CALF MANAGEMENT
Reaching Our Jersey Calf Management Goals
This article is part one of a series that Scott
Bascom, Ph.D., will be writing for the
Jersey Journal. Bascom is a former
Southeast Area Representative for the
American Jersey Cattle Association and is
now a Dairy Specialist for Cooperative
Plus in Wisconsin.
J ersey calves are more valuable now than
ever. In 2005, Jersey yearlings averaged
nearly $2,000 per head. If we assume the
average cost of rearing a Jersey calf from
birth to 12 months of age is $2/day (a rather
high estimate) then a newborn Jersey heifer
calf has a value of over $1,200! Therefore,
reviewing calf management goals is a
timely subject.
In this series of articles we will review
five fundamental goals for Jersey calf
management including:
• Low Mortality
• Healthy Calves
• Rumen Development
• Efficient Growth
• Laying the foundation for high
production.
This article will focus on reducing calf
mortality and improving calf health.
Reducing Mortality
A realistic goal for mortality in the first
12 weeks of life for calves born healthy is
5% or less. Recent National Animal Health
Monitoring Service (NAHMS) surveys
report the average for calf mortality in the
United States is between 8% and 11%, but
over 96% of the calves in these data sets
were Holsteins.
A survey conducted with Jersey calves
by researchers at Virginia Tech showed calf
mortality averaged
6.7% indicating
Jersey breeders do a
better job raising “Q”
calves. Even in
herds with low calf Quantity
mortality, further Quality
reductions in calf
mortality can result Quickly
in an increased
number of heifers
available for herd expansion or to sell.
Colostrum
The newborn calf is born with very
limited immunity. Delivering high quality
colostrum to the calf soon after birth is a
With the demand for Jerseys in the industry today, every newborn calf is a commodity worth
saving. In this series of articles, raising healthy calves, rumen development, efficient growth
and calf mortality will all be examined. Helpful tips will be given to lay the foundation for high
production in your cows.
critical to the calf to acquire immunity. they are fed two (2) quarts of high quality
The table below outlines the three “Q’s” at birth and an additional two (2) quarts of
of colostrum management. These are the high quality colostrum 12 hours later.
familiar rules of colostrum management. Jersey calves fed this way had a higher
However, over 25% of the calves in the serum IgG concentration than calves fed
National Dairy Heifer Evaluation Project four (4) quarts at birth. Jersey cows
(NDHEP) had failure of passive transfer produce colostrum with a higher IgG
of immunity, indicating that at high concentration (65.8 mg/ml) than colostrum
percentage of calves do not receive an from Holsteins (48.2 mg/ml), and it is not
adequate quantity of quality colostrum. uncommon to see IgG concentrations over
The NDHEP also reported that the death 80 mg/ml in Jersey colostrum. This
rate in calves that had failure of passive difference in IgG concentration
transfer was four times higher than in underscores the importance of feeding
calves that successfully acquired colostrum with a high IgG concentration
immunity. to Jersey calves.
The calves in the NDHEP were
predominantly Holstein. A typical Dipping Navels
recommendation for Holstein calves is to The opening of the umbilical cord is an
ideal point of entry for
The three Q’s of Colostrum Management bacteria into the body
cavity of the young
Traditional Rule Specific Guideline for Jerseys calf. Left alone this
opening remains for
4 quarts 2 quarts at first and second feeding several days but
>50 mg Ig/ml >65 mg Ig/ml saturating the navel
with a 7% iodine
Within 4 hours Within 4 hours and 12 hours later solution will cause the
navel to dry up and
reduce the risk of
deliver 4 quarts of colostrum at birth. disease and mortality. The University of
Recent research has demonstrated that this Wisconsin compared calves that had their
practice is not the optimum procedure for navels disinfected and those that did not.
Jersey calves. Jaster reported (March 2005 Mortality in the calves with disinfected
Jersey Journal) Jersey calves have higher navels was 7.1% but was 18% in the calves
levels of blood IgG concentration when (continued to page xx)
Jersey Calf Management
(continued from page xx)
that did not have disinfected navels. Only
5% of the calves whose navels were
disinfected were treated for pneumonia, but
18.9% of the other calves were treated.
Calving Environment
The newborn calf has limited defenses
against pathogens. Therefore, it is
important to minimize the number of
pathogens in the calving environment.
Keeping the calving environment clean and
dry can reduce the risk of exposure to
pathogenic organisms.
In addition, it is important to protect the
newbor n calf from extremes in
temperature. Newborn calves are not
accustomed to regulating their body
temperature and they can rapidly loose
body heat. Calves born in environments
with moderate temperatures are subject to
less stress and will not use as much energy
to maintain their body temperature. This
is particularly the case with Jersey calves
due to their smaller frame size. Jersey
calves loose body heat more quickly than
calves with a larger frame. Therefore, it is
critical that newborn Jersey calves are
moved so they are housed in a warm, draft
free environment.
Healthier Calves
All of the management practices
discussed previously improve the health of
calves and reduce the risk of mortality.
Not only do healthy calves have a lower
risk of death but they also may be healthier
and more productive as mature cows.
Raising healthy calves early on will result
more often than not in more productive cows.
Calves that exhibited no respiratory problems
or scours had a greater probability to remain
in the milking herd longer. Clean, well-
ventilated pens are important to managing
healthy calves.
Researchers at Virginia Tech examined manage scours, and preventing respiratory
the relationship between calf health and disease are key components to a successful
the performance of over 2,500 Holstein calf management program that results in
calves in a commercial herd. They healthier calves and low calf mortality.
discovered heifers that had two or more Jersey calves are unique from other
incidences of respiratory disease as calves breeds due to their frame size.
entered the milking herd one month later Implementing management practices
than heifers that had no incidence of specifically designed for Jersey calves can
calfhood respiratory disease. improve our success in raising Jersey
In addition, calves that had no calves.
incidences of respiratory disease or scours
had a greater probability to remain in the
milking herd for 730 days of productive
life. While this data only examined
Holstein calves it is reasonable to expect
that similar relationships between calf
health and performance exists in Jersey
calves.
Scours
A common disease problem in calves is
scours. A variety of pathogens can result
in scours and diarrhea in calves. Calves
with diarrhea can loose one gallon of fluid
per day while healthy calves may gain one
quart of fluid per day. This difference in
fluid balance is a challenge that must be
overcome to keep the scouring calf
hydrated. Proper electrolyte management
is critical in reducing the risk of scouring.
The keys to electrolyte management
include offering electrolytes as soon as the
calf shows any signs of scouring or being
off feed. Offer electrolytes frequently to
restore the calf ’s electrolyte balance.
Developing a protocol to prevent
dehydration in calves on your farm can pay
huge dividends.
While conducing research at Virginia
Tech, researchers saw a signif icant
reduction in the mortality of Jersey calves
on research when a Jersey-specif ic
protocol was developed and implemented.
(Editors note: More information is
available on this protocol from the author.)
Respiratory Disease
Respiratory disease is the second most
common disease in calves. Reducing the
incidence of pneumonia in calves can be
more challenging than reducing the
incidence of scours. Providing well
ventilated and draft free housing for calves
is important in preventing respiratory
disease. There are a variety of vaccinations
that are specific for organisms that cause
pneumonia. Working with a veterinarian
to develop a routine vaccination program
can reduce the incidence of respiratory
disease in calves.
Summary
Proper colostrum management,
providing a suitable calving environment,
dipping navels, implementing protocols to