Winter calf care

The extreme cold weather and wind chills you are dealing with are dangerous.

Keep this list handy and watch for any symptoms of hypothermia, frostbite, trench foot, and chilblains that may occur in your family members, employees, or yourself.

By Augusta Hagen
A hard frost and cooler temperatures mean winter will be here before we know it.

The thermal-neutral zone for a calf under 3 weeks of age is 59 to 78 degrees F. When temperatures dip below 59 degrees, the calf can start to experience cold stress and not grow as efficiently as possible. In October, the average temperature can hover around 50 degrees, which is why it is a good time to start preparing for winter...

By Pat Hoffman
We're all feeling the immense chill right now, especially as we're out working with animals. We place particular focus on young calves as changes in feeding and management are required to help calves not only survive, but also grow to their potential despite the temperature outside.

What we might now focus on as much are the effects of winter weather on older heifers.

The effects of winter are more profound on calves, but that does...