A host of nutrients are needed by cattle to support functions associated with life, and to grow, reproduce, and nourish their offspring (i.e., produce milk). A vast amount of resources have been expended to quantify the amounts of specific nutrients needed to perform these function so that economically efficient diets can be formulated. Feeding diets that provide adequate, but not excessive, am...

The importance of essential trace minerals on livestock productivity has been realized for several decades. In improved agricultural systems, the supplementation of essential trace minerals has lead to increased livestock production as measured by body weight gain and reproductive performance. Recently, the importance of trace mineral nutrition on immune competence in livestock has gained atten...

The study of trace element metabolism has intensified in the last 20 years due mainly to the availability of highly purified diets and to the development of sophisticated instrumentation capable of detecting minute amounts of elements in tissues and feeds. Since 1957, Se, Cr, Sn, V, F, Si and Ni have been isolated as essential nutrients for animal metabolism (Schwartz 1974). The recommended req...