Bull fattening – MiMag for a healthy rumen and calm, vital bulls

The normal pH value for the rumen is between 6.2 and 7.0. The right ration for fattening bulls can support rumen health, as large amounts of sugar or rumen-degradable starch cause the rumen pH value to drop. This can be accompanied by a decrease in feed intake, diarrhoea and associated nutrient losses, liver abscesses and hoof problems. Buffering substances stabilise the rumen pH, especially in the warm season and when high amounts of concentrated feed are used.

In addition to the well-known carbonate buffers, magnesium oxide with its excellent pH-increasing properties is also suitable as a rumen buffer. While sodium bicarbonate is a well-standardised buffer, there are significant differences in the quality of magnesium oxide. The effectiveness of magnesium oxide depends on its source and solubility. This is where SCHAUMANN's innovative active ingredient MiMag – micronised magnesium – comes in. ISF Schaumann Research has succeeded in combining a highly available source of magnesium with excellent buffering capacity in the active ingredient MiMag. The magnesium oxide is micronised and activated using a special grinding process. This creates a porous and greatly enlarged surface area (see Fig. 1). The significant increase in surface area greatly increases solubility (see Fig. 2) and increases buffering capacity fourfold compared to conventional magnesium oxide.

A small experiment illustrates the buffering effect of MiMag. The strongly positive effect on the pH value becomes clear when 3 g of magnesium oxide or MiMag is dissolved in 40 ml of standard vinegar. Using pH test strips, the effect on the pH value can now be easily read from the colour change (see Fig. 3).

MiMag raises the pH value of the highly acidic vinegar from 2.3 to a value in the clearly alkaline range of around 8.5. Normal magnesium oxide only achieves a pH value of 5.0 (see Fig. 3).

Magnesium is not only a valuable rumen buffer, it also has a variety of functions in metabolism, particularly in nerve signal transmission and muscle relaxation. Magnesium therefore has a calming effect. Magnesium is mainly absorbed through the rumen and must therefore be in dissolved form in order to be absorbed.

Thanks to its eight times higher solubility, significantly more magnesium is available for metabolism, and the bulls are calmer, eat more and the risk of injury is reduced. The result is higher daily weight gains, fewer losses and more vigorous animals.

We use MiMag in many of our bull mineral feeds and in our rumen buffer RINDAMIN BP. This special product contains a unique combination of four different and highly effective buffer substances and a toxin binder.

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