Salt is an essential part of the daily diet of all livestock if they are to perform cost effectively.

It plays a major role in the diet and is essential for efficient feed utilisation. Additionally, it stimulates saliva production, promoting digestion and making fodder more palatable.

Deficiencies are most likely in rapidly growing animals and also in lactating stock.

Salt deficiency can lead to :

• Loss of appetite and poor intakes
• Depressed growth rates in growing and fattening stock
• Poor milk production in lactating livestock

Visible symptoms of salt deficiency are often seen in the form of cravings for salt, drinking urine and the licking of gates, walls, stones and soil are examples of this.

Trace elements are only needed in the diet at very low levels. Nevertheless, their presence has profound effects on livestock health and productivity.

Because trace elements are involved at all levels of metabolism, deficiencies can have significant effects on growth, production and fertility. Stock that have suffered with health and immune system problems need more trace elements. Consequently, a continual supply of trace elements is necessary in diets to ensure that the risk of economic losses in production is minimised.

In the UK, the incidence of mineral and trace elements deficiencies appears to be rising. This is seemingly linked to more intensive use of grassland, and the trend towards high forage diets and intensive production.

• Modern varieties of grass are less able to take up nutrients from the soil, due to shallow root structures
  
• Applications of fertilisers stimulates growth of lush grass but with low trace element content
  
• Fodder produced from new grass varieties and grass crops which have been heavily fertilised will, of course, yield feeds which are deficient in minerals and trace elements
  
• Compound feeds carry a certain amount of minerals and trace elements. Reduced usage of compound feed in livestock diets means that these essential nutrients must be provided in an alternative form.

There are also seasonal requirements for specific major minerals.

Magnesium is needed by lactating animals in times of lush grass growth (primarily spring and autumn) to help protect against grass staggers. At these times, stock are not receiving enough magnesium in diets to replace that lost during milk production. Hence, some degree of supplementation is necessary.

Phosphorus is strongly linked to reproductive performance. Most forages are relatively low in phosphorus content, and, for breeding stock, a lack of supplementation can result in poor conception rates, high returns to service and general fertility problems.

Additionally, recent trials and survey work has revealed that levels of sodium in some grasslands are so low they may not contain the dietary minimum needed by cattle and sheep. Throughout the summer months, this problem is exacerbated by warm weather when livestock lose large quantities of water and salt through sweating. It is critical that these losses are replaced before performance is impaired in the form of lower milk yields, retarded growth and poor reproductive performance.

Chelates are highly bioavailable essential trace element mineral supplements in organic form. This means they are more readily available for adsorption to various body systems for growth, maintenance and repair of tissues, reproduction and other key factors. In selected products Rockies include the Bioplex® range of chelates, specifically formulated to address fundamental mineral deficiencies for all livestock species.

Rockies provide mineral and trace elements supplementation in a simple and cost-effective way. Manufactured from the purest salt available, Rockies are an effective carrier for minerals and trace elements. The self regulatory nature of salt means that stock will not gorge on the lick, as they may do with molasses based products, and will only take as much as they require. The inclusion of Tastetite®, however, ensures that target intakes are consistently met, even with minerals that are particularly unpalatable, such as magnesium. Tastetite is flavouring which adds taste, as well as aroma, which is only released on consumption of the lick. Tastetite® inclusion helps overcome low livestock intakes, whilst Rockies retain their economical, low waste and convenience characteristics.

SC Cattle, SC Sheep and Chelated Rockies contain protected trace elements in the form of BioPlex and Sel-plex. This means that these minerals/trace elements are in a form readily available to stock, and are more effective in remedying any deficiencies.