Is the total mixed ration the best option for feeding crossbred dairy cows using diets based on cactus cladodes on family farms?

The study aimed to evaluate the effects on the performance of lactating cows of different strategies for supplying diets based on cactus cladodes. Eight Girolando cows at 97 ?? 7.6 days into lactation, producing 12.2 ?? 0.26 kg milk/day, were assigned to 4 treatments in two 4 ?? 4 Latin squares. The feeding strategies were: total mixed ration (TMR) based on a mixture of concentrates, cactus cladodes [Opuntia stricta (Haw.) Haw.] and sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L.) fed after milking; concentrate fed during milking with cactus cladodes and sugarcane offered later (Con/CC+SC); cactus cladodes combined with concentrate fed after milking with sugarcane offered later (CC+Con/SC); and sugarcane combined with concentrate fed after milking with cactus cladodes offered later (SC+Con/CC). Intakes of neutral detergent fiber (NDF; 4.54 ?? 0.09 kg/d) and total digestible nutrients (TDN; 9.30 ?? 0.50 kg/d) were similar (P>0.05) for all feeding strategies and there was no effect of feeding strategy on milk yield (12.2 ?? 0.26 kg/d). The different feeding strategies did not change the ingestive behavior or performance of lactating Girolando cows. Since the shortage of labor prohibits the feeding of TMRs on family farms because of labor required for preparation, these rations would be appropriate only on large farms where the costs of machines to prepare diets efficiently might be available. Cows fed concentrate during milking spent longer to consume the concentrate than the time to milk, resulting in inefficient usage of scarce labor. Appropriate feeding strategies for family farms appear to be SC+Con/CC and CC+Con/SC, i.e. partial separation of dietary ingredients, and all feeding should be done after milking.