Failing to plan means you’re on plan to fail | Compartment feeders are useful in early rearing to ensure each calf is getting enough milk. The photo shows the difference in sucking speed between these calves.
An important part of calf rearing is reflecting on how the season has gone. It doesn’t take much to forget the bad times, especially towards season’s end. As the calves become stronger and their immune defence develops, we forget about the hours of electrolyting scouring calves, the frustrations of calves with no suck reflex, transitioning issues and sheds failing with high ammonia and dampness.
Set up your own plan at the start of the season and focus on doing the basics well for a better outcome. There are some common denominators that open the door to increased calf illness: • Failing sheds that become damp and smelly. • Poor day 1 colostrum management. Not harvesting and isolating first milking colostrum from cows and getting it into day 1 calves quickly.
5 Cs FOR A NEWBORN CALF
Karen Fraser and Stacey Cosnett are on a mission to help farmers grow the best calves possible by delivering accurate and easy-to-understand advice. Check out ‘The Calf Experts’ on Facebook and follow their articles in The Farmlander.
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Ticking all the boxes of calf rearing, you should achieve a death rate under 3 percent. If death rates start to creep up, sometimes that is out of our control, such as buying from unknown sources at the saleyard. Otherwise, we can avoid big losses by following the 5 Cs. 1. Colostrum: This in turn has the 5 Qs – Quality, Quantity, Quickly, Quietly and sQueaky clean. Don’t know what we mean by some of these? Check out the latest video on our Facebook page. 2. Calories: Is enough energy coming from milk intake and starter calf feed? Fortifying milk with calf milk replacer or mixing the replacer to a higher concentration may be a good option rather than just feeding more litres. 3. Cleanliness: Limit exposure to disease-causing organisms. 4. Comfort: Dry and draught-free at calf level, with good ventilation. 5. Consistency: Calves require consistency in feeding and handling.
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