Colostrum & Transition Milk

Careful collection of colostrum and transition milk is critical for calf health

Colostrum and transition milk (TM) should always be at the forefront of calf rearers' minds. We are very aware of the importance and value of first milking colostrum for transferring IgG into the calf’s blood.
Read more...

Top Tips for colostrum- a video guide.

“Every calf has a value” is now firmly entrenched in all aspects of calf management. Read more and watch the video on colostrum saving by clicking on the link below.
Read more...

So, what’s in transition milk that makes it so good?

Baby calves that are fed colostrum for their first two feeds and then abruptly switched to whole milk or a replacer miss out on a very significant nutritional stage linked to transition milk.
Read more...

Once-a-day feeding proves very successful for rearing healthy dairy replacement heifers in County Tyrone

Father and son team Kenny and Kyle McIlwaine run a crossbred dairy herd of Fleckvieh x Holsteins and Montbeliard x Holsteins on the outskirts of Newtownstewart, producing milk at an annual average yield of 9,000 litres/cow from twice- a-day milking system. Calf morbidity and mortality is at an all-time low. [...]
Read more...

Transition milk and its role in baby beef calf performance

Providing baby beef calves with the same colostrum and transition milk feeding as replacement heifers can have a positive effect on both the health and development of those calves and less risk of disease for the other animals on the farm as well.
Read more...

Pre-calving preparation

From July onwards, we will be getting into pre-calving season and now is the time to start preparing. We asked one of our dairy farmers who runs an autumn block calving herd consisting of 120 Holstein-Friesians (80/120 cows due September), how they prepare for calving [...]
Read more...

Vortex Holsteins won’t be giving up their skim and buttermilk-based milk replacer

Calf mortality rate from birth to weaning has fallen to just 1.5% at a Dorset dairy farm since a new milk replacer made from low heat skim and buttermilk was introduced.
Read more...

Tips for preventing calf bloat in automatic milk feeding systems

Performance and weight gain can be set back if a calf suffers bloat and, as the condition is more common in automatic feeding than conventional, it is important in these systems to get everything right from hygiene to feed concentration to prevent cases
Read more...

Will higher fat or energy levels in a calf’s diet increase growth rates?

There is good reason why farmers are keen to improve calf rearing, to ensure heifers produce their first calf at 24 months and remain in the milking herd for as long as possible. In the Netherlands a recent survey found that most farmers use age as the main determinant for serving maiden heifers, targeting 25-26 months as age at first calving.
Read more...

Two-stage milk replacer feed system eliminates calf pneumonia on Preston dairy farm

A new calf feeding regime introduced on a Lancashire dairy farm has eliminated incidence of pneumonia in heifer replacements.John and Graham Robson produce milk from 220 cows on a robot milking system at Roe Farm, Preston.Newborn calves receive four litres of colostrum as soon as possible after birth and are initially reared in hutches.They are on a twice-a-day feeding system and gradually transition from colostrum to Transformula on the fourth bucket feed.
Read more...