Starting Strong – Calf Care

Download a printable PDF Presentation Autofeeders have advanced since they were first released on the market. According to Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus calf products coordinator, more advanced autofeeders come with a reconsideration of how to manage your facility. Hoskins said autofeeders are free-range feeding systems. They allow milk on demand for the calves that are

Download a printable PDF Presentation Adequately taking care of your calves and heifers today is important because they will be influencing the milking herd’s performance in 2014. It seems as though most farmers don't spend enough time focusing on the calves and heifers, and spend most of their time dealing with the milk producing cows,

Download a printable PDF Presentation Raising a healthy replacement heifer is a long, complicated process.  According to Dr. David Carlson, technical services with Milk Products LLC, calf growth is influenced by many factors, including genetics, environment, health and nutrition.  Understanding how all the factors work together can have a big impact on the management decisions

A veterinarian by training, Dr. Don Niles, co-owner and manager of Dairy Dreams, LLC, understands the value of good records to monitor calf performance. Prior to listening to his presentation at Vita Plus Calf Summit, attendees had the opportunity to visit the 2,800-cow dairy and see firsthand how good management goes a long way in

Download a printable PDF Presentation Animal stockmanship is important to ensure animals are cared for in the safest way. Dr. Paul Rapnicki, University of Minnesota, said his goal for stockmanship is to reconnect the dairy industry through employees, vets, herdsmen and more. Communication is the key to efficient and safe animal handling. Rapnicki said many

LeRoy Butler joined Calf Summit attendees to share his inspiring life story of facing adversity with the right attitude. Butler is a former strong safety for the Green Bay Packers and the inventor of the "Lambeau Leap." Butler was born and raised in the inner-city of Jacksonville, Fla. His childhood included countless trips to the

Download a printable PDF Presentation Genomics is an emerging technology, and those using it are learning as they go. The application of genomics in a commercial herd makes the most sense with heifers and calves, said University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Pat Hoffman. Preparing a sample for a genomics test can be as simple as plucking a

  Download a printable PDF Presentation Darin Mann is a co-owner of M & M Feedlot, a 13,000-head heifer feedlot on the border of Oregon and Idaho. This feedlot is unique because, not only does it house 13,000 animals, but it also does it right next to a river and U.S. fish and game ponds.

The warm winter certainly made for nice conditions for calf raisers, but it will add some challenges for calf managers this summer. In this edition of Calf Chat, Ann explores what calf management practices to focus on without a winter kill of bacteria.

Autofeeders Boost Consistency at Jones Dairy Over and over, calf raisers are lectured on the importance of consistency for raising strong, healthy calves. That’s especially relevant when it comes to the nutrition of these young animals. At Jones Dairy in Spencer, Iowa, Aaron (Jones) Titterington found one tool to offer more consistency to the farm’s

In this edition of Starting Strong A Day in the Life of a Calf Raiser, Cathy Speirs of Shiloh Dairy LLC shares what she's done to manage calves during this unusual spring. Thank you to Cathy for joining the Starting Strong team for the past year and providing her expertise. Meet our next calf raiser

By Eliza Ruzic, Vita Plus Loyal Dairy Specialist Mother Nature has taken us on a rollercoaster ride in Central Wisconsin this spring, with the warmest March on record and below-average temperatures in April. The swings in weather have kept calf and heifer raisers on their toes to make sure their calves are healthy and growing.

Dr. Al Martens joins us from Waupun Veterinary Service, which "stives to provide innovative and compassionate veterinary medical care and consulting services for progressive livestock producres which improve animal health and produce profitability." Q: Why is Mycoplasma so difficult to manage and what can I do to control it? A: Mycoplasma bovis is a common

When it comes to raising healthy heifers in a humane fashion, preventing infectious disease is only part of the battle. Internal and external parasites also can take a toll on heifers' wellbeing and limit their production potential as well. Parasite control comprises a significant portion of the Dairy Calf & Heifer Association's Gold Standards III,

Once you have successfully helped deliver a newborn calf, the most important thing is to identify if the calf is breathing and behaving normally. Initially, you may be concerned about an unresponsive calf, but it can be resuscitated through several different methods according to Dr. Sheila McGuirk from the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary

By Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus calf products coordinator Automatic calf feeders are popping up on many dairy operations across the Midwest. The technology offers plenty of opportunities, but it also requires a refocus on management. The decision of whether autofeeders fit your calf program needs to be made only after careful consideration of how the