Everything you need to know about calf rearing 

Ben Strugnell shared videos of post-mortems and outlined best practice for calf rearing during the event, stressing that the first 48 hours of life are key.

Key nutrients

The life of the calf does not begin at birth, Ben emphasised – it relies on the dam for important nutrients which it will need for life outside the womb, including selenium for immunity; copper for bone and tissue growth; and iodine for thyroid function.

Iodine deficiencies can result in calves being born later with dystocia, and they may also be ‘dopey’ at birth.

It’s important to plan ahead, when cows are around 4–6 months in calf, as the transfer of these nutrients to the calf is more effective through the umbilicus than through milk after birth. Suckler calves are more likely to suffer deficiencies, while dairy cows are more commonly over-supplemented with copper.

Ben recommends analysing silage and taking blood samples to test for deficiencies, and says boluses and injections are the best option for ensuring supplements are taken up evenly by all cows. 

Colostrum

Calves should receive at least four litres (or 10% of their bodyweight) of good quality colostrum in the first two hours of life, followed by a similar sized feed within 12 hours of birth, according to AHDB. Quality is determined by the cow’s protein nutrition, especially in late gestation. 

Suckler cows are at higher risk of nutritional deficiency in late gestation, particularly this year as the drought led to forage shortages and quality issues for some farmers. 

Metabolic profiles on suckler cows around 6–8 weeks before calving can measure albumin, urea and BHBs, giving an idea of the adequacy of the diet while you still have a chance to turn it around. Additionally, a colostrometer is simple to use and is a good indicator of quality.

Ben also recommends blood sampling the first 10 calves born (they must be over 24 hours but less than 10 days old) to measure their protein levels. This is a good indicator of colostrum quantity and quality.

Own dam colostrum is the best choice, he said, but if you can’t get sufficient quantities, ask a friend or neighbouring farm if they have any spare you can freeze. The next best thing if you have no other choice is to go to your vet for commercial colostrum.

Navel ill

There is a very real risk of bacteria entering the body through the umbilicus after birth, and going into major organs, Ben warned.

Dipping navels is much more effective than spraying them, as it coats the inside of the tube as well as the outside, and it’s just as important to desiccate (shrivel up) the navel so bacteria cannot enter, as it is to kill the bacteria with disinfectant, he added.

Recent data has shown positive results for No Bacz Navel, or alternatively, if iodine is used it must be a minimum of 7%, or ideally 10% to ensure desiccation.

Commenting on how often to treat, Ben said the answer is: “As often as it takes for the navel to shrivel up so that there is no potential hole into that calf via the navel. So if that means you do it twice, you do it twice. If it means you do it 10 times, you do it 10 times.”

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Environmental hygiene is also essential to reduce the risk level. “That means clean straw, and making sure the muck under the cattle is not too hot, facilitating bacterial replication.” 

It’s also worth noting that after difficult calvings, the newborn will likely sit down in the muck, meaning more contact between the bacteria and the navel, whereas a calf that’s had an easy calving will jump onto its feet to suck. “This doesn’t mean the navel doesn’t need dipping,” Ben emphasised. “They do – it just means the risk is much lower.”

He noted that he sees a large number of calves that have died in the neonatal period or up to three months old, which have contracted diseases as a direct result of navel ill.

“It still remains a problem and it’s an easy problem to solve. It doesn’t cost you a lot of money, just a bit of care and attention and forward planning.”

Pneumonia and scour 

Pneumonia and scour are common causes of death in neonatal calves. Ben said he often hears reports of antibiotics failing in pneumonia cases, but in fact, the problem is that the damage has already been done to the lungs.

The triad of defences is vaccination, ventilation and humidity. Intranasal vaccines are available to offer calves protection within the first days of life, while ventilation can be tested with a smoke bomb when the house is full, and sensors can monitor humidity.

With scour vaccines, colostrum management is crucial as the cow is vaccinated to protect the calf. The main causes of scour are: E coli, rotavirus, coronavirus, salmonella (S Dublin and S typhimurium) and cryptosporidiosis, and it’s important to know which you have on the farm. When calves get a bit older, at 4–12 weeks, coccidiosis becomes a problem. 

Cryptosporidium is a disease of high stocking density so the first thing to do is improve environmental hygiene to reduce the challenge, and vaccinate. Cleaning equipment, including feeding tubes between calves, is also really important, as is choosing disinfectants that are effective against all pathogens.

Poll results 

A series of polls were taken during the webinar, revealing:

• 55% of listeners were dairy farmers, 27% beef, 18% other
• 50% supplemented cows during pregnancy through feed, 33% with boluses, 8% with lick buckets, and 8% did not supplement
• If unsure if calves had had enough colostrum, 58% would use milk colostrum from the dam, 33% defrost frozen colostrum, 8% use colostrum powder from a farm supply shop
• When treating calf navels, 62% dip and 38% spray
• 80% vaccinate against pneumonia
• 7% vaccinate against scour.

Watch the full video (warning: webinar contains scenes of a graphic nature):

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