Contents
Zimbabwe
Extension Support and Training Project
MUZARABANI ZEST BEEF
CHICKEN MANURE ............................................................................. 2
PHOSPHATE LICK ............................................................................ 2
Procedure ................................................................................... 2
UREA TREATED SILAGE ....................................................................... 2
Procedure ................................................................................... 2
PRODUCTION
UREA POISONING ........................................................................... 3
Sign of poisoning in ruminants................................................... 3
Post mortem .............................................................................. 3
PEN FATTENING
Treatment .................................................................................. 3
Advice ......................................................................................... 4
ACIDOSIS ............................................................................................ 4
Clinical signs ............................................................................... 4
Control........................................................................................ 4
MANUAL
Prevention .................................................................................. 4
Treatment .................................................................................. 4
BLOAT................................................................................................. 5
Clinical signs ............................................................................... 5
Prevention .................................................................................. 5
2013
Control........................................................................................ 5
Treatment .................................................................................. 5
CATTLE PEN FATTENING PROTOCOL .................................................. 5
Size of Feedlot ................................................................................ 6
Deaths and Condemnations ........................................................... 6
Slurry Disposal ................................................................................ 6
Zimbabwe
Disease ........................................................................................... 6
Extension Support and Training Project
Animal Information Chart .................................................................. 7
UREA TREATED SILAGE
CHICKEN MANURE
•
Droppings from chicken can be used as cheap feed, but
supplying most of the crude protein at approximately 12%
instead of 14% supplied by most commercial feeds.
•
The Droppings are dried and cleaned from stones, wire and
sticks.
•
The Droppings can be mixed with ground cereals in 1:3
ratio, normally this will be at around 12%CP.
•
5-10% molasses can be added.
•
Supplementary feeding should not exceed 4kg/animal/day
for animals getting part of their feed on veld.
PHOSPHATE LICK
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Urea
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Salt coarse
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Water
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Crop residue e.g. Maize, G nuts, sorghum
Procedure
A cornered pit should be dug depending on the quantity to be
prepared.
Chop the residues into smaller quantities approx 20cm
Sprinkle the solution (water, urea, salt) on the chopped residue
Turn them thoroughly to mix
Wrap in a black polythene sheet and burry in the pit

25Kg Phosphate …(Mabiko)
Press to remove air and allow anaerobic activity only

50kg Mealie meal
After 21 days the feed will be ready for animal consumption

25kg salt (either)
NB: This should not be fed to donkey, goats and calves

Approx 20litres water
Procedure
Dissolve mabiko in water, salt is then added and mixed thoroughly;
lastly mealie meal is added and mixed until the dough is hard or
heavy.
The dough is pressed down in the same half drum where it was
mixed and left to dry for at least 7 days.
Curing is up to 2 weeks before it is given to animals to lick.
Urea should not constitute more than 3% of concentration ration
of ruminants.
UREA POISONING AND TREATMENT
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Severe abdominal pains
Kicking of the belly
Grinding of teeth
Burning sensation ( witnessed by taking to shed )
Dyspnoea ( difficult breathing )
Muscle tremor ( trembling )
Inco-ordination
Bloat
Weakness and death occurs within 2 – 4 hours
Drowsiness
 Excessive salivation
 Sudden death
There are serious and fatal conditions associated with pen fattening
which the farmer must know and be prepared to solve as soon as
they appear and the following are some of the problems.
UREA POISONING
Urea is the most common form of non-protein nitrogen (NPN) fed
to ruminants. It is available as a feed additive in ruminants to
provide a cheap protein substitute.
Post mortem
 no characteristic lesions are found
 generalized congestion and hemorrhages are seen
 pulmonary oedema
 deaths results from respiratory arrest due to ammonium
intoxication
Treatment
Cattle – give 4 litres of vinegar as a drench
Sheep and goats - give 1 litre of vinegar
Only effective treatment is emptying the stomach (rumen) with the
large ball stomach tube
Accidental access to the liquid and powder forms is often
poisonous.
 Withdraw the suspected offending feed from other animals.
Poisoning occurs in cattle and shoats due to the following:
Treat the affected animals using 1:1 parts of vinegar and
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Accidental access to large quantities of urea,
Feeding large quantities than they are not accustomed to,
When feeds are improperly mixed,
Sign of poisoning in ruminants
Signs occur in 20 – 30 minutes after ingestion.
molasses mixed and administer one litre after every hour.
 Give Glutamic acid through intravenous,
 Magnesium and Calcium Chloride intravenous
 Dextrose sugar or drenching molasses can be used.
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NB*
 Urea used for any feed mixture should be free –flowing,
free of lumps and should be thoroughly mixed into the feed.
Particularly care should be taken the correct amounts are
measured out.
 Urea should not provide more than one third of the total
Depression
Distended abdomen
Kicking of belly (sign of pain)
Grinding of teeth
Dilated pupils
Bellowing
Foul smelling diarrhea
Anuria (not urinating)
protein in the animal’s diet.
3:90:7 (Urea: Molasses: Water)
 Urea should be provided in such a way that small quantities
are consumed at regular intervals and this encourages
consumption of roughage. This is the situation that exists
with ad- libtum feeding in the feedlots. As supplement to
veld grazing, urea should be fed as part of a regularly fed
cube or as a constituent of a balanced lick.
Advice
 Urea blocks must not be left in the paddocks during the
beginning of the rain season.
 Cattle blocks should be properly hardened to meet
licking and not ingestion of huge chunks.
 Each animal should get 200g / day of urea.
Control
 Withdraw animal from source of infection
 Withdraw water and provide good quality fodder to
facilitate digestion
Prevention
 Avoid access to grain stores
 Supply good quality fodder
 Gradual introduction to high energy feed
Treatment
(a) Acute form
 Practice rumenotomy by Vet ( removing rumen
contents )
 Supplement with sodium bicarbonate to neutralise
acidity
 Put mouth gag so that animal will continue salivating
(b) Less acute
ACIDOSIS
It is caused by over ingestion of feed rich in sugar or starch (grain
overload) or rapid change of diet from low energy to high energy
diet.
Clinical signs
 Loss of appetite
 Give sodium bicarbonate
 Drench with penicillin
BLOAT
 Blockage of esophagus by e.g tumour , abscess , seroma
, hernia ,feed like potatoes, marura, mango fruits .
 Blockage by noose e.g snares, too tight collars or yokes.
 There are two types of bloat as follows:
Treatment
Depends on the type of bloat.
(a) gaseous bloat :
 resort to Trocar and Cannula
 Remove the obstacle
 Bloat guard liquid / linseed oil to neutralise the
contents and bleach down chemical compound of
gases.
 Oral drench of laxatives like cooking oil
(a) gas bloat :
 this result due to blockage of the oesophagus normally
by the swelling and or food particles.
(b) froth bloat :
(b) froth bloat :
 results due to access intake of feed with grain and high
protein e g lurcene, bubbles are usually trapped and
then results in froth .
Clinical signs
 Distended abdomen
 Restless and uncomfortable
 Loss of appetite
 Raised temperature
 Raised pulse
 Raised breath rate
 Congested mucous membrane
Prevention
 Give right quantity of high energy and protein feeds by
gradual introduction.
 Fencing off legume pastures , grain stores, fields and
orchards, dumping sites etc.
 Remove / avoid snares in the paddocks
 Avoid too tight collars / yokes
 Restrict grazing period in legume pastures
 Gradual introduction to high energy and protein feeds
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CATTLE PEN FATTENING PROTOCOL
On arrival at the feedlot animals must be processed. Processing
varies from feedlot to feedlot, but usually includes:
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Control
 Remove animal from source of infection .
use laxatives – cooking oil or bloat guard
Dose and dip. Dipping is essential, but many people
question the need to de-worm animals arriving at a feedlot.
A positive response to dosing is often not seen, possibly
because many farmers dose their animals before selling
them.
Vaccinate all animals against botulism, anthrax, quarter evil,
IBR and any other diseases considered essential in the area
where the feedlot is situated.
Administer growth promoters. These have been shown to
be highly cost effective. Injecting Vitamin A is usually worth
the nominal cost involved.
Identify and number the animals for record keeping
purposes.
On arrival at a feedlot it is good practice to group animals
according to size and sex. Large animals tend to bully
smaller animals and keep them away from feed troughs.
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The initial weight of animals should be recorded, preferably
after 7 to 10 days in the feedlot. At this time, careful
observation can identify poor performers and these can, at
a next weighing which ideally takes place two to three
weeks later, be culled if the mass gains confirm the earlier
observations.
Horned animals are a problem. Dehorning sets an animal
back a great deal. Leaving animals with horns can lead to
severe losses resulting from damage to other animals and
bruising. It is best to refrain from buying in animals that
have not been properly dehorned.
Size of Feedlot
There is not an optimal size for a feedlot. Even a farmer feeding a
single animal can make a profit. However, feedlotting often runs at
a loss and a small operator cannot absorb such losses. The feedlot
must be large enough to pay for running costs such as salaries,
transport, and cost of equipment.
Deaths and Condemnations
Although deaths occur in feedlots, where losses exceed 2% prompt
action must be taken to find and eliminate the cause(s) of the
mortalities in order to minimize losses.
Slurry Disposal
Slurry disposal is a major issue in most feedlots and warrants
attention. Waste can be wet or solid and, if not properly taken care
of, can result in a fly and insect problem. Flies and insects must be
combated in a feedlot because they worry animals and increase
stress. Stress has a negative effect on growth rate.
Disease
A feature of crowded accommodation is the rapid spread of disease.
Apart from the better known cattle diseases that can appear in
feedlots, there are a number of diseases associated with
feedlotting. A feedlot manager needs to be aware of the potential
danger of these diseases, especially infective diseases such as IBR
which can spread through a feedlot at a very rapid rate and even if
mortalities are relatively low, profits are eroded by depressed
animal performance.
Information Chart
Project Name……………………………………………………
Name of
animal/Tag no
Breed
Class
Starting
date
Entry
weight
(kg)
Pen Number ……………………………….
Feed/animal
/day (kg)
Weight
after
15 days
(kg)
NB: feed per animal per day is 8 – 15kgs depending on live weight, age and breed.
Weight
after
30 days
(kg)
Location………………………………………………………….
Weight
after
60 days
(kg)
Exit
weight
(kg)
Remarks