Vitamin D status of dairy cattle: Outcomes of current practices in the dairy industry
Journal of Dairy Science, Vol 99, # 12, December 2016, Pages 10150–10160, http://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2016-11727
Corwin D. Nelson*, cdnelson at ufl.edu, , John D. Lippolis†, Timothy A. Reinhardt†, Randy E. Sacco†, Jessi L. Powell*, Mary E. Drewnoski‡, Matthew O’Neil#, Donald C. Beitz#, William P. Weiss§
30,000 to 50,000 IU of vitamin D3/d
Near or above 70 ng/mL regardless of season or housing
Vets supplement 1.5 to 2.5 times the National Research Council recommendation
Approximate dairy cattle weight = 1200 lbs = approx 8X more than average adult human
So, 40,000 IU per day for dairy cattle would be = 5,000 IU for average adult
See also VitaminDWiki
- Companion animals (dog, cats) need vitamin D too – March 2016
- Hospitalized cats 8X more likely to die if low vitamin D (Vit. D helps humans too) – May 2015
- National requirement of vitamin D for pigs increased by 4X, (4X more than for humans) - Jan 2014
- Animals get a lot more vitamin D than minimum recommended for humans – 2016
- Dog Cancer 4X more likely if low Vitamin D – Nov 2015
- Active vitamin D increased fractional rate of protein synthesis in chickens by 3X – March 2015 Seems like the chicken farmers should be screaming to be allowed to add this
Overview Veterinary and vitamin D has the following
Veterinary category hasAnimals need Vitamin D too
- Vitamin D is important for pregnancies (pigs as well as people)– Sept 2022
- Many Vitamin D similarities: people and cows - March 2022
- Several advanced-maternal-age problems reduced if given Vitamin D during pregnancy (mice in this case) – July 2021
- Poor immune system associated with low Vitamin D (dogs in this case) – June 2020
- Chicken bones, eggs, and activated vitamin D in eggs increased with 2 hours of daily UVB – Dec 2019
- Vitamin D in eggs increased 4X after UV lighting near legs was added – April 2019
- Hens with Vitamin D were better in at least 5 ways – RCT Aug 2018
Pets as well
- Critically ill dogs with good levels of vitamin D have much better outcomes (humans too) – March 2018
- Half of dogs now get cancer, it used to be just 1 percent (probably low Vitamin D)
- Dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, pet birds, etc need Vitamin D
- Dogs with Cancer have low vitamin D, same as humans – Sept 2017
- Companion animals (dog, cats) need vitamin D too – March 2016
- Hospitalized cats 8X more likely to die if low vitamin D (Vit. D helps humans too) – May 2015
- Rickets increasing in dogs
Farm Vets are paid when their "patients" are healthy,
vs doctors who are paid only when "patients" become sick
Cows are routinely given 30 IU per kilogram (which would be 10,000 IU for a 150 lb person)
Same information is available on Cattle need 66 IU of vitamin D per pound
The US RDA of vitamin D for cows is 13 IU per kilogram (which would be 4,300 IU for a 150 lb 'cow')
Virtually all US farmers who raise livestock use feed that is supplemented with vitamin D
Merick Vet Manual supplement if not have UV or sunlight
The need for vitamin D supplementation of dairy cattle has been known for the better part of the last century and is well appreciated by dairy producers and nutritionists. Whether current recommendations and practices for supplemental vitamin D are meeting the needs of dairy cattle, however, is not well known. The vitamin D status of animals is reliably indicated by the concentration of the 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] metabolite in serum or plasma, with a concentration of 30 ng/mL proposed as a lower threshold for sufficiency.
The objective of this study was to determine the typical serum 25(OH)D concentrations of dairy cattle across various dairy operations. The serum 25(OH)D concentration of 702 samples collected from cows across various stages of lactation, housing systems, and locations in the United States was 68 ± 22 ng/mL (mean ± standard deviation), with the majority of samples between 40 and 100 ng/mL.
Most of the 12 herds surveyed supplemented cows with 30,000 to 50,000 IU of vitamin D3/d, and average serum 25(OH)D of cows at 100 to 300 DIM [Days in milk] in each of those herds was near or above 70 ng/mL regardless of season or housing.
In contrast, average serum 25(OH)D of a herd supplementing with 20,000 IU/d was 42 ± 15 ng/mL, with 22% below 30 ng/mL.
Cows in early lactation (0 to 30 d in milk) also had lower serum 25(OH)D than did mid- to late-lactation cows (57 ± 17 vs. 71 ± 20 ng/mL, respectively).
Serum 25(OH)D of yearling heifers receiving 11,000 to 12,000 IU of vitamin D3/d was near that of cows at 76 ± 15 ng/mL.
Serum 25(OH)D concentrations of calves, on the other hand, was 15 ± 11 ng/mL at birth and remained near or below 15 ng/mL through 1 mo of age if they were fed pasteurized waste milk with little to no summer sun exposure.
In contrast, serum 25(OH)D of calves fed milk replacer containing 6,600 and 11,000 IU of vitamin D2/kg of dry matter were 59 ± 8 and 98 ± 33 ng/mL, respectively, at 1 mo of age. Experimental data from calves similarly indicated that serum 25(OH)D achieved at approximately 1 mo of age would increase 6 to 7 ng/mL for every 1,000 IU of vitamin D3/kg of dry matter of milk replacer.
In conclusion, vitamin D status of dairy cattle supplemented with vitamin D3 according to typical practices, about 1.5 to 2.5 times the National Research Council recommendation, is sufficient as defined by serum 25(OH)D concentrations.
Newborn calves and calves fed milk without supplemental vitamin D3, however, are prone to deficiency.
Publisher want $36 for the PDF
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