Dry matter intake (DMI)

Dry matter intake is the weight of feed a cow eats once its water has been subtracted. Rations are balanced on a dry matter basis because moisture varies widely between feeds and from one day to the next in the same silage.

Intake falls in the last days before calving and recovers more slowly than milk yield rises, which is the origin of negative energy balance in early lactation. Anything that limits intake, from empty bunks to overcrowding to heat, limits milk.

Written for the 2026 edition of the library.