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Four essential ingredients for improving existing calf housing

Calves are often housed in less than adequate conditions with draughts, cold temperature stress and poor air quality. Calf rearers often get so accustomed to their own farm and situation that they can easily overlook issues that need addressing. However, existing housing can often be improved with just small changes and minimal workload. Here we consider some of those improvements.

Drainage

Water is the perfect environment for bacteria and viruses to thrive, so good drainage is essential inside the building. There should be no pools of water in pens or in front of them and run-off should not sit in drainage channels as this mix of urine, faeces and milk is an excellent source of feed for pathogens. There may also be ammonia within this mix which can aggravate the respiratory tract and predispose the calf to respiratory issues such as pathogenic pneumonia; damp, dirty conditions may also lead to an outbreak in diarrhoea such as cryptosporidiosis or coccidiosis.

Consider if you can restructure your floor slope or drainage channels. If so, an underlay of bedding such as peat or woodchip can then be provided to act as a sponge to soak up the unwanted material, topping this with straw to help the underlay last for longer and also creating a snug microclimate for calves during cold days. If there are already drainage channels, all that may be needed is regular flushing, twice daily for example. This entails minimal work, won’t be as laborious as brushing or scraping, and doesn’t generate splashes which can increase the risk of illness.

Airflow

While movement of fresh air into the shed is vital, it is equally important to keep out draughts. Commonly we make the mistake of going from too little air to too much, or vice versa. The ideal conditions are often dictated by the weather and, as this becomes ever more changeable, we need to create scenarios to accommodate that. Within pens there should be somewhere airy for the calmer, milder days and also a cosy area for the colder or breezier days. Generally, this means providing a solid barrier between pens and allowing the air to flow over it.

Creating microclimates within pens is very helpful but we need to be careful about this too – calves must have a choice on whether to spend their time inside or outside the microclimate. Assess your shed during different types of weather – it should only take a few minutes to do this. Consider the type of weather, what direction it is coming from and assess the draughts in the shed and how this may affect calves.

A common issue is a down draught, created by air flowing into the shed and meeting something solid before it can circulate, immediately firing it directly onto the calves. Commonly this can result in a sudden outbreak in rotavirus. Poor conditions within a cold environment also can be very damaging to calf health

Microclimates

It is essential that air can flow both in and out of microclimates – a ‘shed within a pen’. If air can’t flow out, the microclimate can become the biggest challenge for calves because when weather becomes mild, pathogens can grow and build up, causing illness.

Microclimates can often be created using existing materials, such as placing a large bale of straw or hay in the middle of the pen to allow calves to go inside this area – but be careful if using netted bales as calves can chew on these. Cap the bales with material that can act as a roof, ensuring that this is ventilated. This might be a windbreaker, old gates or chicken wire, possibly topped with straw, to create a roof that can allow air to flow through to keep the area fresh.

Stocking Density

Stocking density is generally one of the biggest and most underestimated issues in calf rearing. Space is one of the best things we can provide calves with. Generally, minimum space requirements are there to provide a limit but going above and beyond these are key to calves thriving, especially when a system comes under pressure. Where possible, allow at least 2.2m2 for small breeds (20kg birthweight) and a minimum of 2.5m2 for larger breeds. On bigger units increasing the area to 4-6M per calf also pays dividends as disease finds it harder to spread. This may not be the easiest of the improvements that have been suggested but it is worth taking the time to consider options. For example, an area of a shed, or even an entire shed, is often not considered as they are not thought ideal for calves whereas they could in fact transform a system.

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