Proper calf care is crucial for successful animal management. These articles about calf care meet the National Dairy FARM Animal Care Program’s continuing education requirement.
April 2 2019
There are three critical calf periods. The first period around calving includes the cow, environment, and the whole area of colostrum management
Oct. 10 2018
There is some good news and some not so good news when it comes to calf feeding. Let’s look at the good news first
Sept. 26 2018
Most producers can recite how they successfully manage colostrum on their farms, yet accomplishing this protocol consistently can be a major challenge
Sept. 10 2018
Weaning is the most important transition a calf has to go through before she enters the milking herd, and it is a nutritionally and socially stressful time
Aug. 1 2018
The feeding behavior patterns of dairy cattle are known to impact health, productivity, and welfare. Trevor DeVries, University of Guelph, will discuss how the way we feed, house, and manage calves impacts...
July 15 2018
Diarrhea remains the leading cause of death in dairy calves
July 9 2018
The number of calf barns with automated feeders is certainly on the rise. More and more farmers are going that route for their calf raising needs
July 2 2018
On many farms, it’s well understood that the calf’s first meal is of vital importance
June 4 2018
When it comes to calf housing, we often think about what’s around the animal (including pen walls and air movement), but how much consideration is given to what lies beneath the calf as bedding?
April 25 2018
With a wealth of information about the care and treatment for calves on dairy farms available, it can be easy to forget some of the basics that have the biggest impact on calf health
Feb. 10 2018
While colostrum is known to be needed by newborn calves as they are born without any immunity, there is more to this picture
Oct. 10 2017
The first colostrum feeding not only helps calves establish passive immunity, it also populates the intestinal tract with bacteria needed for digestion
June 15 2017
Sometimes I think water is not valued enough for dairy cattle because it seems to be “free” or costs little compared to other feedstuffs. And it all begins with calves
June 12 2017
Calf housing is most often designed with health benefits and labor efficiency in mind. With limited complexity in their environment, calves will often turn to non-nutritive suckling for entertainment
May 25 2017
It’s the most important meal a calf will ever receive, but is it as nutritious as it should be? With no immunity to fight off illness, colostrum is essential within the first few hours of life
May 15 2017
“The opportunity for higher daily liquid feeding rates, smaller meal sizes, and getting back to what’s more normal biology for the calf,”
April 25 2017
You’ve heard it before: calves fed a higher plane of nutrition make more milk in the first lactation. But how does it happen?
April 10 2017
Do we really have the opportunity to improve first-lactation milk yield with the decisions we make when the calf is still consuming milk or milk replacer?
March 25 2017
Research has shown us that a calf’s diet today can influence its milking potential two years down the road
Dec. 15 2016
Farms that utilize medicated milk replacer or calf starter should make adjustments now before the Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD) takes effect on January 1