Make adjustments to existing sheds to increase calf performance

Make improvements to existing sheds to increase calf performance

Optimising ventilation inside a calf shed has a positive impact on health and growth rates. Building new calf housing provides the opportunity to incorporate ventilation and calf comfort into every aspect of the design, but while raw material costs remain high, this is not a realistic option for many farmers.

However, for Matt Sellers, southern sales manager at Galebreaker, there is a lot to be said for working with what you have and taking steps to improve the air ow through calf housing.

“Whether you’re converting a building to use for calf rearing, or improving the shed you’ve used for years, the principles behind creating a comfortable environment for calves are the same,” explains Mr Sellers.

“In a nutshell, calves need an environment which is dry, warm, well ventilated and has su cient space for the number of animals housed,” he says.

Optimal ventilation

In a well-ventilated shed, clean air should come in from outside, either naturally or with mechanical help, circulate once and then be pushed out by the continuous ow of incoming air.

“Each calf should be provided with the same amount of fresh air without any draught exposure,” says Mr Sellers.

In an inadequately ventilated calf shed, the air will typically recirculate around the shed, so calves continuously inhale the same air, increasing the risk of bacteria or viruses entering calves’ lungs. “Pneumonia in particular is associated with poor ventilation, as it spreads between calves which are sharing the same airspace rather than relying on physical contact between animals.” Pneumonia infections have an ongoing in uence on productivity, as the disease results in 14.5% of dairy heifers failing to make it to rst lactation1, while in beef calves the lung damage caused by pneumonia infection can reduce weight gain by up to 6kg per month2 .

“An overventilated shed can also cause problems, especially in winter, as the chilled environment will lead to calves using more energy to maintain body temperature leading

increasing the risk of bacteria or viruses to poorer growth rates and weaker immune systems,” Mr Sellers adds.

Assessing ventilation

“It’s crucial to understand what you’re working with,” says Mr Sellers. “Cobwebs, condensation drips, wet bedding and stale smelling air are all signs of poor ventilation in calf housing.

To get a more detailed picture, Mr Sellers recommends setting a smoke bomb o to show how quickly air is changed in a building. “Ideally the smoke should clear in two to three minutes,” he says.

Overcoming ventilation problems

With ventilation, it is not a one-size- ts all approach, as the steps required to achieve optimal air ow depend on several factors.

“Keeping calf housing as open as possible, while providing su cient weatherproo ng to protect against wind chill and rain, is a great start, as it can promote a good level of natural ventilation,” says Mr Sellers.

However, if the air which can ow in and out naturally is insu cient, he recommends looking at mechanical options.

“A fan system can e ectively bring air into a calf shed, but fans alone will not achieve an even distribution of air. This can result in calves bunching together close to the fans, while the air further away from the fans becomes warm, damp and still,” he says.

“Tube systems, such as VentTube Fresh, can e ectively ventilate an entire calf shed. To achieve optimal ventilation, they should be designed speci cally for the shed they are to be tted in, considering shed dimensions, expected stocking density and age of calves.

“Investment in creating an ideal environment for calves can pay dividends over time,” says Mr Sellers. “Providing optimal ventilation within calf sheds can help prevent disease and promote good growth rates and performance.” FG

Tube requirements

There are several factors which a good supplier of tubes will consider when designing tube systems to suit your set-up. • Number of tubes – one tube system can ventilate a width of approximately 7.5–9m, so in wider calf sheds it’s preferable to install two or more systems • Tube width – the right tube width ensures even air distribution and a constant speed of air ow throughout the shed • Number of holes – the right size and location of holes in the tube will ensure air reaches each calf without creating a draught.

References: 1. Brickell, J.S., McGowan, M.M., Pfei er, D.U., Wathes, D.C. (2009) Mortality in Holstein-Friesian calves and replacement heifers, in relation to body-weight and IGF-1 concentration, on 19 farms in England. Animal 3, 1175–1182 2. Williams, P. and Green, Laura E. (2007) Associations between lung lesions and grade and estimated daily live weight gain in bull beef at slaughter. In: 3rd Flagship Congress British-Cattle-VeterinaryAssociation, Glasgow, Scotland, 2007. Published in: Cattle Practice, Vol.15 (No.3). pp. 244-249.

New data sheds light on infectious calf scour

Nearly a quarter of infectious calf scour cases are likely to have been caused by a mix of disease organisms that are widespread in the UK farming environment, according to new diagnostic data from MSD Animal Health.

Between October 2020 and March 2021, MSD monitored scour pathogen incidence on a number of UK calf rearing units, using its disease surveillance scheme based on faecal sample test kits.

MSD livestock veterinary adviser Dr Kat Baxter-Smith says these ScourCheck kits are convenient, easyto-use and accurate on farm – and will pick up the presence of rotavirus, coronavirus, E. coli or cryptosporidium infections. Their use helps farmers and their vets to discuss appropriate scour disease management approaches, depending on the mix of infectious organisms identi ed. Other pathogens, such as Salmonella spp and coccidia should be identi ed by full lab analysis.

Faecal samples gathered from 112 farms over the six-month period revealed 61% returned a positive result – with 23% of these positive tests having mixed infections.

MSD livestock veterinary adviser Dr Kat Baxter-Smith stressed that, unfortunately, treatment for infectious calf scours can be challenging and time consuming, so the key to better disease control lies in prevention.

“We know that scour continues to be a signi cant disease problem in young calves, particularly over the winter months. Indeed, scour is the main cause of death in animals under two months of age. The husbandry aim therefore, simply has to be trying to stop the disease occurring in the rst place,” she says.

“Practically, this means making sure your cow colostrum is as good as it can be, in addition to ensuring good environmental hygiene and management. Indeed, a good rst step in terms of making your calf rearing enterprise more resilient to infectious scour problems is to give your dry cows a vaccine to boost dam colostrum quality pre-calving – and then feeding enough of this forti ed feed to your newborn calves.”

Calves are most at risk from infectious scours during the rst 1–4 weeks of life and need a source of protection – through passive transfer of antibodies in the colostrum – to help keep them healthy, she added. On many units, normal colostrum may not provide enough antibodies.

“However, vaccination of the calf’s mother with Bovilis Rotavec Corona between 12 and three weeks before calving boosts colostrum quality, allowing you to feed high levels of antibodies against rotavirus, coronavirus and E.coli F5 (K99) in early life. Calves gain protection by drinking this forti ed colostrum from their vaccinated mothers.

“To ensure this passive transfer of antibodies from the dam to calves, four litres of colostrum (or at least 10% of calf body weight) containing 50g/litre of IgG antibodies should be fed within the rst four hours of birth. This should be followed by two additional litres within 12 hours of birth. For calves left on the cow, getting four litres of colostrum requires approximately 20 minutes of continuous suckling,” she said. FG

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Reducing the risk of calf pneumonia

Hydor’s Tube Ventilation System, which supplies fresh air to all parts of the building, can signi cantly lower the risk of pneumonia in calves, the company says.

Otherwise known as bovine respiratory disease, calf pneumonia is one of the biggest issues that calf rearers can face. According to Defra, approximately 160,000 calves die annually as a result of pneumonia and related illnesses, causing a potential loss of £99 million to the sector.

A signi cant contributor to calf pneumonia is poor ventilation, as places that have stagnant and stale air retain bacteria and viruses, which are passed on to livestock. To prevent pneumonia from developing and subsequently spreading amongst the calves, it is essential that the building has a continual air ow to allow fresh air to enter into the shed and mix.

Hydor’s Tube Ventilation System provides a constant, positive supply of fresh air to the animal’s immediate location, diluting foul air and improving the air quality around the building. Quite simply, it provides better welfare through air, and improves the health of young livestock, Hydor claims.

Pneumonia in calves can result in serious implications that impact the calf’s welfare, causing loss of form and stunted growth, which both contribute to poorer yields and productivity. It may also lead to lower food conversion rates, laboured breathing, stress and reduced weight gain in calves.

Ventilation is critical to good calf rearing practice, and it is vital that fresh air is delivered while not creating draughts that could cause a chill for the animals.

Designed to suit your building and tted above animal height, the Tube Ventilation System’s ducting contains small openings which evenly disperse air to deliver a constant, but gentle, supply of fresh air and ensure even temperatures – regardless of outside weather conditions. By providing fresh air direct to the animals, the system can be linked to a temperature sensor which adjusts the volume of air accordingly through the ducting.

Prevention is better than cure and for cattle farmers this is certainly the case as antibiotics, anti-in ammatories and unexpected vet bills have costly nancial impacts.

With limited disruption to livestock, Hydor says its system allows builtup warm, stagnant air to escape from the building. It is also easy to install and has low running costs, allowing the causes of respiratory infection, such as condensation and damp, to be eliminated quickly and e ectively. Hydor products are also UK-manufactured, o ering a large stock holding with short turnaround times.

For more about Hydor’s Tube Ventilation System, visit https:// hydor.co.uk/product/tubeventilation-system/ FG

Tube Ventilation System

Move air for calf welfare

Reduced cases of pneumonia Low running costs

The Hydor Tube Ventilation System supplies fresh air to all parts of a farm building and is proven to reduce pneumonia infections in livestock. Fully compliant with the Defra FETF grant scheme and specially designed for farm housing, the Tube Ventilation System can increase animal welfare for happy and healthy livestock, helping to increase productivity while reducing unwanted vet bills.

01725 511422 info@hydor.co.uk www.hydor.co.uk

Family business prides itself on high quality buildings

Established in 2002, Devonbased United Roo ng Products is a leading metal sheet roo ng and cladding manufacturer.

A family-run business since its inception, the company says it prides itself on its local focus and commitment to outstanding customer service. With a strong agricultural background itself, it has a full understanding of the needs and challenges of the farming communities it serves.

United Roo ng’s product range is comprehensive – singleskin roo ng sheets and cladding, ventilation and condensation control solutions, insulated composite panels, guttering and drainage systems, and a wide range of ancillaries – but it particularly prides itself on its bespoke solutions and technical services, such as assisted-design and preliminary budget estimating.

With an ever-increasing focus on animal welfare in agriculture and the bene ts that good natural light and ventilation bring to livestock, United Roo ng Products is focused on developing solutions that improve the performance of agricultural buildings in these respects.

The company is a member of the Rural and Industrial Design and Building Association (RIDBA), and shares a dedication to ensuring high-quality farm building construction to provide the best possible conditions for livestock, consequently improving pro tability for farmers.

Whatever the nature of the project, United Roo ng Products believes it can o er the product solutions, certi cation, warranties and experience and expertise essential to its success. FG

Livestock Step up your cow health monitoring

smaXtec’s bolus technology guarantees easy calvings and reliable heat detection, providing precise insights on herd health, reproduction and feeding, the company says.

The smaXtec bolus measures inner body temperature, activity, rumination and drinking behaviour directly inside the cow, thus providing health data with unrivalled accuracy, the company says. Farmers receive precise insights into their cows’ health, reproduction and feeding status, enabling them to combine animal health with pro table dairy farming.

With smaXtec, cows’ health is not only monitored in the critical phase around birth, farmers are also informed when calving is imminent. According to customer experience, the smaXtec system noti es you on average 15 hours before calving and gives you enough time to take necessary measures.

So how does it work? Inner body temperature decreases considerably when the calving process starts. smaXtec says it can reliably detect this commonly accepted and scienti cally proven indicator for calving – you do not need to set an alarm at night to check if the cow is giving birth. You are informed upfront via push noti cation and email.

This allows you to take all necessary measures to ensure a problem-free birth at an early stage. You can take your animals to a separate calving box, administer calcium boluses to prevent milk fever if necessary, assist the cow at the right moment, contact your vet if needed and save the life of cow and calf in an emergency.

Equally important to the economic success of any dairy farm is the e cient insemination of the herd and good fertility management. Farmers working with smaXtec bene t from the system’s automatic and reliable heat detection which is based on the recognition of behavioural changes. These typical changes often only occur for a short period of time and at night.

Thanks to continuous monitoring, you detect the slightest oestrus signs. Together with the automatically generated recommendation for an ideal insemination time window, you can signi cantly improve insemination success and reproduction gures on your farm.

By monitoring key health parameters – inner body temperature, activity and rumination – continuously and comprehensively, smaXtec says it can allow you to keep a close eye on your animals, protecting the herd, providing milk yield stability and cost savings.

Visit www.smaXtec.com to learn more. FG