been widely accepted by grass as a high-quality roughage for calves after weaning. However, in the process of use, it is often found that a large amount of alfalfa meal is deposited on the bottom of the trough without being eaten, causing waste. A large amount of grass powder entering the calf's snout and nose will also make the calf reluctant to eat alfalfa hay. If alfalfa pellets are used instead of alfalfa hay, these problems will be avoided. However, because the rumen of the calf has gradually developed at this time, if alfalfa pellets are used as the source of all roughage, it may cause swelling of the calf, which may be fatal in severe cases. Therefore, we suggest that even if alfalfa pellets are used in the calf period, we still need to consider adding appropriate high-quality long fibers as a combination. At this time, oat grass is a good choice.
Alfalfa pellets are short fibers, while alfalfa hay is long fibers. Adding alfalfa pellets to the dairy cow's diet formula can increase the cow's dry matter intake, but the content of effective fiber in the dairy cow's diet needs to be considered. Some pastures have proposed that replacing alfalfa hay with alfalfa pellets will reduce the rate of milk fat. After analysis, we believe that after alfalfa pellets replace hay, the effective fiber content will decrease and the normal ruminating of dairy cows will be affected. Therefore, it is recommended that the use of alfalfa pellets is to add 1-2kg of alfalfa pellets on the basis of the original diet formula, which will give better results.
