As producers experience the losses of 2012, I hear many talking about exploring opportunities to maximize their production and be more cost-effective. As we approach the winter season, many question how successful are their calf-raising programs. Raising calves in the winter is always a big challenge, for both the animals and the people who work with them. Now is a good time to evaluate your program. Identifying areas of success as well as areas that need improvement – and what changes and adjustments need to be made – will result in a more successful calf-raising program this winter.

Food, water, shelter, clothes and sleep are all things we take for granted. Without any of these basic things, life itself becomes difficult for us, if not impossible. The basic needs of calves are not much different than ours. Simply put, three basic things are required: an ample supply of draft-free fresh air, a dry comfortable rest area and sufficient food and water to meet their energy requirements. To be successful in ventilating calf barns, we must ensure all three basic needs are covered.

In this new series of articles from Progressive Dairyman, three forward-thinking operations share protocols and lessons learned as well as what’s on the horizon. The first article in this series focuses on calf and heifer raising. Watch your mailboxes in 2013 for future discussions featuring A.I. and breeding decisions, feed and nutrition management and manure handling.

Calves are essential to a dairy operation, as they represent the future of the herd and its income. They are also the most vulnerable segment of a herd, highly susceptible to disease with the highest mortality rate among dairy cattle in their first eight weeks of life. With calves serving as the cornerstone of any successful dairy, every effort should be made to keep them protected and healthy. For the best care of calves, there are four main areas to consider.

Group housing in the calf barn has become an efficient way to house and manage dairy calves. Since our Grober Young Animal Development Center opened its doors in 2009, there has been a dedicated effort to demonstrating the benefits of raising these young animals in groups; some of those benefits include improved growth performance during weaning and post-weaning. Those particular benefits were uncovered in calves grouped right from the start. However, could there an advantage to housing calves individually to start out and then moving them into a group setting to maximize performance and also satisfy their innate need to socialize?

Heat abatement strategies during hot weather include water, fans, shade and elevation of hutches.

Arie Roeloffs comes from a family that has been dairying for generations. Southfield Dairy in Wendell, Idaho, began milking in 1992. They have almost 5,200 head and raise all of their own calves, with almost 700 on a bottle. They also farm 5,500 acres, growing their own corn. We asked Roeloffs what the 5 things were that he can’t live without when it comes to calf raising.