Quick answers
- How much silage should a dairy cow eat per day?
- On a mixed ration, many farmers feed 15 to 25 kg of maize silage per cow per day, with hay and a dairy concentrate.
- How long does silage last once opened?
- Feed opened silage within two to three days. Air causes it to heat and spoil.
Maize silage is high in energy and cows like it. It keeps milk steady when pasture and Napier run short. To get the benefit without upsetting the cows, introduce it slowly and keep it fresh.
Introduce it over a week
Start with 3 to 5 kg per cow per day and increase every two days until you reach the target. Sudden changes in diet upset the rumen and can drop milk instead of raising it.
How much to feed
| Cow | Silage a day | Feed with |
|---|---|---|
| Milking cow, 10 to 15 L | 15 to 20 kg | Hay, dairy meal, minerals |
| Milking cow, over 20 L | 20 to 25 kg | Hay, more dairy meal, minerals |
| Dry cow | 8 to 12 kg | Plenty of hay |
| Heifer | 5 to 10 kg | Hay and pasture |
Always give dry roughage such as Boma Rhodes hay alongside silage. Cows need long fibre to chew the cud and keep butterfat up.
Keep opened silage fresh
- Open one bale at a time.
- Use opened silage within two to three days.
- Keep unopened bales in the shade and protect the wrap from tears; a hole lets air in and spoils the silage.
- Do not leave silage in the trough overnight; clear leftovers before the next feed.
Good silage and bad silage
Good maize silage is olive to yellow-green, moist but not dripping, and smells sharp and slightly sweet, like vinegar or fruit. Discard silage that is slimy, black, mouldy, or smells rotten or of ammonia. Spoiled silage can cause serious illness.
Weigh a bucket of silage once so farm workers know what a 5 kg or 10 kg feed looks like. Guessing usually means overfeeding the first week and underfeeding later.
