Ingestion of vomitoxin (deoxynivalenol)-contaminated wheat by nonlactating dairy cows

Our objective was to determine if there were serious deleterious effects of wheat naturally contaminated with vomitoxin (deoxynivalenol) on nonlactating dairy cows. Comparisons were between two Quebec spring wheat sources contaminated with Fusarium graminearum in a feeding trial involving 10 nonlactating Holstein dairy cattle offered good quality hay for ad libitum intake supplemented with wheat-oats concentrate (1 kg concentrate/100 kg body weight). Initially, for 3 wk all cows were fed hay plus wheat-oats containing 1.5 mg vomitoxin/kg. Each week thereafter two more cows, chosen at random, were switched to a second wheat-oats concentrate containing higher mycotoxin concentration (6.4 mg vomitoxin/kg). After the last two cows had been on the latter diet for 6 wk, all cows were returned to the previous wheat-oats concentrate containing the lower mycotoxin concentration (1.5 mg vomitoxin/kg). No unusual symptoms of illness that might be attributed to the mycotoxin-contaminated wheat were observed. In body weight gains, the data reflected a linear growth pattern with no apparent effect of changing from low to high vomitoxin content in the concentrate. Generally, consumption of the wheat-oats ration containing 6.4 mg vomitoxin/kg was lower than the 1.5 mg vomitoxin/kg concentrate. The progressive, linear decrease of hay consumption was not affected by source of contaminated wheat-oats diet.