HOW TO REAR CALVES.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXVIII, Issue 4608, 11 October 1934, Page 3

HOW TO REAR CALVES.

CARE NEEDED IN FEEDING. One of the most important problems confronting the dairy-farmer at this season of the year is that of successful calf-rearing. Any farmer with an eye to the future productive qualities of his herd is well advised to pay very close and careful attention to the rearing of his heifer calves. It is the heifers which will be required to replace culls or to increase the herd numerically. The future of the herd depends largely upon the treatment accorded calves in the early stages of development. Of fundamental importance is the building cf a sound constitution in the animal. Without that it is useless to expect continued high production over a long period. Some idea of the importance which should be attached to the problem of rearing calves along sound and scientific lines so as to increase their productive life may be gauged from the fact that careful investigation has revealed that any-

thing up to 25 per cent, of a dairy herd is culled on account of poor production and disease each year. Unless the young calf is left with its mother lo'ng enough to obtain from her its first drink good results can hardly be expected. For the first week it should on no account be deprived of her colostrum milk, as this is especially rich in nutritive materials of particular value. It also has a medicinal effect. What is still more important is the fact that it contains certain anti-bodies, which confer upon the calf immunity to diseases such as white scours, and resistance to harmful bacteria. Such assistance at a stage when the calf is yet too immature to build up its own protective agencies is obviously of inestimable benefit. The rearing of calves is made difficult by the withdrawal of the use of colostrum. Essentials wf Good Rearing.

Should colostrum be unavailable owing to death or infection of disease in the mother, the calf should be fed with the colostrum of other cows. A substitute which is recommended in the event of 'neither of these cases being possible is the feeding of the calf with castor oil added to the white of an egg in warm milk. If repeated several times this is quite effective. In feeding the calf, care should be taken to see that the quantity of milk given is as near as possible 10 per cent, of the weight of the calf. The ration should be gradually increased until at three weeks it is receiving 1 to 1% gallons daily. It is inadvisable, however, to give the calf high test Jersey milk, as frequently it is too rich and tends to cause scouring. This difficulty can be overcome by diluting such milk with skim to a test of 3.5.

It is safe in.most cases to put the calf on to mixed milk of the herd after the first week, but it is essential to good rearing that it should be given whole milk. Judging from experiments carried out by practical farmers it v/ould seem that the best type of calf is reared for at least a month on whole milk. Care should be taken to see that there is no curtailing of the supply of whole milk, as any extra expenditure in raising a better producer is obviously money well expended. On the other hand, however, the calf should not be overfed. An essential factor in feeding in the early stages is that the milk should be fed at blood heat, and this should be continued as long as possible.

For subsequent feeding either skim milk or whey should be employed. Points which should be carefully watched are that the ration must contain sufficient protein and minerals to promote growth; that it is highly digestible and palatable; and that the contents provide sufficient nutriments. Sudden Changes are Harmful. Sudden changes of diet are generally recognised as harmful. Therefore, the change should be made gradually. In order to secure the greatest benefit the transition stage should occupy about a fortnight. One pint of whole milk should be replaced daily by a similar proportion of skim milk, this process being carried on during the change over period until the whole milk is all replaced. As the skim milk contains less butterfat it is necessary to add some suitable supplement. The cheapest materials for this purpose are cereal grains or meals, and they should be given after the first month. Care should be exercised that the calf is not given this food before this stage of development, as it is unable to digest it properly until its cud is developed. Whole oats and crushed maize both give excellent results.

The calf should not be forced to eat too heavily, and 1% gallons daily is generally sufficient skim milk up until the time it is weaned. Should milk be plentiful, up to 2 gallons may be fed. A substitute for skim milk is cheese whey, but it is as well to remember that this has only about half the feeding value of skim milk. It therefore becomes imperative to add a protein rich supplement so as to bring the value of whey approximately to that of whole milk. Liver meal and pure meat meal are among the cheapest concentrates suitable for this purpose. The use of whey, however, in order to procure good results entails greater care in feeding and closer personal attention. Whatever the type of food used it is very helpful to the development of the calf along healthy lines if it is reared in a good clean pasture paddock. The selected paddock should be well sheltered from winds and rain so that the animal is given every opportunity.