While most dairy farmers have a trace element supplementation routine, as we reset for another season it’s worth asking: are you supplementing the right trace elements at the right time?

Trace element deficiencies can affect fertility, immunity, milk production, and overall performance and wellbeing. However, without testing, supplementation is a guessing game. Some herds may be being silently impacted by deficiencies, while others could be receiving minerals they don’t need (draining your wallet for no benefit).

By taking samples from a small selection of your herd to test selenium and magnesium levels in the blood and copper stores in the liver, we can accurately determine your herd’s current trace element status. This enables you to target supplementation with the right minerals, reducing the risk of production losses and other bad outcomes from deficiencies. And, if you treat only what you need to, you’ll avoid unnecessary product costs.

Our PP+ programme is designed to make this proactive approach both practical and cost-effective. If you’re on the programme, you get testing at three key times of the season (pre-calving, pre-mating and pre-drying off) to monitor trace element levels. From this, we can make supplementation recommendations based on your herd’s actual requirements at that time, rather than assumptions.

Give us a call if you’d like to sign up for PP+ and get some pre-calving tests done – it will save you in the long run!