Technical-productive diagnosis of the dairy farm “San Basilio”, Livestock  Production UEB “Recurso”, Colón municipality

Mercedes Núñez Montenegro

ABSTRACT
A diagnosis was made during 2011 at a dairy farm belonging to the Livestock Production Entrepreneurial Basic Unit “Recurso” of the Colón municipality, Matanzas province, in order to determine the factors that had incidence on the milk production. The unit has an area of 121,8 ha, without irrigation or fertilization, where natural pastures, of non-cultivated species, prevail: Paspalum notatum, Paspalum virgatum, Dichanthium caricosum and Dichanthium annulatum (52 %). Paspalum virgatum and Dichrostachys cinerea, are the most predominant weeds (45 %). The individual milk production was 4,9 and 4,7 for the rainy and dry seasons (RS and DS), respectively. In the total milk production, no significant difference was found in any of the seasons, but it was found in the number of milking cows (P < 0,05) of the dry season. Throughout the year the average percentage of milking cows was 54 %. The mortality rate was high in the calves with an index of 8,0 % and 1,2 % for adult animals. The birth rate was low (39,6 %). The pregnant cows had values below the norm (34 and 24 %) in both evaluated seasons. The percentage of empty cows was very high throughout the year (23 and 26 %). During the year difficulties appeared in supplying the quantities of complementary feedstuffs because of the lack of them in the unit, which caused that the requirements were not covered in many months of the year. The benefit-cost ratio was $ 1,26 because the expenses in the improvement of the pasturelands or in paddock construction were not increased. The results suggest the need to make a transformation of the pasturelands of the unit and increase the number of paddocks for the cows as well as the calves.