Heifer prices moving higher
Rising milk prices have helped increase heifer demand and heifer prices. The price of top-end springing heifers is up about $200 to $300 per head compared to last month, says Greg Scheer, dairy analyst with Doane Advisory Services in St. Louis. In the five areas we track, the top reported price was $2,675 for a supreme/top springing heifer in Pennsylvania. Not to be outdone, heifer-calf prices hit $675 in Wisconsin.

Welcome to the June 25 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.

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Evaluate colostrum replacers carefully
Just because a colostrum replacer says it provides the gold standard of 100 grams or more of immunoglobulin doesn’t mean it will deliver adequate passive transfer. So says a new study in the June Journal of Dairy Science. During the study, calves fed two or three bags of a commercial colostrum replacer had much lower serum total protein and serum IgG concentrations than calves fed 4 quarts of fresh colostrum. As a result, they had significantly higher failure of passive transfer. For more details, go to: www.dairyherd.com.

Could you wean earlier?
Calves are usually weaned at 42 days of age at the University of Minnesota's calf facility in Waseca. However, in one study, calves could have been weaned earlier based on their starter intake. In that study, calves fed a 20:20 milk replacer averaged about 3.1 pounds of starter intake per day from 28 to 42 days of age, says Hugh Chester-Jones, animal scientist at the facility. A number of other studies at the facility indicate starter intakes averaged 2 pounds or more during that same time.
    Although they have not initiated an early-weaning program, doing so could save some milk replacer cost, Chester-Jones says. Could you wean earlier, too? Monitor intakes from 28 to 42 days of age to help you make that decision for your operation.

Invest in a refractometer
Using a refractometer to measure the serum total protein of each calf provides a quick report card that tells employees how they are doing, says Jerry Olson, technical services veterinarian with Pfizer Animal Health. Yet, many operations lack this basic piece of equipment. For about $170, Olson considers it money well spent for any operation with calves.

How much working capital?
As a general rule-of-thumb, you need the equivalent of 20 percent to 25 percent of your annual expenses as net working capital. Working capital is not the balance in your checkbook. It is the assets that can be converted to cash within a year without disrupting business operations, says David Kohl, professor emeritus of agricultural and applied economics at Virginia Tech. This gives you the flexibility to take advantage of unexpected opportunities when they arise. When you have less than this amount of working capital, “Murphy (as in Murphy’s Law) is merciless and he will put you out of business.”

A recipe for bloat
Poor feeding management can induce bloat in calves. Lance Fox, technical service manager with Alpharma, Inc., has seen the following problems cause bloat in calves:

• Inadequate milk or milk replacer temperature. Milk at 95 degrees Fahrenheit or below may induce bloat. Feeding temperature should be closer to 101 to 102 F — the body temperature of a healthy cow.
• Fast milk-flow rate through the nipple hole. Don’t cut calf-bottle nipples to increase the diameter of the hole. Replace nipples regularly to maintain proper hole diameter.
• “Dunker” calves. These calves submerge their muzzles into the bucket and drink aggressively. Use a floating nipple or toy rubber duck to train these calves to drink slower.

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