Life Sciences Commons^™

The Autumn Feed Problem In Beef Cattle Management, D J. Barker, P. J. May

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

In south-western Australia all grazing stock face a period of 'inadequate' nutrition each autumn.

The Department of Agriculture's beef production research programme has for some years sought solutions to this problem, and the results from the programme have been used to develop strategies for achieving satisfactory production levels at least cost during autumn.

This article discusses the resulting techniques, and the research on which they are based.

Dairy Calves Can Safely Be Fed Once A Day, R A. Bettenay

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

THE sale of milk rather than butterfat has increased greatly in the past few years and less than half the dairy farmers in Western Australia now own cream separators.

Feeding whole milk once a day can be successful for raising dairy calves, even in winter when calf rearing is most difficult.

A recent experiment at Wokalup Research Station showed that satisfactory weight gains can be achieved if liquid milk is fed only once a day from a very early age. Trial calves gained I lb a head a day over the 12 weeks of the experiment.

Once-a-day feeding greatly reduces …

Once A Day Calf Feeding, R A. Bettenay

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Trials at Wokalup Research Station in 1970 proved that calves could be successfully reared with once a day liquid milk feeding, providing a high protein meal was continually available.

This trial was carried out to see if the high protein meal was essential for the success of the once a day feeding system.

Once Daily Calf Feeding Lowers Rearing Costs, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

The usual method of hand rearing dairy calves involves twice daily feeding of milk or milk substitutes.

This routine adds considerably to the labour necessary at milking time and may have prevented many farmers from putting much effort into dairy beef production.

The report below comes from a 1969 trial carried out at Bramley Research Station to see if once-daily calf feeding was as effective as twice daily feeding.

The trial's results should be considered as early findings from a series of trials being conducted into calf rearing regimes by both the Animal and Dairying Divisions of the Department of …

Supplementing Calves With Tallow : Results Of A Trial At Wokalup Research Station, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

THE removal of butterfat from milk by separation, reduces the energy content of the milk by about 50 per cent., and must slow the growth of calves unless extra energy is provided from some other source.

In the dairying districts of Western Australia, there has been considerable interest in recent years in the addition of homogenised tallow to skim milk to provide extra energy.

Good calves have been produced by this means.

Dry Supplements Reduce Labour And Cost Of Calf Rearing, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

The conventional method of hand rearing dairy calves in Western Australia calls for the feeding of whole milk, skim milk and/or milk substitutes for periods of up to 16 weeks.

This requirement for milk and labour has often prevented beef production from becoming a major sideline on many wholemilk and butterfat farms.

The two trials reported below* were carried out at Bramley Research Station to see if milk consumption and time to weaning could be reduced by free-feeding hay and cereal based supplements.

Tallow As A Substitute For Butterfat In The Diet Of A Young Calf, R. Sprivulis

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

WHILE cow's milk is the best food for a young calf it is also very expensive.

The normal substitute for whole milk is skim milk, but removing the butterfat from cow's milk reduces the dry matter content by 30 per cent and the digestible energy by 50 per cent.

Production-Line Calf Feeding, F J. Fielder, A. Hamilton

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

MANY cream-producing dairy farmers have found that it can be profitable to increase the number of calves they rear. In fact, it is big business for those who can rear up to 200 calves a year, and a few have already achieved this number.

Rearing Dairy Calves, R A. Bettenay

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

ON Western Australian dairy farms the wastage rate of dairy cows is probably more than 20 per cent, and this, coupled with the tendency towards bigger herds, means that well over half of the heifer calves born should be reared for herd replacements.

Rearing Healthy Calves, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

NOW is the time to consider some form of grazing management and supplementary feeding for early born calves, especially in the butterfat zone.

The calves are now two to three months old and beginning to forage for themselves, This can be a critical period in their development.

Saving Labour In Feeding Calves, R A. Bettenay

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

PRESENT day values are such that no farmer can afford not to dispose of his calves to the best advantage.

With the lighter breeds this might still mean vealing all bull calves within a week of birth, but with heavier breeds it is now more economical to keep all calves until they are at least six to eight months old.

Cutting Costs In Calf Rearing, N A. Scott

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

RAISING calves as herd replacements and as a sideline to provide added income is becoming increasingly popular.

This is particularly noticeable since the inception of the Artificial Breeding Scheme whereby farmers are at liberty to breed herd replacements from their most productive cows and use semen from beef breeds for the poorer types.

Foster-Mothering Of Calves, Maurice C. Cullity, K. W. Simes

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

"SAVE those calves" is a slogan which has been used frequently in propaganda to reduce the slaughter of heifers when it is thought that the supply of replacement animals to our dairy herds might be unduly low.

Although there is no fear of this at present, the wastage of calves both heifers and bulls, in Western Australia is unduly large.