Starting Strong – Calf Care

You hate to waste grain and throw it out after the rain hits it.  This Quick Tip provides and easy strategy to keep that from happening.

By Peter Coyne, Vita Plus dairy field service specialist As things warm up, our farms are getting busy once again with spring cleaning, field work and more.  While the nicer weather might boost our moods, the approaching busy season can also be a stressful one.  That’s when labor management becomes so important. Labor plays a

By Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus calf products coordinator With fly season quickly approaching, have you thought through your plan of attack?  Some places still have snow on the ground, but the weather can turn quickly and having an established plan can save you lots of time and energy this summer. According to research from Purdue

Genomics has become a hot topic of discussion on today’s dairy farms as producers look for innovative solutions to maximize performance and improve profitability in their herds. Cheryl Marti, dairy production specialist with Zoetis, said this new technology can be worth the investment on well managed farms.  She said Zoetis views genetic improvement as an

Many calf raisers are in a spring cleaning mode as they look toward the summer months.  But keeping calf hutches clean should be a year-round priority. Brian Wesemann is the director of sales for Calf-Tel, a manufacturer of calf pens, hutches and group-housing systems.  He says calf raisers should really think of the calf hutch

By Dr. Jeff Acker, Veterinary Services of Wisconsin, LLC Q: As we switch from winter to summer protocols, what should be our top priorities for getting calves ready for a new season? A:  Spring is the season of the most dramatic climate changes of the year.  This past winter was rather long, but also stable

By Doug Olsen, Vita Plus dairy territory manager Here in central Wisconsin, I’m seeing a lot of dairies investing in new calf facilities.  Many in the area are building barns with individual pens and some are transitioning to automatic calf feeding systems with group pens.  It seems most of these autofeeder systems are going on

  In this edition of Starting Strong A Day in the Life of a Calf Raiser, Brooke Carrow discusses all of the things the Enchanted Dairy team does to get ready for summer, including cleaning, fly control and review of health protocols.

Success Is in the Details at Tag Lane Dairy Kevin Griswold’s parents were milking about 90 Guernsey cows when he returned to the family farm in 1992.  Since then, Tag Lane Dairy in Ixonia, Wisconsin has steadily grown to 1,050 cows and has transitioned to a mostly Holstein herd.  All of the animals are identified

  In this edition of Starting Strong Calf Chat, we're looking to summer as the temperature slowly begins to rise.  It's time to do some good spring cleaning and that includes pails, bottles, hutches, calf jackets and more.

Deep bedding is essential for baby calves to nest and conserve energy.  Dry bedding is equally important for good respiratory health.  Spending 30 seconds to do the knee test can help you make sure bedding is adequate.

We spend a lot of time thinking about how we can optimize the nutrition of our dairy calves and cows.  But do we spend that much time thinking about how we can enrich our own diets with nutritious dairy products? As we wrap up American Heart Month, let’s spend a few minutes reviewing dairy’s role

By Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus calf products coordinator This winter has thrown us many challenges: a lot of snow, rain, huge temperature swings, cold stretches, and on and on. It is easy to think with the recent warmer temperatures we are getting close to the end. Even so, I challenge you to stay the course

With Dr. Amy Stanton, University of Wisconsin-Madison Dairy Science assistant professor and animal wellbeing specialist Calf raisers understand the importance of reducing stress to the calf, especially during its first few months of life.  The less energy a calf must spend dealing with stress, the more energy it can put toward healthy development and growth.

By Scott Hall, Vita Plus safety director Farm safety has always been a concern to protect workers and family members. In the past, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has placed most of its energy on construction and general industry. This approach recently changed to place more focus on the smaller employers that may

By Dr. Becky Brotzman, DVM, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine associate outreach specialist Q:  We are considering building a roof over our hutches to keep the area in front of them dry during periods of rain and snow.  Would you recommend this?  A:  Calf hutches are currently the “gold standard” for successful, individual