The Milk Producer - June 2010 - (Page 22)

NATIONALPOLICY By Dan Weary and Jeffrey Rushen Off to a great start Ensuring your new calves get adequate high-quality colostrum enhances health nsuring your calves receive enough high-quality colostrum soon after birth can have major positive effects on their health and well-being. Colostrum contains antibodies, the main protection against diseases, and essential nutrients. Antibodies, known as immunoglobulins (Ig), are large molecules the calf absorbs into its blood through a process called passive transfer. Ig obtained this way protect the calf until its own immune system becomes fully functional at three to six weeks of age. Also, the essential nutrients in colostrum contain many growth factors that help the newborn calf develop. While these benefits have been known for decades, surveys still report large numbers of dairy calves receive inadequate colostrum. Recent Ontario surveys, for example, suggest between 25 and 38 per cent of dairy calves suffer from failed passive transfer. To help address this issue, the new Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Dairy Cattle requires you to give calves at least four litres of good quality colostrum within 12 hours of birth. They should get their first meal as soon as possible—no more than six hours after birth. The first colostrum feeding is particularly important since a calf’s ability to absorb colostrum is reduced six to eight hours after it is born. The code also includes these best practices: • Feed colostrum supplements. A calf can often nurse when kept with the 22 | June 2010 | MilkPRODUCER E check colostrum quality using a colostrometer; • Use good hygiene practices when collecting, storing and feeding colostrum. As with other milk products, colostrum quality can decline rapidly when poor hygiene practices during collection and storage result in bacterial contamination. This greatly reduces the colostrum’s value to the calf; • Routinely measure Ig status in calves, and feed colostrum to achieve a blood serum Ig concentration of 10 milligrams per millilitre. Several factors can cause passive transfer failure. Directly measuring Ig concentrations in young calves effectively tells you whether you have a problem. Some producers now use bonuses or other incentives to motivate employees to monitor blood Ig concentrations and meet these targets. Code of Practice requires at least four We would like to hear your litres within 12 hours of birth. views on the Code of Practice’s requirements for colostrum feedcow, but timing and quantity of ing, and hear about the practices you colostrum intake varies, with some use to promote passive transfer of Ig. calves ingesting no colostrum within You can participate in the University 12 hours. Supplement calves with of British Columbia’s online discuscolostrum even when they suckle to sion of this issue by visiting: ensure they get the four L within 12 www.yourviews.ubc.ca/colostrum. hours as required; • Check quality with a colostrometer. Although colostrum quality Dr. Daniel Weary is a professor at the University of British Columbia, and Dr. varies greatly among cows, a recent Jeffrey Rushen is a research scientist at survey of Quebec dairy farmers found none routinely checked it. the Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. However, you can quickly and easily http://www.yourviews.ubc.ca/colostrum

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Milk Producer - June 2010

The Milk Producer - June 2010
Contents
Editor's Notes
DFO_Vice-Chair's Message
Dairy Update
DFC Policy
Industry RoundUp
DFC Promotion
Research
Applied Science
Ruminations
Markets
New'N'Noted
Back Forty

The Milk Producer - June 2010