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Overheard at Dairy-Tech 2024
All the questions and answers from Dairy-Tech 2024!
Q. How would you recommend to wean when on a twice a day feeding system?
A. Rumen development is the most important factor to consider when weaning a calf.
I would recommend to wean when the calves are consuming >1kg of concentrates for at least 3-4 days consecutively. This indicates the calf has an adequately developed rumen as they are able to digest a substantial amount of feed other than milk.
A two-step weaning plan is recommended, for one week feed once a day, by halving the litres and milk powder quantity and then drop down the litres by half a litre every few days, but remember to keep the concentration the same!
Remember if you are feeding higher volumes of milk (>6 litres/125g/l), the weaning process will need to be considerably longer to reduce the risk of a weaning check and ensure that the calf has been able to consume enough concentrate feed to have an adequately developed rumen.
Q. When I wean calves I reduce the CMR amount but keep the litres the same, is this advisable?
A. Calves thrive on consistency. Weaning can be a stressful time for calves and, by altering the DM of the mix you are potentially putting the calf under more stress which could result in a nutritional upset and therefore the weaning phase will need to be extended.
Q. To stop stronger calves bullying other calves on a teat feeder, I put water in the feeder to keep the stronger calves occupied. Is this advisable?
A. No, this is not an advisable practice. Through suckling the water from the feeder after a milk feed, the calves will be intaking the water into their abomasum and therefore diluting the feed just given. This has the potential to cause a nutritional upset and therefore open the door for scours.
Some tips to prevent this issue are;
- Make sure all the teats on the feeder are changed at the same time
- Group faster and slower drinkers together
- Use feeders with barriers between compartments
Q. Do you think calves drink more water when fed on a once a day system?
Note. 2 liquid feeds are required for the first 28 days of life.
A. Water intakes play a crucial role in microbiome and rumen development. Daily water intake varies depending on ambient temperature, crude protein and dry feed intake, but is not normally affected by milk feeding frequency on its own. Typically, calves will require 4 litres of water for every kilo of concentrate feed they eat. Calves fed on a once-a-day milk system have been shown to consume up to 10kg more concentrate feed during the rearing period compared to twice a day fed calves, and therefore will drink more water.
However, it’s important to remember that the intake of milk replacer is different to freely drinking water due to the activation of the oesophageal groove when drinking milk, the milk is transported into the abomasum.
Q. Why do you recommend to mix at 39°C? Compared to the milk replacer I am using which advises above 45°C?
A. When it is recommended to mix in water above 39°C, it is an indicator that the milk replacer is made with poorer quality ingredients and thus limited feed efficiency for calves, which typically have been dried at a higher heat. This makes the raw materials heat stable, with low or no clotting capabilities, whey protein denaturation and limited feed efficiency for the calves, which could result in nutritional upsets and could increase pathogens, along with poorer growth rates.
Our milk replacers are made with low heat co dried ingredients, this means they have high solubility, optimum clotting capability and persevered whey proteins for high feed efficiency in calves.
Another contributor to mixing in higher temperatures is how the fat is added to the milk replacer.
Does a residue cling to the side of the bucket and not fully mix? This is a sign of fat filled whey, which is around 30% more free fat in the mix. Other processors also dry the milk ingredients, (pasteurise and homogenise) and then they spray the outside of milk with fat. Which in turn results in far less molecules for the fat to cling to, and therefore it is left on the side of your calf bucket.
Alongside low heat co dried ingredients, Bonanza uses fat filled skim. The fat and milk is mixed, pasteurised then squeezed through tiny tube under pressure to homogenise. Therefore, every droplet is same size which is then gently dried with the water evaporated and in turn contributes to the reason why our milk replacers are easily mixed in cold or warm water (up to 39°C). Using a higher temperature on our milk replacers will damage it, therefore it will not be utilised by the calf correctly, and damage your profit margin!
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