Dairy cows in this country are predominantly produce milk for human consumption. So what happens to their newborn calf? What does that calf eat? Why is the dairy calf separated from its mother? Carrie Mess, Wisconsin dairy farmer, attempts to answer a few of these questions.
Background: Dairy farmers are dedicated to producing high-quality milk, and that begins with taking good care of their cows. Dairy farmers work closely with veterinarians and professional nutritionists to keep their cows healthy and well-nourished. Nutritious diets, healthy living conditions, and good veterinary care are all essential when it comes to producing safe, wholesome, nutritious milk. Learn more about animal care from Midwest Dairy Association.
When we have a new calf born the first thing I do is make sure that the new mama gets up and shows an interest in her baby. Calves need the stimulation of their mother licking them off to get their bearings after being born. If the cow doesn’t show an interest in the calf I will grab a towel and start to rub the baby dry myself. Thankfully Gentle had the instinct to lick off her calf.
The second thing I do when we have a new calf born is lift up it’s back leg and check the plumbing. While we do use Ultrasound to check gender of our calves before they are born sometimes we get a surprise. Gentle had a heifer (girl) calf.
One of the most common questions I have from people about calves is why we don’t keep baby calves with their mothers on a dairy farm. Or why we keep calves in those little houses and not with their moms. My answer is that we do let the mama cows lick off their babies, but after that we take over care of the calf. We do this for many reasons.
The first is that our cows calve in a group pen, if you have ever been in a situation where you have a pack of baby hungry women and a newborn you can imagine what the calving pen is like after a calf is born. Often times a cow other than the one who gave birth will want to claim the new calf as her own. Some times several cows want the calf to be theirs. This usually upsets the actual mother of the calf and since cows can’t use their words, a lot of pushing and head butting comes into play. The problem with this is that these cows get so caught up in wrestling that they forget that there is a brand new baby in the area and the calf can get stepped on and hurt or even killed.
The second reason we take over for the cows is that just like a human newborn calves don’t have much of an immune system built up yet. For the same reason that new moms refuse to hand over their precious bundle of joy to a hacking, sneezing and feverish person we do what we can to stop the spread of any bugs to the baby calf. Since no one has been able to litter box train a cow yet, manure happens and as you can imagine manure can carry said bugs.
A third reason we take over and one that will resonate with any mother who has nursed her child…. Calves are born with teeth and they are sharp! When a calf is hungry they will wander up to their mother and take their cute little heads and punch their mother’s udder with it to get them to let down their milk. I am not certain why a cow is designed to reward bad behavior but they are. Then the calf with start to suckle, teeth and all. While a beef cow’s udder is more built for this kind of thing a dairy cow’s udder just doesn’t handle the abuse as well.
So after the calf is born and we have moved the calf to her own hutch, her mother will be milked. This milk is called colostrum, it is thick and sticky and is full of maternal antibodies that will help the new calf build a strong immune system. Before the calf is given the colostrum, on our farm, we use a product called Ecolizer. It’s an oral dose of antibodies that will help her build immunity specifically to the e.coli bacteria.
This is what the tube looks like. Ecolizer is made by Novartis and I have seen an improvement in overall calf health since I started using it.
After the calf has a chance to absorb the Ecolizer, it’s time to eat!
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Finish reading the original post and learn more about what the calf eats and how Carrie ensures a healthy life for her cattle at the Dairy Carrie blog.
Have you ever visited a dairy? Did any of your relatives have dairy cattle? What concerns do you have about producing milk?
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Ryan Goodman lives in Helena, Montana, but grew up on a family cattle ranch in Arkansas. He has spent the last several years learning about farming systems across the country, living in Oklahoma, Texas, Wyoming and Tennessee. He is a proud Animal Science graduate of Oklahoma State University and has completed graduate level research at the University of Tennessee, focusing on beef cattle reproduction and nutrition. Outside of advocacy, Ryan is a novice runner, with goals of accomplishing his first Marathon in 2016, and enjoys refueling with a good steak. #TeamBeef!
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