Raising a calf: methods, tips for breeding and keeping. Diet of calves, characteristics and features of breeds

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Now more and more people leave the big cities and go to the outback. The settlers want to engage in agriculture, but they still do not know how to do much. For example, it is not uncommon when a cow gave birth, and the owner does not know what to do with the offspring. Calves are raised by different methods, but in order to choose the best method for yourself, it is better to familiarize yourself with all existing ones.

Birth of a calf

By the time of the birth of the cow, the owners must prepare. It would be better if the owners take the day off. Most often, a cow does not need help with a hotel, but it is better to play it safe. Sometimes childbirth takes place with complications, and here you can not do without the help of the owners and the veterinarian.

If everything goes well and the fetus is positioned correctly, the cow will cope in 40-60 minutes. In first-calf heifers, the process may be slower. Soon after the waters break, the hooves are shown, and then the head. A woman in labor can rest a little, after a contraction she spits out of herselffruit completely. The cow licks the baby, and the farmer either leaves him with her or takes him away.

If there are complications in childbirth, it is advisable to call a doctor. Sometimes a too large calf gets stuck, then it needs to be pulled out in an attempt. In case of any complications, you need to hurry, as the death of the fetus in the birth canal is possible.

Growth periods

The development of cattle can be divided into periods. Raising a calf at different points in life has its own characteristics. The first period is the newborn. This is the most difficult moment in the life of the baby, because his connection with his mother is completed, and he must begin to live on his own. For a calf to be successful in rearing, it must be given colostrum to drink within the first hour of birth.

The second period of development is milky. This is the time of watering, in different farms it lasts from 2 to 9 months. Sometimes calves stop giving milk a little earlier or a little later. The next period of development is the time of puberty. It starts from 9-10 months. During this period, the animal is preparing for the future insemination procedure, its genitals are finally formed. At this time, bulls and heifers should not be mated yet.

Then comes the period of final maturation. It ends by 1.5-2 years. At this time, offspring can already be obtained from animals. After a period of maturity begins, which ends by 10 years. A cow with 8-9th calving is already considered old. Bulls in farms are also rarely used for more than 10 years. Butsome owners meet cows carrying the 15th or 17th pregnancy. The division by periods of calf rearing is very conditional, there is no unequivocal opinion on their exact beginning and end.

Keeping calves under the cow

For beginners, this method seems the easiest, but it has its own characteristics. With this method of rearing the calf, the calf remains under the cow. It is very convenient for the owner that the baby is always full, well-groomed and supervised. There are practically no worries with the suckling method of rearing a calf.

However, this method has its drawbacks. The cow understands that the calf needs milk, not the mistress. Very often cows begin to resist milking, overturn the bucket, drive away the owners with their horns. Even after weaning a calf, a cow may hold on to milk for a long time. Sometimes this leads to mastitis.

The suckling method of keeping a calf is of little use for high-yielding cows. If a cow gives 20, 30, 40 liters of milk, then no cub can drink it. Then the cow will either reduce milk yield or get sick. In the first case, the owners will lose at least half of the profit from the sale of products, in the second case, they will seriously spend on treatment. By the way, when calves are suckled, the shape of the udder of a cow deteriorates, its ligaments are stretched. Such an animal is much more likely to be injured in grazing.

Cold method

This method is more often used for beef cattle, but is sometimes used in dairy farming. cold methodraising calves is to keep them in special houses in the open air. After the birth, the baby is given a little time to dry. After this process is completed, the calf is sent to its personal home.

The weather doesn't play a role here, that's why the method is called cold. There is no heater in the house, only a layer of large sawdust or straw. Calves raised in this way are usually in good he alth. Their diet should be more nutritious than that of the kids on the farm, so more often there is an earlier accustoming to grain. If the farmer sticks to the traditional feeding system, then the cost of milk increases greatly.

It has been observed that cold-raised calves are much less likely to get colds. They also almost never have vitamin D deficiency.

Manual traditional method

This method is the second most popular after suction. When raising dairy calves on it, they are either immediately placed in a separate fence, or left with their mother for a week or two. The owner feeds the calves himself, either from a bottle with a teat, or from a bowl or bucket.

The first 10 days of a calf's life is given milk 5-6 times. After the kids are transferred to 4 meals a day, in this mode they live up to 1 month. Then the frequency of feeding is again reduced to 3 times. For the first 10 days of raising a calf, only milk is offered to him. After this age, with a traditional food system, he is given a drink or liquid oatmeal.

In 3 weeksthe calf is offered a handful of crushed grain, most often barley. After a month, vegetables are introduced into the diet: potatoes, fodder beets, pumpkin, zucchini. If calving occurred in spring or summer, then after 2-3 weeks the baby is often kicked out to graze with his mother.

Experience from large farms

Modern dairy farms use different methods of rearing calves than the rural ones. Livestock experts recommend accustoming future cows to grain as early as possible. This is done for faster and more complete development of the scar in heifers. It is also important to save milk, because farms sell it to factories.

Immediately after birth, the calf is placed away from its mother in a separate house. During the first hour of life, it must be drunk with colostrum ad libitum. In total, during the day, the calf should drink at least 2-4 liters of it, depending on its weight. On the 3-4th day, the baby begins to offer compound feed and limit the amount of milk. This is done so that he shows interest in dry food. This is how calves are raised and kept on farms.

From the 6th to the 10th day of life, the baby is given feed ad libitum and 5-6 liters of milk. From the 11th to the 40th day of life, the calf is fed 6-8 liters. From the 41st to the 50th day, the baby receives 5 liters. From the 50th to the 60th, drinking is reduced to 4 liters. After 2 months on most farms, calves do not receive milk.

All this time, starting from the 3-4th day, the kids are offered compound feed. They can eat as much as they want. Usually, by 2 months of life, heifers consume up to 2-2.5 kilogramscompound feed.

Features of calves of meat and dairy breeds

Animals of different orientations were bred each for their own purposes. Dairy cattle show excellent milk productivity, but they are not very suitable for fattening. Of course, you can send Holstein cows for slaughter, but there will be little meat in them. Such animals are much more profitable to keep for milk production. It is also more profitable to keep meat breeds for fattening, because why is there a cow on the farm that gives 5-6 liters? She will eat more than the owner will earn from the products received from her.

Therefore, meat-type calves are more often raised for fattening. They are offered more high-calorie food and expect high gains from them. Raising calves of dairy breeds implies their earlier accustoming to concentrated nutrition. Future cows are not overfed, because of this they can go into the meat type.

Ration for rearing a heifer per cow

In dairy farming, special attention is paid to the early development of the rumen in animals. Heifers, which are raised for cows, are introduced into the diet from the 3rd day of life. Up to 6 months, its volume is not particularly limited. Hay is offered to future cows at 60-90 days. After six months, feed is usually reduced to 2-2.5 kg per day, this is done so that the heifer does not get fat. They keep this ration until coverage.

Diet for raising a bull for fattening

Male calves are allowed to drink more milk than girls. Bychkov usually lateraccustomed to the grain, and they eat it with less willingness. Milk can be given even up to a year, if possible, but after 2-3 months, the entire daily allowance of the calf is given at a time. A month or two before slaughter, the bull is fed mainly with carbohydrate food, this is done to increase weight gain.