Ammonium chloride

Why use Ammonium Chloride?
Ammonium chloride is a source of metabolic anion (Cl-) used in ruminant animal feed to adjust dietary cation-anion balance (DCAB) and to acidify urine.

What are the benefits of Ammonium Chloride?
Dairy cows fed rations with a positive DCAB ( (Na + K) – (Cl + S) ) in the period immediately before calving are predisposed to milk fever post-calving. Adjusting DCAB prior to calving by providing surplus anions, for example chloride ions from ammonium chloride, helps protect against milk fever and is reported to enhance early lactation performance through n improvement in dry matter intake.

Livestock reared intensively can be prone to potentially fatal urinary calculi caused by minerals precipitating from the urine under alkaline conditions. Feeding surplus dietary anions will acidify the urine and help protect against the condition.