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It’s common knowledge that feeding adequate volumes of high-quality colostrum benefits the health and growth of the calf. It’s also known that calves that receive good-quality colostrum right after birth carry those benefits throughout their lives as heifers and even into the lactating herd.
Imagine that your car will go 60 miles per hour in the summer but only 30 mph when the temperature is freezing, and it will not run at all when the temperature falls to 0ºF. This is an accurate illustration of how cold temperature adversely affects rate of gain in calves.
The decision to feed whole milk or milk replacer to newborn calves continues to be a controversial topic among producers. Although whole milk meets all nutrient requirements for development, milk replacer is largely considered beneficial in terms of cleanliness, cost and its consistent composition.
During these hot summer months, you are likely aware of heat stress and the effect it has on your lactating herd. However, are you aware of the effect it has on your calves?
Keeping calves clean, warm and dry is essential to maintain their health and productivity. From the moment the calf is born, what are the best steps to get the calf from wet and gunky to clean, warm and dry?
As a major energy source, fat is an important element to consider in a calf milk replacer. Fat, however, has other nutritional effects beyond being a source of energy. Butterfat offers a unique fatty acid, namely butyric acid.
There are many viral, bacterial, protozoa and nutritional causes of scours, and, because each farm is unique, there is no one perfect prevention method. Work with your veterinarian to find the right scours solution for your farm.
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