Daily availability of minerals impacts immune system of cattle

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — When a mineral feeder is empty for multiple days, there will be implications for an animal’s immune system.

“I get on a lot of feedlots and large cow-calf operations and one of the things that amazes me is the number of times in which mineral feeders are empty,” said Chris Ashworth, DVM.

“Your cattle need calcium, phosphorus, manganese, zinc, Vitamin A and Vitamin E every day,” said Ashworth during a presentation at the Illinois KQB Cow-Calf Forum, presented by Kent and the Illinois Beef Association.

“All of these minerals are going to be incorporated into white blood cells to make them bigger and better to fight viruses or bacteria,” Ashworth said. “Does the animal need 9 or 10 milligrams of magnesium is an irrelevant question when the mineral feeder is empty.”

There are two kinds of minerals — inorganic and organic.

“With inorganic, the mineral is tied to a carbon,” the veterinarian said. “Standard inorganic minerals include chlorides, sulfates, carbonates and oxides. Oxides are poorly absorbed and the best ones are sulfates.”

Organic minerals are tied to sugar, Ashworth said.

“The sugar breaks off the mineral and you have a free mineral that is no different than a sulfate, so you’ve paid big bucks for something that’s not going to bring added value,” he said.

“Proteinates tie a mineral to a chain of amino acids, and the longer the chain, the bigger the protein and the less stable the bond is,” the veterinarian said. “So, they end up not working quite as well.”

Zinpro is a complex that has a zinc molecule tied to one amino acid.

“That’s the simplest and most absorbable because the intestine is looking for that amino acid,” Ashworth said. “The amino acid and whatever mineral is attached is getting further in the intestinal tract to be absorbed, so that’s why it is a superior product.”

From the reproductive standpoint, the veterinarian said, bulls have a need for additional zinc for heat stress.

“The reason the testicles are hanging down is to avoid too much heat in the testicle which leads to spermatogenesis being inhibited,” Ashworth said.

“Zinc plays a huge role not only of enzyme systems for heat stress, but cattle also need manganese and copper for reproductive performance,” he said.

Cattlemen cull cows many times because of lameness or some type of hoof problem.

“If you’re having an issue with foot rot, you have a zinc deficiency in that animal,” Ashworth said. “Zinc plays a huge role in skin development and holding the skin cells together, so when I see foot rot, the first thing I think of is the form of zinc and how much zinc the cow is consuming per day.”

“From the coronary band where the hoof is growing off the hairy skin all the way to the soil, it takes 11 to 14 months,” he said. “So, you’re not going to feed a Sure-Footed product for three weeks and have perfect feet — it takes a long time to regrow a foot.”

Ashworth talked about four studies that looked at conception rates.

“They studied Zinpro products versus inorganic and the Zinpro led to a 20% increase in conception,” he said.

With the shortage of heifers, Ashworth said, this is an area cattlemen really need to focus for herd building.

“We see animals reaching puberty 19 days earlier on a Zinpro supplemented mineral compared to a sulfate,” he said.

When there is fertilization, there needs to be good cells in the wall of the uterus to accept the fetus.

“There’s a big need for zinc at that point because zinc associated proteins are tying those uterine cells to each other,” Ashworth said.

When a cow ovulates an egg off her ovary, where the egg came off there is now a corpus luteum that starts to develop.

“It starts to make progesterone and tells the cow she’s pregnant and not to cycle,” the veterinarian said. “Manganese is at the highest concentration anywhere in the body in the corpus luteum.”

For calves with weak calf syndrome that don’t want to get up or strongly nurse, Ashworth said, his first concern is Vitamin A and E deficiency.

“Third on my list is copper deficiency,” he said.

“If your animals are on silage or hay, Vitamin A and E will start to fall from this day forward until they see green grass again, unless the animals are being supplemented,” the veterinarian said.

When warming newborn calves, Ashworth said, do not put them in water.

“As you start to warm a calf up, its metabolism increases and the calf has a need for glucose,” he said. “The first thing you should do is feed the calf warm milk at 100 degrees.”

Every farm should use a thermometer, Ashworth said.

“Do not put 115-degree milk replacer down a baby’s esophagus,” he said. “Dry the calf off and put it on the floorboard of the truck with the heater running.”

Ashworth uses a calf warmer in his operation.

“I paid $700 for it and it was the second best investment I made for my ranch,” he said. “The best investment was a spray rig for weed control.”

Weaning weight studies show on average calves nursing off cows with access to Zinpro versus an inorganic mineral had a 28-pound advantage, Ashworth said.

“That was predominately because of reduced issues with disease,” he said.

“Pink eye on average reduces weaning weights by 35 pounds,” the veterinarian said. “Zinc is what holds the corneal epithelial cells together so when calves have enough zinc, that significantly reduces the potential of pink eye.”