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Right now pasture conditions are ideal for transmission of internal parasites to your heifers.
Do you know how effective your current dewormer is? Click here to learn about the free parasite evaluation program, sponsored by Intervet.
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Private calvings a plus
Dairyland Farms in New Franken, Wis., invested in five individual calving pens so that cows can calve undisturbed by pen mates. The individual pens also make it easier for employees to assist cows that need help. Each pen is cleaned and limed between calvings. And, the whole area is steam-cleaned weekly to ensure a sanitary environment.
Calf biosecurity practiced here
Super hutches located just outside the transition barn at Ebert Enterprises in Algoma , Wis., serve as the home for newborn calves. Because of their location, the calf raiser never has to enter any other part of the dairy when picking up calves, which improves biosecurity. And, the hutches provide ready access for feeding and observing the health of the calves.
Provide electrolytes AND milk replacer
When young calves get diarrhea, they become dehydrated and are low on energy. Switching the calf to electrolytes alone won't solve the problem, nor will feeding more milk replacer, says Geof Smith, assistant professor of ruminant medicine at North Carolina State University.
When you take away the milk or milk replacer and feed only electrolytes, it puts the calf in a negative energy balance, and that can lead to additional complications. Scouring calves with dehydration need milk or milk replacer for energy, plus oral electrolytes to rehydrate them. The oral electrolyte should be fed as an extra meal.
Keep calves' routine consistent
What’s the best way to prevent clostridium problems in your calves?
“Consistency, consistency, consistency,” says Sheila McGuirk, veterinarian at the University of Wisconsin ’s School of Veterinary Medicine. Inconsistency in your calves’ diet — even a small change in the feeding routine — is a recipe for potential problems. For example, “if you mix (milk replacer) with a wire whisk all week, your weekend feeder should, too,” she says.
What type of manager are you?
As a manager, you have two choices. You can hire someone and let him do the job the way he thinks it should be done. Or, you can define the protocols for all of the jobs at your facility, write down steps for each protocol in bite-sized pieces so that anyone can understand, and then hire and train employees to do it your way, says Tom Fuhrmann, of Dairy Works Management System in Tempe, Ariz. Managers who use the latter system have learned two important lessons:
- Better work routines can produce better and more consistent results.
- Better work routines can maintain results with less expense.
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Heifer prices to stay down ![DOUBLE THE WEIGHT BY WEANING. Imagine, in just seven weeks, gaining 56 pounds more than a calf on 20/20 milk replacer. That's a 65% increase in body volume [size and frame]. And that equates to earlier breeding and earlier calving.](http://www.dairyherd.com/adviser/images/lol0406.jpg)
