Dairylink Ireland participants James Martin and Richard Marshall were part of a recent tour to the Netherlands which focused on calf rearing systems.

The trip was part of the Farm Innovation Visit programme and was organised by CAFRE.

Participants on the tour were told that calves that undergo an accelerated growth programme with daily liveweight gains of over 1kg/calf/day from birth and weaning have higher levels of performance and longevity.

The study tour also highlighted the key points that calf rearers must adopt to achieve these targets.

These include effective colostrum administration, feeding management and the adoption of strict health management protocols.

The study group had the opportunity to discuss calf rearing strategies with Leonal Leal and Javier Martin-Tereso from Trouw Nutrition and see how the theory was being applied on four commercial dairy units.

Findings

The main finding from the tour was that calves reared on an accelerated growth programme have better lactational performance.

Research carried out by Trouw Nutrition showed that calves that undergo an accelerated growth programme between birth and weaning reach service targets earlier, have an earlier age at first calving, higher butterfat yield and reduced culling rate (Table 1). To achieve these liveweight gain targets, the recommended feeding rates for milk powder were between 1,000–1,200g/calf/day.

However, the study tour was told that not all milk replacers are the same and feeding 1,000g/calf/day of some products may cause additional problems.

Research by Trouw suggests that feeding over 1,000g/calf/day of a conventional milk replacer can increase the risk of calf scour.

Some Dutch farmers were feeding up to 16l/calf/day of acidified whole milk.

Specialist milk replacers have been developed to ensure that calves consume no more than 400g lactose per day to reduce the risk of scour.

The fat and protein content of their milk replacers have also been altered to 25% and 33% respectively, to encourage growth and development.

Other farmers were feeding calves up to 16l/calf/day of acidified whole milk and achieving similar growth rates.

Hybrid group hutches are essentially individual pens within a group hutch.

Milk was fed using a bucket and teat system and was topped up morning and evening. Weaning on this system could take up to two weeks, before calves were switched to a group feeding system.

Colostrum

Particular attention was paid to the quantity and quality of colostrum fed on farms.

All calves received at least four litres of colostrum within two hours of birth, with up to two subsequent feeds given after that.

Colostrum quality was assessed using a refractometer. Adjustments were made to the dry cow diet if the Brix score was less than 25.

All calves had access to fresh water, fresh concentrate and forage (preferably dried straw).

Dairylink Ireland participants Richard Marshall and James Martin, as well as programme adviser Aidan Cushnahan, were part of the first group to review calf rearing under the Farm Innovation Visit programme.

Biosecurity was a priority on all farms. Hutches and pens were washed, disinfected and rested after each batch of calves passed through.

The farms visited used a combination of individual hutches and a hybrid group hutch (individual pens within a group hutch) before being moved onto group accommodation.

Applications

The groups were very impressed with the stock on show and the attention to detail paid to the calf rearing operation, in particular colostrum management and the way in which large quantities of acidified whole milk could be fed to calves.

Dairylink Ireland participants Richard Marshall and James Martin have both adjusted their feeding regimes to ensure that calves receive increased quantities of milk replacer (approaching 1,000g/calf/day).

Progress of heifer replacements on these farms can be followed through weekly coverage of the Dairylink programme in the Irish Farmers Journal.