Dairy notes November 2007
Management of First Calvers
With the value of replacement heifers having risen so substantially this year, it is even more important to ensure that they are well managed in their first lactation - a £1,500 springer turning into a £250 cull in 10 months will eat up profits! For the most profitable lifetime performance, Holstein/Friesian heifers should be calved down at 560-580 KGs in condition score 3. If heifers are allowed to put on too much condition before calving, their appetites will be reduced in early lactation, leaving them unable to consume enough energy to support milk production. They will “milk off their backs,” losing excessive condition leading to poor fertility.
Heifer condition should be checked two months before calving. Growth rate at this stage should be no more than 0.5 KGs / day - this can be achieved by restricting silage intake or including straw in the diet. Dry cow minerals should be fed for at least 6 weeks before calving. At Greenmount Campus the following action is taken to reduce the stress on heifers in early lactation;
- Springing heifers are introduced to the milking system 2-3 weeks before calving as they are brought into the parlour and fed a small amount of the early lactation concentrate.
- First calvers are housed and fed as a separate group from the main herd. This allows them to settle into a milking routine without problems with bullying by older stock. Where grouping is not possible, ensure that adequate feeding space is available (350-450 mms/ animal) for all stock to reduce the level of bullying.
- Silage intake measurements have shown that first calvers eat a lot less silage than older stock. As a result concentrate feed levels allow for the fact that heifers will produce 3 litres less milk from forage than the older cows.
Contract Rearing
Current high milk prices are encouraging many producers to expand. An option to free up space for the extra stock may be to have replacement heifers contract reared and convert their housing for dry cows. With beef producers losing money on both suckler and beef finishing enterprises, it should be possible to make contact with a local farmer with suitable housing, maybe even an ex-dairy farmer with heifer rearing experience, interested in a new venture.
Contract rearing of heifers offers several advantages over purchasing replacements at the market:
- Lower price to be paid
- Knowing that the breeding of the stock meets herd requirements
- Not buying in diseases
Establishing a heifer rearing contract will require a lot of careful thought by both yourself and the rearer. It is essential each person is thoroughly aware of “who is responsible for what.” Biosecurity needs careful consideration. The least risk of disease spread will occur when heifers from one dairy farm are reared by one contract rearer.