EXTRA CARE VITAL FOR WINTER CALVES
Taking care to ensure winter born calves get a good start will pay dividends later, as Graham Shepherd of G Shepherd Animal Health explains
inter born calves need extra care and attention to ensure they reach target growth rates and go on to become valuable members of the herd.
W
Modern dairy calves tend to carry little insulation to keep them warm in the winter. Their thin skins and sparse coat mean they need special care, to reduce the risk of energy in their feed being diverted to maintain body temperature, instead of being used to promote growth.
The body temperature of a healthy young calf is 39C, although 0.5C either side of this figure is acceptable. Meanwhile, a newborn calf’s lower critical temperature, or LCT, is 18C. This is the required temperature of the air surrounding the calf; when the environmental temperature falls below this level, food will be used to keep the calf warm rather than for growth and development. For every 1C that the air temperature falls below 18C, the calf uses 2% more energy. After the first day of life, a calf’s LCT is 10-15C and at one month of age, the figure is 0C. As a result it is easy for young calves to become susceptible to cold stress.
Colostrum
Colostrum is vital in maximising calf health at any time of year, particularly in winter.
116 THE JOURNAL DECEMBER 2014
A typical Holstein calf should receive 3.8 litres of colostrum as soon as possible after birth. Where practical, colostrum from the calf’s own dam is preferable and its quality should be tested before feeding. A colostrometer is an inexpensive piece of equipment and it will give a return on investment many times over. It is easy to use, with a traffic light arrangement to show antibody levels. Sub-standard colostrum can be substituted with liquid from another cow in the herd and it is also a good idea to store colostrum, ready for future use. Tube feeding is the best method, as long as the equipment has been thoroughly cleaned. Teat feeding can be time consuming and it is not always easy to be certain that the calf has received enough liquid to gain full protection. Ideally, calves should remain on cows’ milk for at least five days. Milk from a freshly calved cow is basically a weaker
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140