Choline for All Cows

Do your transition cows look like the cow on the left? Or do your transition cows look like the cow on the right? As with any population, you probably have a mix of all shapes and sizes in your herd. In the past, the popular belief was that only those cows that were overweight during transition would benefit from supplemental rumen-protected choline. New research now shows that all cows, regardless of body condition score, will benefit from choline and that supplemental choline has a positive impact on your bottom-line.

Though choline is known to be a required nutrient for most species, in dairy cows rumen-protected choline has long been reserved for over-conditioned animals as they transition to the milking string.

The many benefits of feeding choline to dairy cows are well-established and supported by decades of research.  Choline helps cows mobilize and process the NEFA surge experienced after calving, reducing the severity of fatty liver. Choline plays an important role in many metabolic, gene expression and neurotransmission processes:

New research completed at the University of Florida¹ now clearly demonstrates that all cows, regardless of body condition score (BCS), respond to supplemental ReaShure® rumen-protected choline. Cows in the study responded with increased milk production and components, improved feed efficiency and reduced incidence of milk fever.

Cows that received ReaShure had increased daily milk yield of 1,80 kg, energy corrected milk (ECM) increase of 1,90 kg and fat corrected milk (FCM) increase of 2,10 kg. This increase was seen across all body condition scores.

In the same research studies, cows fed ReaShure were more efficient in converting dietary dry matter (DM) to ECM. Feed efficiency was increased by ReaShure supplementation and was actually better in cows with higher BCS.

Though the incidence rates of clinical disease were not affected in these studies, there was a decrease in the incidence of subclinical milk fever. ReaShure decreased the incidence rate of sub-clinical milk fever based on plasma tCa <2 mM postpartum.

Choline had developed a reputation for helping fat cows transition more smoothly into lactation, but new research now clearly shows it’s equally as important for thin cows.  All cows, regardless of body condition score, respond to supplemental rumen-protected choline through increased milk production and components, improved feed efficiency and reduced incidence of metabolic disorders. And though not all cows respond the same, research proves that delivering choline during transition leads to a substantial return from a small investment. All cows need choline.