Grazing Behavior Affects Daily Ruminal pH and NH3 Oscillations of Dairy Cows on Pasture

Grazing behavior of Holstein cows in late lactation at 2 pasture allowances without or with supplementation was studied in a single reversal design. Twenty multiparous cows (4 ruminally cannulated) grazed a bromegrass/orchardgrass pasture offered at 2 pasture allowances: 1) low, and 2) high, with 25 and 40kg/d of DM per cow, respectively. Half of the cows were supplemented with a mineral/vitamin mixture (1kg/ d of the mix in a corn/molasses carrier) and the other half supplemented with a corn-based concentrate (1kg of concentrate per 4kg of milk). Automatic behavior recorders were used to measure grazing time and number of bites. For the mineral/vitamin mixture-supplemented cows, grazing time and number of bites after the p.m. milking was greater and ruminal pH was numerically lower at the high pasture allowance. For the concentrate-supplemented cows, grazing behavior and ruminal pH did not differ between the 2 pasture allowances. Pattern of grazing time of mineral/vitamin mixture-supplemented and concentrate-supplemented cows influenced daily oscillations of ruminal pH and NH3-N concentration. Pasture allowance affected grazing behavior of mineral/vitamin mixture-supplemented cows; however grazing behavior of concentrate-supplemented cows was not affected by pasture allowance.