Moooooooving Out: Healthy Calves Beyond the Sheds

With your calves headed out into the big bad world this month, there are a few things you should consider before making the transition for things to run as smoothly as possible.

Drenching

Calves, being young and immuno-naïve, are the most susceptible stock on farm to parasites such as worms and coccidia.  These are common causes scouring in calves after they are outside. Drenching is an important preventative against these diseases. We recommend the following drench schedule:

- First drench with Turbo Initial, because it contains actives against coccidia, which many calves are still susceptible to when they go outside

-       Follow up with a double active oral drench such as Corporal, every twenty-eight days over the risk period (summer).

-       We also stock Eclipse pour-on, Turbo injection and Eclipse E injection

(contains B12/Se) which are great options when calves are older and too big for oral drenching.

If you want to know if your calves need a drench, bring in at least five faecal samples and we can run a faecal egg count.

Feeding

It is best practice to wean your calves based on weight (rather than age). For Friesians, they should be approximately 90-100kg and Jerseys 70-80kg. To wean calves, ensure that they are eating at least 1kg of hard feed daily for 7-10 days. Avoid weaning during cold/wet spells where possible to minimise setbacks to growth- remember: calves are small animals with not a lot of body reserve, so a bout of bad weather in conjunction with a major dietary change can really knock them.

Trace elements

The most important trace elements to provide to your calves are copper, selenium and cobalt (B12). Deficiency in any of these can result in decrease growth rates and increased susceptibility to secondary disease. Options for mineral supplementation include Multimin, selenium/B12 injections, copper injections, copper boluses and slow release all-trace boluses.

Yersinia

Yersinia tends to occur in older calves and causes scouring and spreads readily between calves in a mob. It is usually seen at times of stress- therefore, preventative measures include avoiding sudden changes in feed/housing and reducing stress as they transition off milk and outside.  Treatment is typically successful if diagnosed early and transmission to other animals is stopped.