Role of trace minerals in preconditioning programs

Larry L. Berger, Ph.D.

Salt Institute

Salt and Trace Minerals newsletter

Winter 2005 (Vol. 36, No. 4)

Maintaining healthy animals is a key to success in the livestock and poultry business, not the least of which is avoiding costly outlays for medicine. For beef cattle, this has led to an increasing emphasis on preconditioning feeder cattle to reduce health problems. Trace mineral nutrition has a major impact on immune function and proper TM nutrition confers significant benefits in preconditioning programs by strengthening animals’ immune systems. Particularly important are zinc, copper, manganese, cobalt and selenium.