If your calves are well cared for they will have a reduced risk of disease.
If your calves are well cared for they will have a reduced risk of disease.
“Our responsibility for the wellbeing of stock starts at birth and continues beyond the farm gate.”
They are small, cute and have the most beautiful eyes, and the first few days of a calf’s life are the most important ones. As long as the right processes are put in place from birth, every calf will have the best possible start in life.
If your calves are well cared for they will have a reduced risk of disease, cost less to rear and will grow faster, stronger and develop into productive and valuable adults.
Calves in New Zealand tend to face more challenges than the average calf in other countries due to many factors. The tight calving pattern of the New Zealand dairy herd and large herd sizes mean a high number of calves are reared in a short period of time, which can put pressure on both the calves and staff.
The calf-rearing period covers the time from birth to 12 weeks of age. It includes feeding (colostrum, milk/milk replacer, concentrates, fibre and water), housing, general husbandry and health management of calves from the moment they are born up to four weeks post-weaning.
Thinking of rearing calves?
If you are new to calf rearing, you really need to do your homework before setting out on this venture. There is a lot more to it than having a shed and feeding them milk. Rearing calves requires the right person - they need to have the right skills, attention to detail and most important, they need to have empathy with the calves.
Spend time with your team prior to calving to create a plan that works for everyone, and the results will follow.
The calf shed
Their new home does not have to be the flashest in the block but it does need to be dry, warm, draught-free and have a roof. Preferably it needs to face the sun as these little calves love to bask in the warmth of the sunlight. You need to make sure there is good ventilation, and the air movement needs to be above the calves’ head height.
When it comes to bedding, I know I would rather sleep on a soft pile of straw, sawdust or woodchips rather than a concrete slab that be easier to clean but is cold and slippery. The bedding needs to be at least 200-300mm deep. You will need to top the organic bedding up regularly and once calf rearing is over, it needs to be removed and to let the sunlight kill any bacteria left in the calf shed - “sunshine sterilises.”
The calf-rearing period covers the time from birth to 12 weeks of age.
Avoid any sharp edges, nails etc, and the calves must always have access to fresh drinking water.
A weekly spray with a virucide disinfectant and a separate space for any sick calves will minimise the spread of disease.
Remember, you are going to need an area for storing feed and a clean, dry area for mixing the milk.
Calf collection from paddock to pen
Planning is crucial, and effective communication with the staff involved is vital. If practical, collect your calves twice a day.
Recording information is important and they need to be ID-tagged, then the aim is to get the calves to a dry, warm environment as soon as possible. Ear tags allow us to identify and track calves.
Cows can be very protective of their calf - they can be unpredictable, so take care and always keep an eye on the cow, keeping the calf between you and the mother.
Transporting to the shed
Newborn calves can easily be injured so care must be taken when placing them in the trailer.
You need to make sure when transporting your calves, that there is plenty of room in the trailer for them to sit down. The calf trailer needs to be dry and warm, so calves are protected from the wind and rain.
This is a biggie and when I say biggie, I mean biggie.
First off, you need to keep those hands washed! You need to make sure you are liberal with the disinfectant and keep the pens clean so as not to get a build-up of harmful bugs.
Foot baths are useful to clean boots before coming into the shed, as people can be a major source of contamination for a calf-rearing shed. Therefore, people who aren’t involved in calf rearing should not come into the shed during the season.
Young calves that have scours need to be fed electrolytes immediately to avoid dehydration. Photo / Bevan Conley
Calves are born with a sterile gut, which gets colonised as calves pick up bacteria from the environment. Some of these bacteria are highly beneficial for improved digestion of colostrum and milk, but some are harmful bacteria which can cause scours.
Scouring is the calf rearer’s biggest nightmare. Young calves that have scours need to be fed electrolytes immediately to avoid dehydration. Older calves can also be susceptible to scours as well. The main challenge is identifying the cause and deciding on the action to be taken.
Prevention is better than cure in terms of both economics and staff morale.
High-quality feeding
You need to make sure you are well-organised before the calves start arriving in the shed because once they do arrive, they will be looking for a feed.
Newborn calves must receive 12 per cent of their body weight in fresh, warm colostrum within 12 hours of birth. Colostrum is the first milk secreted by the mammary gland of the cow for the first 24 hours after birth. It is high in protein, energy, vitamins, minerals and growth factors.
On entry to the shed, the calves should be fed colostrum. Initially, calves should be fed twice a day, which gives you two chances a day to check your calves.
Giving your newborn calves the correct amount of high-quality colostrum will help minimise scours and disease, reduce death rates, enhance growth rates and improve lifetime productivity and fertility.
When ready to move calves on to a calf feeder, you will need to train them to use the feeder - this can take time and patience as some are slower than others. You need to also make sure there is room for all the calves and that they are all getting a feed.
Calves are fussy eaters, especially when they are young, so it is very important that everything you feed them is clean and appealing. This includes milk, calf pellets, meal hay and grass.
Always remember - calf welfare underpins all successful calf-rearing enterprises. Photo / John Stone
Good-quality feed will make all the difference to your calves. If you are new to calf rearing, contact a well-known nutrition company, spend the time to learn about good-quality products that will improve the health of your animals, prevent deficiencies and improve productivity.
Animal welfare
Animal welfare is important, including making sure good timing and the appropriate methods for such procedures as dehorning and castration are observed. If you have any concerns, consult your local vet. Always remember that good calf welfare underpins all successful calf-rearing enterprises.
Disbudding and dehorning are painful, so pain relief is essential. As a minimum local anaesthetic is required, but you may decide to provide more comprehensive pain relief. Options can be discussed with your vet.
Early disbudding is better for both the calf and the operator. It is best to remove horn buds before 6 weeks of age. At this age, the horns are still small and have not yet attached to the skull.
It is recommended that calves are at least a week old before disbudding. Calves at this age are usually robust, have passed the greatest risk period for scours and the horn bud is easily felt.
Keep the pens clean and make sure you are liberal with the disinfectant when washing your hands. Photo / Dave Murdoch
Mycoplasma bovis
If you are buying or selling calves or milk over the next few months, remember how important it is that we as a sector take every possible precaution to avoid spreading the disease. This includes buying calves or milk, where it’s vital to take biosecurity practices and animal health history into account.
If you plan to rear calves, have done your homework and your shed and feeding regime are organised, this can be a really satisfying venture. It’s hard work for sure, but a great start for a young couple who want to get into dairying in future or as extra income for an existing dairy farmer.
There are plenty of mentors out there who are willing to share their experience and knowledge.
