Managing the transition for dairy-beef calves going to grass in Ireland

Published 2024년 5월 25일

Tridge summary

Dairy-beef farm farmers are encouraged to manage the transition of calves from milk to grass effectively to prevent summer scour syndrome, a condition that can lead to weight loss and death in calves. This syndrome is characterized by the sudden onset of scour, mouth ulceration, blindness, and death. To prevent it, farmers should ensure calves are properly weaned and confidently eating at least 2kg of concentrates and adequate roughage daily. For a week or two post-weaning, calves should be kept indoors and concentrates fed twice a day. High levels of roughage and fiber should be maintained in their diet at grass, and they should be introduced to stemmy, older grasses for a few weeks post-turnout. Concentrates with additives to aid rumination can also be used. In case of scour or setbacks, farmers are advised to consult their vet and consider taking a dung sample from the calves to rule out coccidiosis or heavy worm burden.
Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

Calves have been weaned off milk and have gone out to grass on many dairy-beef farms across the country by now. Managing this transition effectively is essential to ensure continued good performance and weight gain from calves in a dairy calf to beef operation. The transition from the shed out to the field is a significant change for calves and they should be closely monitored after turnout. Getting calves used to fences will be the first challenge at turnout, but another issue which has become more common in recent years, is summer scour in calves. Agriland recently caught up with ABP Food Group’s Advantage Beef Programme farm liaison team leader, Amie Coonan, to hear how farmers involved in the processors’ sustainability initiative are managing to mitigate the risk of a summer scour outbreak, avoiding the risk of the subsequent ill thrift and loss in performance caused by the disease. She explained: “Summer scour syndrome is a relatively new issue on farms causing the sudden ...
Source: AgriLand

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