As spring looms ever closer, we fast approach the influx of the next generation of calves on farm. Replacement heifers born over the next few weeks will calve down in February 2027, become the herds mature stalwart cows of 2030 and the influence we can have on the beginning of their lives will long be felt regarding longevity, milk production, and overall herd health.

Year on year we will discuss, read and write about 3-2-1 rules and how important colostrum management is. Yet conversations still arise around how best to avoid scour outbreaks in sheds, anti-scour remedies etc., and as we face into another spring a back-to-basics approach should be taken with colostrum.

Get the basics right

Its important to remember that the calf’s first opportunity for infection is via its navel or mouth – and its first contact from both will happen in the calving pen. Cows’ underbelly, teats and calving pen bedding become the first source of possible infection for a new-born calf. Hence the importance of good dry cow cubicle management. Prolonged time spent in calving areas are often a key issue with disease transfer in herds, especially where unhygienic conditions as also a factor. From here, all feed equipment must be disinfected before colostrum is collected and fed. Dirt contamination of colostrum is now known to have a negative effect on passive transfer and therefore cleanliness of the collection process is vital.

Storage is also imperative – it is an all-too-common sight to see open buckets of colostrum in the parlour/dairy – and where ambient conditions arise, bacterial counts can double every 20 minutes. A dam-to-calf systems is obviously the ideal, however during extremely compact calving periods this can sometimes be difficult to obtain. Colostrum quality will vary massively between cows depending on age/parity, volume produced, dry period length, and dry cow nutrition, etc.  If we can avoid pooling and use a 1-cow to 1-calf option. At the very least where pooling occurs colostrum must be Brix tested to avoid dilution happening with poor quality colostrum.

Vaccination of the dam is also a key consideration to help reduce risks around calf health. However, it is worth noting, that passive transfer from a vaccine only occurs from dam-calf via colostrum and transition milk, so all of the above applies to get full coverage from vaccinating the herd.

Research has shown where passive transfer is 100% successful mortality rates of <5% is achievable, in stark contrast where passive transfer rates of 85-90% is achieved, mortality rates can increase to ~ 8%.
Treat colostrum management with the respect and attention it deserves.

Many herds are currently engaged in drying off cows, as the focus shifts towards dry cow management across most farms. It’s also  important to consider nutrition plans when cows calve down this coming Spring, accounting for the following:

• A planned and well executed dry cow mineral programme.
• Calving down the cow in the correct Body Condition Scoring (BCS).
• Excellent animal husbandry in the week pre-and post-calving (no additional stressors).
• Careful transition diet planning.

Given how silage quality in many cases was hampered due to poor growth and weather, do you have sufficient high-quality forage available for when cows calve down come Spring 2025? If not, what’s your back-up plan?

Negative Energy Balance (NEB)

In the week post calving, cows produce more milk than their feed intake can provide for, resulting in Body Condition loss due to Negative Energy Balance (NEB). Typically, a cow reaches peak milk output 6-8 weeks post-calving but will only reach peak dry matter intake 10-12 weeks after calving. Such a cow’s diet must be energy dense enough to ensure body weight loss of less than 0.5 BCS between calving and breeding.

Dry matter intake typically increases by 0.75 – 1.0 kg/week post-calving, underlining the need for an energy-dense transition diet. This can prove difficult to control where silage quality is poor. In such a scenario, farmers must be prepared to fill the gap; otherwise, production will be compromised in the short-term, while in the longer-term, issues including poor fertility could be evident by May. Adequate concentrate supplement, depending on milk output, is paramount, with high energy grazed grass forming an essential diet component.

Monitoring NEB

• Low milk protein %: when energy is restricted in the diet – often caused by poor quality silage, delayed turnout and/or insufficient supplementation levels relative to cow output.
• Body condition loss across the herd (<25% of cows with a >0.5 unit of BCS loss in early lactation).
• A bulk tank milk fat: protein ratio > 1.4 (calculated by dividing the milk fat % by milk protein %); signals poor energy balance in the herd’s diet where compact calving occurs.

For more information, contact your local Agritech Sales Advisor here.

For spring calving herds, the end of the lactation is approaching so some important decisions need to be made to hopefully ensure a stress-free start to 2025.

Milk recording

Four milk recordings a year should be carried out to make better informed decisions all year round. A final milk recording should be organised close to the onset of drying off (ideally within 30 days), to help assist in decisions around selective dry cow therapy.

BCS

Best practise is to dry off cows at, or close to, the same condition she should calve down in (Target 3.0 – 3.25). Therefore, nutrition of the dry cow should centre around maintenance over 60 days. Thin cows should be prioritised for early drying off to assist in the recouperation of condition. Where large variation in a herd arises with BCS, batching accordingly and making a tailored plan is advisable.

Silage analysis

Nutrition depends on what silage quality (and quantity), is available in the yard, therefore silage analysis is crucial. High quality silage will need dilution with straw/hay to avoid over-conditioning. Additional energy sources through concentrates may also be required, where quality is poor.

Where ongoing issues occur with milk fever, retained afterbirth and/or slow calvings, a silage mineral analysis will establish Potassium (K) % in the silage being offered to dry cows. K levels > 1.8% can cause issues. Preventative plans can then be put in place.

Selecting a dry cow mineral

Feeding high quality dry cow mineral for 60 days is central to a cow calving down without issue next Spring. Most Irish silage lacks the mineral levels required by the cow and therefore requires balancing. Using a highly soluble source of Magnesium is essential to overcoming any milk fever risks; this should be coupled with the inclusion of complimentary Phosphorus, a high inclusion of chelated/protected trace elements to overcome antagonists, and a strong all-round vitamin pack (A, D3 & E).

For more information, contact your local Agritech Sales Advisor here.

In the weeks post-calving, cows will produce more milk than their feed intake can provide for, resulting in Body Condition loss due to Negative Energy Balance. A cow typically reaches peak milk output 6-8 weeks post-calving but will only reach peak dry matter intake 10-12 weeks after calving. However, the success of breeding 2024 is mainly dictated by the severity and duration of this period of NEB during the weeks post-calving.

NEB will firstly appear in the form of low milk protein % in the short term and in the more long-term have detrimental consequences on fertility during the breeding season. The overall objective is to have calved down the cow at a BCS of 3.25 and maintain an average herd BCS of 3.0 (range 2.75 – 3.25) at the start of breeding, to achieve optimal fertility.

Keeping body condition loss to less than 0.5 BCS between calving and breeding has proven to significantly increase the likelihood of conception to first service, with cows that lost <0.5 body condition score between calving and breeding typically shown to ovulate 15 days sooner, than cows which lost >1 BCS.

In very practical terms, this means bridging and filling the energy gap between what the cow outputs relative to what is put into her in regard to feed. Forage quality (which is lower in many cases after the difficult 2023 silage season) and getting high quality grass into the diet will be the main dictating factors here.

After this, most of the energy deficit will have to be filled via concentrates in the parlour, with milk output coupled with silage analysis and ability to get to grass, dictating feeding rates this spring.

For more information, contact your local Agritech Sales Advisor.