youngstock

Vet, Dr Tim Potter shares how vets can help farmers optimise welfare and productivity through the Animal Health and Welfare Infrastructure grant to fund cattle housing

Vet Graham Shepherd says there are some common myths when it comes to colostrum pasteurisation for calf feeding

Farmers should start preparing now if they want to apply for Defra's new calf housing for health and welfare grant 

Youngstock numbers reduced by 1.2 per cent compared to the same point last year

The management of calf rearing and the standard of housing facilities are key factors in the overall health, welfare and performance of calves. So how do you get things right when individual systems are so varied?

Nowadays most dairy farmers understand good colostrum management is key, but exactly what that entails is more often a point of debate.

Getting the optimum quantity and quality of colostrum is key for new born calves – but making the right choice when it comes to following on from colostrum onto milk replacers is also vital.

For Mark and Susie Mottershead, who farm at The Brook, Wrexham, the 2020 lockdown prompted a focus on calves within their pedigree Holstein herd which were not performing as well as they wanted them to.

When rearing all your own replacement heifers within a closed herd, the team at the University of Edinburgh’s Langhill Farm says it is particularly important calves get off to a good start.

Through better calf rearing facilities and the initiation of early life vaccination against pneumonia, the Hann family has seen significant improvements in the health and well-being of the calves in their pedigree Holstein herd at Rodden Down, Frome, Somerset.