Are you a calf manager or a calf feeder?

Typically, the calf program has been relegated to a lower priority for the dairy business as it is a current expense with a delayed impact on future income.  However, with the use of genomics and sexed semen plus the increased value of dairy beef and replacement heifers, things have changed.   There’s greater incentive to feed calves better to improve income and farm profit whether from beef or improved health and production of females.

What are the keys to being a great calf manager?

• Set goals for the calf program. Those listed in the Gold Standards by the Dairy Calf and Heifer Association (calfandheifer.org) are a good start.  Additional ones unique to the farm would also apply.
• Think like a “cow” manager. What information is needed for successful management of the lactating dairy herd?.   No one would remotely think about managing cows without timely, objective information, such as milk yield. 
• What information is useful in managing calves? It should be easily measured, recorded, timely and highly correlated with economic performance!
  • Colostrum is the starting place.
    • Bacteria counts of colostrum as it’s fed to the calf. A reasonable goal is <20,000 cfu/ml.   Higher bacteria counts impede colostrum absorption.  Handle colostrum with the same care as used with saleable milk!
    • Brix reading or IgG content of colostrum. Brix readings above 22 are indicative of IgG content >50mg/ml.   
    • Successful IgG Transfer is the “gold” standard for colostrum management. The table below represents currently accepted goals.

• Health – Record all treatments with primary emphasis on respiratory and digestive disease. For preweaned calves – <10% pneumonia, < 15% scours and survival rates (24h to weaning) 97% are suggested by the DCHA.  
• Growth – What is the average daily gain between birth and weaning? This is rarely measured on many farms.  However, can one imagine not knowing milk production of lactating cows for making management decisions?  Weights at birth and weaning are essential for evaluation of the calf program!   One simple goal that can be indexed for breed is that calves should double their birth weight by weaning at 56 days.   This means one should expect gains of more than 1.1 to 1.6 lb. of gain for birth weights of 65 to 90 lb. 

Let’s not forget that Technology applies to calf management too and is requisite for success by the calf management.   Most records for calves are first recorded on paper.  Delays and errors in transcription are common problems.   Strive to transition records to an electronic format as soon as possible.

• Identify all calves using an RFID tag at birth.
• Record events such as health treatments and body weight by use of a “wand” to identify the calf  followed by recording relevant information on a phone or tablet.  This technology reduces “lag” and errors in transcription from paper to electronic records.

The use of robotic milking systems has transformed how we use information to better manage the lactating herd.   This technology can also greatly enhance our management of the preweaned calf with calf autofeeders!   Consider the following use of calf data.   Milk intake and drinking speed are valuable tools to predict the onset of disease, frequently hours or days before the “calf feeder” might detect illness.   A considerable advantage is that this information is readily available to the calf feeder, the calf manager, the herd manager and the veterinarian in an electronic format in real time.   Breaks.  Does the calf start and meal and then stop drinking?    As we study this data more it’s likely that some type of “index” will enable more reliable prediction of disease onset and recovery from disease.