Livestock Management RANCHING
Colostrum Gives New-Born Calves the Right Start By Gary DiGiuseppe
W
ITH THE HIGH VALUE OF CALVES, the nutrition of the cow and her calf should be of utmost
importance. Dr. David Hutcheson, ani- mal nutritionist and consultant with Animal Agricultural Consulting in Scroggins, says the period during calv- ing and the following 90 days is criti- cal for both the cow and calf. The calf will require consumption of colostrum from the cow immediately after birth, and as quickly as possible. The single most important manage-
ment factor determining calf health and survival is adequate colostrum intake within the fi rst 24 hours after birth. Hutcheson says that for the fi rst 6 hours after birth, 100 percent of calves are able to absorb the needed nutrients and antibodies in the colostrum. “But then, very quickly — after 24 hours for sure, but somewhere after 12 hours — the gut begins to close and will not absorb those antibodies. They are large proteins and they won’t be absorbed.” Table 1 shows that all of the calves will absorb co-
lostrum in the fi rst 12 hours. However, the percentage of calves able to make use of the colostrum drops off dramatically as the hours go on. Thus, the more quickly the colostrum is fed to the calf, the better protection the calf will have against diseases. “The point is, they have to get up and nurse as quickly as possible,” he says. The colostrum contains antibodies that provide the
overall disease resistance of the calf during the fi rst few weeks of life. Colostrum, the fi rst milk, contains high concentrations of solids with large quantities of protective antibodies, protein and energy. Twenty-four hours after birth, fewer than half of all calves are able to take advantage of this vital disease protection. Adequate and timely consumption of colostrum
by the calf is a key factor controlling early calfhood diseases and death loss. “Colostrum contains all of the antibodies they need to improve overall disease resis- tance during those fi rst few weeks. At some point after that, the calf will start building its own antibodies,” Hutcheson says. “But the calf needs those in that fi rst milk, because the milk is very highly concentrated,” as Table 2 shows.
50 The Cattleman March 2015 The fact that the gut is no longer able to absorb the
antibodies shortly after birth becomes a bigger issue, so the cattle producer’s management of the herd is important. “Many cows may be out on pasture during calv-
ing, and the owner won’t see them for over 24 hours after the birth,” Hutcheson says. “This is okay as long as that calf gets up and immediately nurses, but if the cow has a problem or the calf can’t get up, it becomes a real problem. “My recommendation is to have a really clean
calving pasture for these cows, so they can be observed and you can ensure that the calves are getting up and nursing as quickly as possible.” The possibility of nighttime births further complicates survei l lance. Recent research fol lowing the observations of a Canadian rancher suggests that cattle fed in the evening are more likely to give birth during daytime hours. That is obviously important to northern producers, who have to fight the elements
Table 1 – Absorbtion of colostrum by calf
Hours after Birth
0
12 16 20 24
Percent of Calves absorbing colostrum
100 95
82 70 42
thecattlemanmagazine.com
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