Heifer prices to soften
A sharp decline in milk prices coupled with an increased heifer supply will lead to further softening of heifer prices from the record highs set last fall, says Greg Scheer, dairy analyst with Doane Advisory Services. However, strong demand to fill new or expanded milking facilities should keep prices fairly strong into the second half of the year. "During the past five years, replacement-heifer prices in the spring and summer have averaged just under $1,600, but we look for prices to hold above $1,700," he says.
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Welcome to the March edition of Calf and Heifer Adviser,
published by Dairy Herd Management®
magazine.
Calf and Heifer Adviser and its core sponsors are committed to providing you with the information you need to make informed and timely business decisions. |
Long-day
lighting promotes heifer growth
Turn
your heifers into lean, mean growing machines by exposing them to
long-day lighting. According to research in the December 2005 Journal
of Dairy Science, heifers exposed to 16 hours of light per day
reached puberty 24 days earlier than heifers exposed to eight hours
of light. In addition, it did not hurt skeletal growth or mammary
development. For more details, see dairyherd.com
Cold stress
may limit success of long-day lighting
Heifers
exposed to long-day lighting may not grow as fast when temperatures
fall below freezing. Researchers made that observation during the
photoperiod study mentioned above. Heifers that began a long-day
lighting program during December grew at a slower rate than heifers
that began treatment in October or late January. All heifers were
housed in sand-bedded free-stalls in the Photoperiod Research Barn
at the University of Illinois. Despite the cold, the heifers still
grew faster than those exposed to short-day lighting, though not
as much as expected.
Limit-feeding may benefit bred heifers
Is limit-feeding in your bred heifers' future? According to preliminary research from the University of Wisconsin, it may improve feed efficiency, while decreasing manure output and over-conditioning of bred heifers. "We did not observe any differences in the size or body condition scores of the heifers after a 111-day feeding period," says Pat Hoffman, dairy scientist at the University of Wisconsin's Marshfield Agricultural Research Station. The researchers are currently summarizing lactation data for the heifers. |
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Heifers
are highly susceptible to internal parasites
Strategic
deworming with Safe-Guard® helps your heifers perform
to their potential.Click
here to learn more (PDF format).
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Consider using
an isolation pen
All
new arrivals at this heifer ranch spend the first three weeks in an
isolation pen. That way, Don Gardner, veterinarian and custom heifer-raiser
in Huddleston, Va., can keep an eye on the heifers to make sure they
have a good transition (as well as spot any potential poor-doers).
In addition, his contract with producers requires that the owners
pay for any treatment within the first 30 days of arrival. This encourages
producers to send healthy heifers as opposed to sick, problem calves.
 Two
tools to assess neonatal dehydration
Measuring
eyeball recession and degree of skin tent on the neck are two good
ways to assess dehydration in neonatal calves, says Geof Smith,
assistant professor of ruminant medicine at North Carolina State
University. With the eyeball method, place your finger on the bottom
eyelid and gently roll it down away from the eye. If a visible gap
between the eyelid and the eyeball exists, the calf is dehydrated
and needs electrolyte therapy. The larger the gap is, the greater
the dehydration. The skin-tent method is fairly well understood,
but not always interpreted accurately.
Ideal oral electrolyte solution
According
to Geof Smith, of North Carolina State University, the ideal oral
electrolyte solution for neonatal ruminants should contain the following:
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A sodium concentration between 90 and 130 millimoles per liter (mM/L)
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A potassium concentration between 10 and 30 mM/L.
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A chloride concentration between 40 and 90 mM/L.
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An alkalizing agent, such as acetate, propionate and bicarbonate.
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A glucose-to-sodium ratio between 1:1 and 3:1.
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Neutral amino acids such as glycine, alanine or glutamine to facilitate
absorption and provide energy.
Tips for
feeding an accelerated milk replacer
When
James and Jennifer Cook, of Jareco Farms in Penhook, Va., began
an accelerated milk-replacer program five years ago, the road was
a bit bumpy. Calf manure was looser than what they expected, and
sometimes the milk replacer would thicken on the top and calves
didn't want to drink it. Today, the Cooks still feed an accelerated
milk replacer, wean at six weeks, and are quite happy with the results.
According to Jennifer Cook, you must:
- Use
a precise measure when mixing up milk replacer in an accelerated
program.
- Show
patience. Calves tend to start eating calf starter a little later
than they would under a traditional rearing program. But when
they do, their appetite is good.
- Keep
good records, so that adjusted amounts of milk replacer can be
fed as the calves age.
Save the
date
Be sure to check out these upcoming educational opportunities for calf and heifer growers:
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Neonatal Calf Care and Management Workshop, March 21-22,
at the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center in Wooster,
Ohio. For more information, go to: http://dairy.osu.edu
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10th Annual Calf and Heifer Management Conference, Professional
Dairy Heifer Growers Association, March 21-24, in Visalia, Calif.
For more information, go to: http://www.pdhga.org
- Land
O'Lakes Calf College, March 23, Platteville, Wis. For more
information, go to: http://www.swwrpc.org/redc/dmt/events.html
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