Posted on January 28th, 2020 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
By Dr. Jenn Rowntree, Vita Plus calf and heifer specialist The past two years have both been wet years, which is often associated with an increased risk for bovine respiratory disease in cattle of all ages. Consider these strategies to improve gut health and overall immune function.
Posted on September 24th, 2019 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
By Dr. Jenn Rowntree, Vita Plus calf and heifer specialist Colostrum is one of the best ways to ensure adequate transfer of immunity from the dam to the calf. However, when a calf doesn't receive enough immune protection, it can be vulnerable to health challenges.
Posted on May 21st, 2019 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
Maria Poock with Fischer-Clark Dairy Farm Inc. walks us through the calf team's colostrum management protocols, including harvesting, testing, storing and tube-feeding colostrum.
Posted on March 18th, 2019 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
By Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus calf products coordinator Keeping a well-stocked maternity pen with these 7 must-have items can help give calves a successful start to life.
Posted on October 25th, 2018 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
With Sara Schilling, Schilling Farms LLC Sara Schilling of Schilling Farms LLC talks to us about her colostrum management protocols and describes her goals for giving calves the best start to life.
Posted on October 24th, 2018 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
By Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus calf products coordinator These 10 must-have items can help you give your calves the best start possible in the maternity pen.
Posted on June 28th, 2018 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
By Brittany Olson, contributing writer Colostrum is concentrated with important nutrients, antibodies and growth hormones to help give a calf a healthy start to life. Steele explained how providing quality colostrum early in a calf's life can help it take in nutrition and repel pathogens.
Posted on December 26th, 2017 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
With Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus calf products coordinator Cold temperatures are especially tough on newborn calves. In this edition of Calf Chat, Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus calf products coordinator, provides seven tips to give newborn calves the best start possible.
Posted on December 26th, 2017 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
Rachelle Krienke has two major goals for her calves: She wants them to be as healthy as possible and she wants to see good body condition at weaning. She has designed a system that allows her to consistently reach both goals for her farm’s replacement heifers.
Posted on December 26th, 2017 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
By Dr. Jeremy Schefers, University of Minnesota, and Dr. Noah Litherland, Vita Plus dairy youngstock technical specialist Quality and hygiene are important considerations when feeding waste milk to nursery calves. Benefits of on-farm pasteurization include reduced diarrhea and respiratory disease. Proper pasteurization also kills Mycobacterium paratuberculosis (responsible for Johne’s disease), Salmonella and Mycoplasma, if present in milk.
Posted on December 26th, 2017 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
By Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus calf products coordinator The first days of a calf’s life set the stage for its health and performance as it grows.
Day 1 Colostrum is a loaded first meal for the young calf. Calves require fat and protein for energy and muscle development in the first days of life, as well as growth factors and many other nutrients that are concentrated in colostrum. Feed 4 quarts of high-quality colostrum to...
Posted on June 20th, 2017 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
By Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus calf products coordinator Colostrum management is a detailed process and management protocols lead to great success. Whether you adhere to these protocols determines whether this is a make-it-or-break-it event in a calf’s life.
For example, what do you do if you don’t have the high-quality colostrum your calves need? You need a back-up plan, and colostrum replacers and supplements can be a useful tool to give calves the best start possible.
Posted on June 20th, 2017 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
By Cassie Stillman, Vita Plus Loyal dairy specialist Summer has finally arrived in central Wisconsin, but we had to first go through some unpleasant weather in May. Heavy rainfall and cool temperatures made it difficult on calves. Discussions with our team and on-farm observations point to respiratory problems as one of producers’ main concerns. In addition, keeping calves hydrated and stress-free with the recent warm weather has become a priority. Adjusting from one season to another can be very stressful on youngstock if the transition period is not smooth.
Posted on April 20th, 2017 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
By Dr. Noah Litherland, Vita Plus dairy youngstock technical specialist Serum total protein analysis is a simple and repeatable way to evaluate passive transfer of immunoglobulins in dairy calves up to five days of age. When colostrum is fed, the immunoglobulins are absorbed through the intestinal wall and into the bloodstream, where they interact with tissues in the body to provide passive transfer of immunity from the dam to the calf.
Posted on February 23rd, 2017 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
By Kayla Oxendale, Vita Plus dairy specialist As we embark on 2017, we find our industry under new regulations that influence the decision-making and day-to-day operations on many farms. The Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD) requires additional traceability to use some common medications.
Posted on October 28th, 2015 in Starting Strong - Calf Care
Dr. Noah Litherland, Vita Plus dairy youngstock technical specialist We’ve arrived at the time of year when we hear reports of low colostrum yield from fresh cows. Field results indicate colostrum yield may reach a low point in November and December, averaging less than 5 pounds of milk per cow at first milking.
Both colostrum quality and quantity have important implications for calf health and performance. An average Holstein heifer calf weighing 85 pounds needs 10 percent of its...
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