Comparative Nutrition Commons^™

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.