The Rumen Room Podcasts

13. Summer crop planning – The journey from seed to feed

Spring is just around the corner and before we know it, it’ll be Christmas. It’s never too early to be planning for your summer forage crop requirements to keep your sheep, cattle and/or deer happy, well fed and content through the summer months.
In this episode, Dr Charlotte Westwood is joined by Paul Greenbank, agronomist and farm systems guru with PGG Wrightson Seeds based on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand. Paul steps us through the planning process for getting a spring planted crop into the ground - ready for your lambs, cattle or deer to enjoy a cost effective, tasty and nutritious summer forage crop. 
All manner of topics are discussed in a practical, down to earth manner. Everything is covered from paddock selection and preparation for cropping through to looking after your new crop plants as they get up and running during the days and weeks after planting.
Later in 2022 we’ll feature a couple of crop-focused episodes that’ll discuss the assessment and grazing of different crop types. We’ll target the various tips and tricks around how to convert your forage crops into highly efficient animal production. Keep an eye out for those episodes!
In the meantime, we need to get the seed in the ground to get the summer feed! We hope that you enjoy this episode.

12. Calf Nutrition: Nutritional scours

In this second of a two part series about preweaned calf nutrition, this episode covers all things to do with nutritional scours (diarrhoea) in calves younger than 3 weeks of age. Nutritional scours not only increase risk of dehydration in your young calves, but also increase risk of infectious scours due to a range of pathogens. Presented by New Zealand veterinarian and ruminant nutritionist Dr Charlotte Westwood, this fact filled episode will provide tips and tricks for calf rearers around preventing nutritional scours. This episode discusses just what nutritional scours are in calves, why scouring makes calves unwell, and factors that increase risk of nutritional scours in young calves.
For more information around the basics of the nutrition of milk-fed young calves, tune into the first of this two part series about pre-ruminant calf nutrition.

11. Calf nutrition: All you wanted to know but were afraid to ask!

Such a magical transformation - a newborn calf that becomes a fully fledged and functioning ruminant within just a matter of months. How does this amazing process of changing a fully milk-fed calf to one that eats and digests pasture work? Join us for another fact filled and down to earth approach to understanding about the nutrition of young calves, including nutritional tips and tricks to help rear strong and healthy calves. Presented by New Zealand veterinarian and nutritionist Dr Charlotte Westwood, there's something for everyone in this first of a two part series. We'll step us through how calves digest milk, how a new rumen develops and the how and why of the importance of different feeds along each step of the journey. 
The second part of this two part series focuses more on the challenge of nutritional scours in calves younger than 3 weeks of age. A discussion is included around what is nutritional scour and risk factors that increase the likelihood that young calves will experience nutritional scours. 

10. Transition feeding of dairy cows through calving – Keeping cows well, the practicalities!

Keeping our cows happy, healthy and well through the transition period. What are some practical tips and tricks to help make calving a whole lot less stressful for our cows (and us)?  
In this episode, New Zealand veterinarian and nutritionist Dr Charlotte Westwood is joined by guest podcaster and fellow veterinarian and nutritionist Dr Laura Pattie. Born and bred on a North Island dairy farm, Laura spent 10 years in a predominantly dairy veterinary role before moving into a ruminant nutrition role with PGG Wrightson Ltd.
Laura brings to this podcast a very hands on, down to earth and practical approach to managing metabolic disease challenges in New Zealand dairy cows. Stepping us through the various stages of the transition period as cows move through the springer to colostrum to milking herds, Laura provides us with a wealth of sensible farm-level advice to keep our cows well. There’s something here for everyone as practical takehomes for your calving cows. Tune in when you can!

9. Udder oedema in calving dairy cows

Udder oedema is a condition that sometimes affects our younger dairy cows around calving time. This latest Rumen Room podcast covers off information about udder oedema. Topics discussed include why udder oedema occurs, the range of factors that increase risk of udder oedema and some of the nutritional strategies that may reduce the chances of udder oedema occurring in your cows. 
Presented by New Zealand veterinarian and ruminant nutritionist Charlotte Westwood, we hope that you find some handy tips to help reduce risk of udder oedema. As for any animal health disorder, the content of this podcast is not intended to replace the advice of your own veterinarian or qualified ruminant nutritionist. 

8. Magnesium metabolism – the inside story!

Magnificent magnesium – a mineral that all animal species require to keep the body ticking along. And a very relevant mineral given lambing and calving time is just around the corner for New Zealand and Australians. Why the extra interest in magnesium in winter and spring?? 
For pregnant and lactating animals, magnesium is a very important mineral.  If we don’t get the diet just right, and the magnesium status of our animals correctly sorted, our animals can get themselves into all sort of trouble with increased risk of metabolic diseases before, during and after calving or lambing. Risk of magnesium challenges is especially a problem during winter and spring. 
New Zealand veterinarian Dr Charlotte Westwood steps us through everything we need to know about magnesium metabolism in our pregnant and lactating ruminant species. Tune in now and start thinking magnesium just in time for spring!
 

7. “Feed Test Lab Reports: Just what on earth do all those numbers mean” - Part Two

Cattle are picky critters and oh such fussy eaters!
The backstory to this Podcast is that our cattle have decided “No thanks”, they’d rather not eat our pasture silage.
Why not? What’s different about this pasture silage that might explain why our cattle won’t touch it?    
In this, part two of a two part series, New Zealand veterinarian and nutritionist Charlotte Westwood walks us through what the various feed test results might mean for this sample of pasture silage.
This podcast explores, step-by-step, the second section of the feed test results provided to us by Hill Laboratories. (Part one of this podcast series largely explored the mineral test results).
Join us to walk through the various test results including energy, protein and fibre contents of the silage, the pH result and the levels of various fermentation acids in the sample.
Might these results explain why those cattle turned up their noses at our silage? We shall see! Tune in and see how our silage results compare with yours.
A copy of these silage results are posted in the Facebook Group “The Rumen Room” that you can join here https://www.facebook.com/groups/376802106011728 for more information about all things to do with ruminant animals.

6. “Feed Test Lab Reports: Just what on earth do all those numbers mean” - Part One

How many of you routinely collect feed samples and send them away for feed testing? Ever wondered what all those numbers mean? No worries – you are most certainly not alone! Listen in to this, the first in a two part series all about interpreting feed test results for a sample of pasture silage.
New Zealand veterinarian and nutritionist Charlotte Westwood will step you through the various feed test results and explain what each number means. To make this more interesting, you’ll get to play detective as part of the process. This particular silage sample was collected because cattle refused to eat the silage. Why might these cattle not be so keen? Might the lab test numbers show us some clues?
This, part one of a two part series, explores the first batch of numbers as typically reported for a full silage/baleage feed test by Hill Laboratories in New Zealand. In this episode, we’ll discuss the various macro and trace minerals for this particular sample of silage. We’ll compare the reported result against the “Medium range” or expected range, as reported by Hill Laboratories, that we’d normally expect to see for a pasture baleage or silage sample. (Thanks to Hill Laboratories for their permission for us to discuss these feed test results!)
Tune in and see how your detective work goes assessing these results.
The full table of these results are posted in the Facebook Group “The Rumen Room” that you can join here https://www.facebook.com/groups/376802106011728 for more info about all things ruminant.
Part Two of this feed test series (posted shortly) will explore the second half of a typical Hill Laboratories report for a sample of baleage or silage including the crude protein, fibre, energy, ash etc content as well as the various silage acids reported in the Hill Laboratories full silage test results.

5. Nitrate toxicity in ruminants

Nitrate toxicity - the most commonly encountered toxicity challenge in New Zealand ruminants. This podcast breaks nitrate toxicity down into seven "bite sized", easy to understand sections. By stepping through, step-by-step, the various things that we need to know about nitrate toxicity, you'll be set up well to understand how to deal with this challenging problem.
Topics covered include how to assess risk of nitrate toxicity in your forage crops and pastures, understanding how and why nitrate toxicity occurs in ruminants, what to do if you suspect cases of nitrate toxicity in your animals, and how to reduce the risk of future toxicity cases. As with any cases of clinical or sub-clinical disease in animals, your own veterinarian remains your first person to urgently contact if you are dealing with suspected cases of nitrate toxicity. 
Presented by New Zealand veterinarian and ruminant nutritionist Charlotte Westwood, we hope you can join us for this informative podcast. 

4. Checklist for success - wintering sheep and cattle on winter crops and pastures

Are you looking after pregnant cows or ewes through the winter months? Then this podcast is designed for you. With an emphasis on looking after cows and ewes really well, on outdoor winter forage crops particularly, this podcast steps us through some of the planning processes required before animals transition off pasture-based diets onto winter feeds.
Topics covered include the basics of feed budgeting, demands of animals for feed and water, types of supplementary feeds and looking after animals during winter weather events. There's something here for for everyone involved in wintering animals  – including those of you who feed pasture and supplementary feeds to your animals.
Presented by New Zealand veterinarian and nutritionist Dr Charlotte Westwood, we welcome you to listen in and compare your winter wellbeing checklist with ours.