Kansas State University. Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service
Doi
Abstract
In Trial 1, 336 yearling steers (755 lb)
were fed diets containing milo flaked to 22 (L),
25 (M), or 28 (H) lb/bu. The steers fed L consumed
3.2% less dry matter than cattle fed H
(P<.05) and had 6.9% lower gains (P<.05).
Feed efficiency tended (P=.15) to favor cattle
fed H. The H milo was flaked 27% faster than
M and 67% faster than L (P<.0001), resulting
in lower production cost for the heavy flakes.
In Trial 2, six ruminally cannulated steers were
fed the same diets used in Trial 1 in a replicated
3×3 Latin square. After adaptation to
the respective diets, the cattle were fasted and
then overfed to simulate a drastic intake fluctuation.
The L diet was fermented more
rapidly than the H diet, resulting in greater
ruminal pH depression (P<.10) following
overconsumption. Under the conditions of this
experiment, flaking milo more intensively than
28 lb/bu (58.7% starch gelatinization) resulted
in decreased consumption, lower mill efficiency,
and increased propensity for acidosis in
finishing steers