Colostrum and calving systems

Dead Rabbits

Member
Location
'Merica
So what's everyone doing for colostrum feeding? What is your protocol? Like amount, temp, test, timing, tools, tube or bottle used etc

Also, does anyone have experience block calving a decent size herd with a limited (largely untrained and inexperienced) labor force? I am very unhappy with how calving is going here. Obviously the best way is to have everything prepared before calving and have experienced people available to train everyone. But life is a bitch and it ain't perfect.

So anyone willing to share their ideas and experiences would be welcome.

Current protocol is: Tube calf, put a dot of paint on head. We have those infernal perfect udder colostrum bags. The colostrum is rarely tested and is usually cold unless it's me or one other guy on calf watch. Timing is a crap shoot, calf gets tubed within twelve hours.

Danke
 

Clay52

Member
Location
Outer Space
My protocol was.

All colostrum tested with digital tester. Over 22 used for first feed heifer calves. Under 22 for bulls and second feed for heifers.

Perfect udder colostrum bags. All colostrum frozen unless fed straight away.

Heifers get 4lt of high colostrum straight away plus 4lt of low colostrum next feed. Bulls get 1 feed of colostrum. All tube fed.

In the end we ended up with more high colostrum so could feed more. If getting heaps of low colostrum, look for dry cow problems.
 

WillM

Member
Location
Indonesia
Cow milked within an hour of birth.
Colostrum fed or frozen.
Colostrum tested on Brix. Target 22% like Clay.
Frozen colostrum pasteurised and thawed.
Everything tubed within 60-90mins of birth.
All heifer calves blood serum tested at 2-3 days old.
 
Cow milked within an hour of birth.
Colostrum fed or frozen.
Colostrum tested on Brix. Target 22% like Clay.
Frozen colostrum pasteurised and thawed.
Everything tubed within 60-90mins of birth.
All heifer calves blood serum tested at 2-3 days old.

Milked within a hour of birth? Is your parlour going most of the day?

Edit; by day I mean day and night.
 

Pigken

Member
Location
Co. Durham
Bacteria doubles in colostrum every 10 mins at room temperature, and that's not good colostrum, if saving but not freezing immediately use small juice bottles with water in that have been frozen drop in colostrum churn to keep temperature down till use, just like ice cube, if colostrum frozen do not try and thaw to quickly as you heat the good antibodies killing them, colostrum machine for pasturising and freezing and thawing is expensive but break cost down over few years and is investment worth it,
 

jimmer

Member
Location
East Devon
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tubs like these have large surface area so can be rewarmed quickly in hot water , plenty of room on lid to write cow number , date etc
 
Don’t have a colostrum program, calf stays with cow 12 hours, misses a feed and then is fed with best colostrum for 3 days and then put onto machine. Vet told me I was doing it all wrong so test calves that hasn’t been bagged and then bagged calves for a week and there was no difference in immunoglobulin levels, when there’s 25 cows a day calving you simply don’t have time to be running round with colostrum
 
Location
Cheshire
Don’t have a colostrum program, calf stays with cow 12 hours, misses a feed and then is fed with best colostrum for 3 days and then put onto machine. Vet told me I was doing it all wrong so test calves that hasn’t been bagged and then bagged calves for a week and there was no difference in immunoglobulin levels, when there’s 25 cows a day calving you simply don’t have time to be running round with colostrum

We only bag the ones we haven't seen sucking, but asap mostly within 6 hours, but I'm not stopping up all night.
 

multi power

Member
Location
pembrokeshire
Don’t have a colostrum program, calf stays with cow 12 hours, misses a feed and then is fed with best colostrum for 3 days and then put onto machine. Vet told me I was doing it all wrong so test calves that hasn’t been bagged and then bagged calves for a week and there was no difference in immunoglobulin levels, when there’s 25 cows a day calving you simply don’t have time to be running round with colostrum
That's all fine as long as the calves are all sharp and alert and get up quickly
 
That's all fine as long as the calves are all sharp and alert and get up quickly
Well the ones that don’t get up don’t make it and we now have a herd where all the calves get up and drink no problem, out of 700 carvings last year we only assisted 7 and less than 1% of calves died after leaving the straw yard.

Cow nutrition and mineral status plays a big if not bigger part on the calves
 

Dairyfarmerswife

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Shropshire
Well the ones that don’t get up don’t make it and we now have a herd where all the calves get up and drink no problem, out of 700 carvings last year we only assisted 7 and less than 1% of calves died after leaving the straw yard.

Cow nutrition and mineral status plays a big if not bigger part on the calves

We find these crossbred things are soon up and at it. I rarely bag anything. We lift calves once a day after lunch and milk the fresh cows first. Every calf is offered the chance to drink, and most do. If they don't we assess how full they are and bag if necessary/if they are particularly dopey. Like you we've blood tested for antibodies and always had good levels. If it ain't broke....

Back to the OP, I also keep some good colostrum back in a lidded bucket. In February it's as cold as a fridge outside anyway so I don't think bacteria is growing very quickly. On the odd occasion I need some between milkings I'll warm it by putting a bucket inside another with hot water in and monitoring the temp till it's warm enough.

In your situation I wouldn't try to change to much too quickly but I'd insist on colostrum being warmed before feeding and giving it within 6 hours. (Unless your 12 hours includes time on the cow in which case I'd be less worried)

Can you get the calves blood tested to check for antibody transfer? Has to be under 7 days I think.
 

Clay52

Member
Location
Outer Space
Don’t have a colostrum program, calf stays with cow 12 hours, misses a feed and then is fed with best colostrum for 3 days and then put onto machine. Vet told me I was doing it all wrong so test calves that hasn’t been bagged and then bagged calves for a week and there was no difference in immunoglobulin levels, when there’s 25 cows a day calving you simply don’t have time to be running round with colostrum

I find it the opposite. With 20+ calving a day, I find the easiest is to get calves in soon as possible, tube them and they are done. Plus I don’t have time to deal with sick ones. So knowing they are all tubed with colostrum helps with that.
 

bovine

Member
Location
North
Lots of system work, even imperfect ones. My view is firstly are you seeing problems in calves and second do some bloods to see how well you are doing.

I'm a fan of tubing as the job is done. 10% of bodyweight. As soon as possible but absolutely in 6 hours. Ideally mum's milk. If you get the first feed right what you do afterwards doesn't matter, but I'd not advocate feeding pooled colostrum.
 

zyklon

Member
Livestock Farmer
How much colostrum do you take from the cow at first milking? Do you keep what is left over from this first milking and reheat to feed calf again next time and even feed it again 24/36hrs later?
 

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