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Calf & Heifer Special Edition Changing calf program reaps benets

March 23, 2019

Valley Hill Farm calving in rst group-raised heifers By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com

KENDALL, Wis. – What started as an idea to try out over two years ago is now reaping benets for Brian Friske and Jeannie Jones. In November 2016, the two made the decision to make dramatic changes in the calf-rearing program at Friske’s Valley Hill Farm near Kendall, Wis. Valley Hill Farm is home to about 60 Holstein and Jersey milk cows. Friske is the third generation of his family to operate the farm, and his daughter, Cylee, 13, is the fourth generation to help care for the family’s dairy herd. Jones, a long-time friend and neighbor of the Friske family, has been raising calves on Friske’s farm for the past ve years. She brought several cows into the herd with her when her family sold their cows. “I went to a couple of calf raising conferences and learned that statistically it’s being found that raising calves in groups is the way to go,” Jones said. “That goes against everything we were raised with, that you shouldn’t ever let the calves come in contact with each other.” While Friske and Jones were intrigued with the ideas gained from the conferences, they were still hesitant to jump into a management system that went against everything they had

DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

Brian Friske (from leŌ) and his daughter, Cylee, along with Jeannie Jones, stand next to a group of 2-year-old cows at Valley Hill Farm near Kendall, Wis. They transiƟoned the 60-cow farm’s calf raising program just over two years ago and are calving in the rst group of 2-year-olds raised in groups with great successes. always been taught about raising calves. “We decided to start with just a few to see how it went,” Jones said. “We actually started with feeding milk in troughs instead of the group feeders.” It did not take long for the two

to become sold on the idea of raising calves in groups. They made the switch from the troughs to the group feeders and have not looked back since. “We found that the calves were so much more aggressive at drinking with the competition,” Jones said. “They were also way more aggressive with their starter intake.” Prior to moving to group housing, calves were raised in hutches on Friske’s farm. Now, calves are moved to Jones’ farm down the road from Friske’s. In the winter months, calves are moved at 2 weeks; in the summer, they are moved at 3 days. The groups of ve calves are fed milk replacer until about 2 to 2.5 months, depending on the group, and are offered free-choice water and calf starter at all times. Jones began adding apple cider vinegar to the milk replacer when she began group feeding. “We just don’t see scours,” Jones said. After weaning, the calves stay in their same groups until they move back to Friske’s farm at about 6 to 7 months PHOTO SUBMITTED of age. “We tried bringing them back at 5 Calves from Brian Friske’s Valley Hill Farm drink milk from a group feeder. They months, but found that they don’t take are now raised on Jeannie Jones’ neighboring farm in small groups and fed with off as well as they do being a little group feeders. older,” Friske said. When the calves return to the home

farm, they are fed one of three heifer TMR mixes that they stay on until they enter the milking herd. “They all grow up together, and when the groups get combined it doesn’t seem to be as stressful for them because they are still with calves they’ve been with from the beginning,” Jones said. At the same time they made the move to group housing, Friske and Jones decided to remove hay from their calves’ diets until they reach 3 months of age. Prior to making the change to group housing, calves were offered hay in their hutches. “I probably changed too many things at once to really pinpoint what made the biggest difference,” Jones said. “They don’t get hay bellies as much as what we used to see.” Friske and Jones have found that the group-raised calves are ready to breed earlier than the calves raised in individual housing. They are now breeding their heifers at 12-13 months. Before changing their calf-raising program, they were breeding heifers at 15-16 months of age. Changing from traditional calfraising methods caused raised eyebrows among some of their farming neighbors and friends. Turn to GROUP-RAISED | Page 4

Page 2 • Dairy Star Special Edition • Saturday, March 23, 2019

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Dairy Star Special Edition • Saturday, March 23, 2019 • Page 3

Knowledge is power in lowering calf mortality Calfhood birth, death data provide tools

www.dairystar.com

522 Sinclair Lewis Ave. Sauk Centre, MN 56378 Phone: (320) 352-6303 Fax: (320) 352-5647 General Manager/Editor Mark Klaphake - mark.k@dairystar.com 320-352-6303 (ofce) 320-248-3196 (cell) 320-352-0062 (home) Ad Composition Nancy Powell 320-352-6303 nancy.p@dairystar.com Amanda Thooft 320-352-6303 amanda.t@dairystar.com Consultant Jerry Jennissen 320-346-2292 Editorial Staff Andrea Borgerding - Associate Editor (320) 352-6303 • andrea.b@dairystar.com Krista Kuzma - Assistant Editor (507) 259-8159 • krista.k@dairystar.com Jennifer Coyne - Assistant Editor (320) 352-6303 • jenn@dairystar.com Ruth Klossner (507) 240-0048 cowlady@centurylink.net Danielle Nauman (608) 487-1101 danielle.n@dairystar.com Danna Sabolik - Staff Writer (320) 352-6303 • danna.s@dairystar.com Maria Bichler - Copy Editor 320-352-6303

By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com

MADISON, Wis. – In the eyes of Dr. Franklyn Garry, D.V.M., keeping records and data about both birth and death events of all calves, and then utilizing that data, is key to successfully raising healthy, well-grown calves. He shared his thoughts on tracking and using this information during a presentation at the PDPW Business Conference March 13-14 in Madison, Wis. Garry is as a Colorado State Extension Specialist and is a veterinarian with the Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. Recently, he published a paper in the American Dairy Science Association’s Journal of Dairy Science with several colleagues about the use of calfhood birth certicate data and death loss categorization. “The dairy industry has a horrible track record of not keeping track of important data in animal health in general and baby calves in particular,” Garry said. “There is value in information, and if you’re going to take the time to keep the information, you need to use the information. You use the information by comparing things that inform you about how you can do better in the future.” Tracking the issues that cause calfhood loss and looking for similarities in those calves before the loss occurs allows dairy farmers to look at the overall scope of their calfrearing program. This allows producers to nd places where improvements can be made to potentially cut their calf mortality rate. “You can set targets using the metrics,” Garry said. “It’s very achievable to cut calf losses from a 10 percent mortality rate to a 1 to 2 percent mortality rate between birth to weaning. It’s very achievable.”

DAIRY ST R

DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

Dr. Franklyn Garry shares the importance of collecƟng birth data and how to use it to determine the cause of calf loss to prevent future recurrences at the PDPW Business Conference March 13-14 in Madison, Wis. According to Garry, producers need to know not only what happens when a calf dies but also what happens at the birth of a calf. Those two sets of data work together in helping determine what caused the death of a calf and what can be done to possibly prevent future losses. Calfhood birth certicates should contain basic information such as the calf and dam identication, breed and sex of calf and date of birth. In addition, the birth certicate needs to include information about the birth that is known but not typically recorded, such as the location where the birth took place, number of calves born and the dystocia score. “I like a three-point dystocia score because it’s easy,” Garry said. “Natural delivery, easy pull or hard pull and everything else; the easier the scoring system, the more likely people are

going to rely on it.” Other descriptors of the birth event that can be overlooked include recording the birth weight, environmental temperature and the use of newborn procedures such as treating navels. “Those things relate to death losses,” Garry said. “If there is a series of calves that die, now I have data where I can ask questions. Did most of the calves that suffered from this condition also have dystocia? If that would be true, producers can look at avoiding dystocia and how calves are delivered in dystocia.” Garry also encourages not only recording birth weights but weaning weights as well to determine the average daily rate of gain. He uses the Turn to CALF MORTALITY | Page 4

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ConƟnued from CALF MORTALITY | Page 3

“A lot of people said we’d end up with a bunch of three-quartered heifers because of sucking,” Jones said. “We haven’t had any problems so far. They do suck some, but after they are weaned they quit on their own.” The rst group of calves raised using the group housing and feeding are calving in, and both Friske and Jones are excited with what they are seeing. They have 12 heifers that are about 50 to 60 days in milk, and another ve springing to calve soon. “They look so much nicer; their udders are beautiful,” Friske said. “They are milking tremendously, averaging 85 pounds on their second test, up from 82 pounds on their rst test. The overall rolling herd average is at about 26,000 pounds.” Friske has been happy with how this group of heifers have calved in and transitioned into the milking herd with minimal issues. “We haven’t had any issues with DAs, no ketosis, no problems with them going off feed,” Friske said. The herd is fed a ration of corn silage, haylage, high-moisture ear corn, and a protein and mineral mix, balanced for 85 pounds. When selecting the genetics to use in the herd, both Friske and Jones place emphasis on the dam’s performance, particularly on her components. Feet and legs are important to Friske as well. “If they have bad feet and legs, they aren’t going to stay here,” Friske said. “They just aren’t going to last.” In the past, they have utilized A.I. for the entire herd. However, recently they have used a bull for the heifers and to settle some cows that were having breeding issues. As a cost-saving measure, they have decided to raise a couple of bulls out of their best cows to use for the entire herd. Doing everything they can to help foster a successful future for their own operation and the dairy industry is important to Friske and Jones. Each year they supply six to eight area FFA and Wisconsin Junior Holstein Association members with project calves and take them to the Elroy and Juneau county fairs. Last summer they hosted the Monroe County Dairy Breakfast, sharing the farm with over 2,500 visitors. “It’s a way of life,” Friske said. “We have to love what we’re doing to keep on doing it. We just keep working to gure out how to continue doing it.”

target of 2 to 2.5 pounds per day. “Healthy calves gain weight,” he said. “There’s power in that. If you have a baby calf that is sick, it won’t gain weight. If you have a calf that you are underfeeding, which predisposes it to disease, it won’t gain weight. ... But, few people in the dairy industry actually track that. No one pays attention to the details of good health. It’s not that you aren’t taking care of your calves, it’s that you’re not looking at the things that will help you do a better job in the future. That’s why we do the birth certicate.” Checking serum proteins routinely at 24, 48 and 72 hours after birth is a practice Garry recommends to help track the quality of colostrum and the strength of immunity calves receive. This serves as another data tool to help improve a dairy’s calf-raising program. “If serum protein is high in a 2- or 3-day-old calf, it must have gotten pretty good colostrum,” Garry said. “If it’s only moderate, I can look back through my checklist and try to determine why. If they don’t have enough serum protein, aside from the Immunoglobulin effect, it also means they didn’t get the benets of colostrum in other ways. Colostrum provides them … warmth, uid, energy, protein, copper, micro-nutrients, vitamins, all the stuff that can’t transfer across the placenta.” Having a record-keeping system that tracks all of this birth and early-life information gives dairy farmers data to evaluate what can be improved upon in their calving management. The study categorized calf death loss into 15 categories: congenital defects; stillbirth following a normal birth; perinatal death; stillbirth following difcult calving, dystocia; calving problems; septicemia; respiratory and diarrhea; diarrhea; other digestive; respiratory; joint or navel; lameness or injury; accident; other known reasons; and unknown reasons. Garry encourages dairy producers to learn to necropsy calves that die on their farms themselves because a veterinarian may not be able to perform the procedure within an adequate time period. While not all necropsies will result in samples sent to a laboratory for testing, the visual inspection will often

times work with the data to help determine a cause of death. Photographs allows images to be captured to share with a veterinarian at a later time if further information is needed. “My goal here is for you to go home and say, ‘You know, I can do this,’” Garry said. “That’s why we’re providing these tools. Giving someone the tools and knowledge to make a change, that is what makes me passionate about educating.”

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DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR

Dr. Franklyn Garry demonstrates how to perform a calf necropsy in order to determine the cause of death in calves at the PDPW Business Conference held March 13-14 in Madison, Wis.

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Dairy Star Special Edition • Saturday, March 23, 2019 • Page 5

Gut health sets the stage for future performance By Brittany Olson Contributing Writer

BALSAM LAKE, Wis. – A dairy cow’s roadmap to her milking career does not begin when she has her rst calf. Instead, the journey begins the moment she takes her rst breath outside the womb. With every new calf, dairy farmers are given a blank slate to begin building her road to success. However, that blank slate – an undeveloped immune system – can present challenges if not treated PHOTO SUBMITTED properly, according to dairy calf and Jade Baerg is a dairy calf and heifer heifer consultant Jade Baerg of Balsam consultant from Balsam Lake, Wis. Lake, Wis. “Calves’ immune systems rely said. “The rumen needs both water and on the antibodies from colostrum for starter to digest and ferment the feed about the rst 3 weeks of life until their before it is utilized, so feeding warm immune system begins to work on its water (80-105 degrees Fahrenheit) is critical for starter intake and rumen own,” Baerg said. Baerg said proper feeding development. A high fat milk diet strategies and gut development are typically leads to hindered starter key to having a healthy calf that will intake as well, which is why most milk replacers have between 10 and 20 develop into a productive cow. “We describe the health of a calf percent fat.” Most dairies wean calves at 8 weeks as a triad which is comprised of the cleanliness of the environment, the of age; however, Baerg said there are hosts’ ability to respond to threats, and critical benchmarks for calves to meet the type and severity of threats,” she so they do not encounter a growth slump at weaning time after shifting said. If any one aspect of the triad is gears from life as a monogastric animal not functioning properly, the calf can to life as a ruminant, such as doubling become sick, need treatment and be of birth weight by weaning time and an average daily gain of 1.8 pounds per less productive as a mature cow. “That’s why we, as an industry, day. Baerg recommended a step-down have been shifting our focus to the microbiome of the calf,” Baerg said. approach to feeding milk leading up “If we feed the microbiome with good to weaning over a period of 10 to 14 bacteria to overwhelm the harmful days to train the calf to consume more bacteria, we can stack the deck in our water and dry feed while decreasing favor to have a healthier calf [and cow] the volume of milk being fed. “Typically, we see trouble at throughout their life.” With 80 percent of the immune weaning when we don’t set calves up system living within the digestive to wean successfully,” Baerg said. The Dairy Calf and Heifer tract, quality maternal colostrum from the calf’s dam is ideal to get Association measures a successful the calf going in the right direction. weaning period by indicators such as And, while a calf is born with four a respiratory morbidity less than 10 stomach compartments, only one is percent, scours morbidity less than 2 truly functional at birth, which is the percent, death loss less than 2 percent and a post-weaning average daily gain abomasum. “The rumen and reticulum are of 2.0 to 2.4 pounds per day. “Avoiding those setbacks is undeveloped and basically sterile until the calf comes in contact with bacterial a combination of multiple factors organisms,” Baerg said. “The rst including feed intake, pre-weaning thing that calf ingests is going to be the health, colostrum effectiveness and rst bacteria to begin colonizing the the transition period from milk to dry feed,” Baerg said. “Calves should be rumen and digestive tract.” As the calf grows, it will begin to eating at least three pounds of dry feed develop it’s gut even more by eating per day [before weaning], and it takes calf starter which will ll the digestive about a quarter pound of dry feed in the rumen to truly allow development tract with volatile fatty acids. Baerg said 2.25 pounds of milk to begin.” Baerg said the rumen continues to dry matter should be fed per day to allow calves to receive the nutrients grow and develop to be able to digest necessary for maintenance, growth, feed and maintain the calf without immune system development and milk. “These goals are attainable if mammary gland development. In the absence of adequate milk dry the calf is set up from day one to be matter, mammary gland development healthy and grow,” she said. Feeding high quality and clean and growth rates can be hindered, which has been proven to reduce colostrum, maintaining dry matter and milk yield in the rst and consecutive water intake, and keeping calves clean and dry from the moment they are lactations, Baerg said. “Dry feed intake is driven by water born are critical to building a healthy, intake, and vice versa, as well as the high performing dairy cow even with a percent of fat in the milk diet,” she sterile gut as a blank slate.

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Is whole milk perfect for calves? Maybe not. WHOLE TRUTH MILK

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According to the National Research Council (NRC)1 and the U.S. Department of Agriculture,2 whole milk is deﬁcient in many vitamins and minerals needed for proper calf growth and development. PERCENTAGE OF NRC-RECOMMENDED1 TRACE MINERALS AND VITAMINS IN WHOLE MILK

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Whole milk has been the gold standard in calf feeding for many generations. When it comes to whole milk feeding, it can be hard to distinguish facts from ﬁction. But one fact holds true – you expect your calves to perform. Whole milk can lack thee necessary vitamins, minerals and optimal al protein-to-fat ratio your calves need to meet eet modern-day performance demands. Calves are expected to achieve weaning growth goals sooner, have faster rumen development ment and grow more efﬁciently. These expectations tions are beyond what whole milk alone can provide. ovide. Incorporating new technologies into the lactating actating total mixed ration is commonplace – it’s time ime to look at whole milk through the same lens ns to help your calves get the right nutrition at the right time, every time.

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To calculate the protein-to-fat ratio, divide the percent of protein by percent of fat. For example, whole milk with 28 percent protein and 28 percent fat would have a protein-to-fat ratio of 1.0. National Research Council. 2001. Nutrient Requirements of Dairy Cattle. 7th ed. Natl. Acad. Press, Washington, DC. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. 2008. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 21. Nutrient Data Laboratory Home Page, http://www.ars.usda.gov/ba/bhnrc/ndl.

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Dairy Star Special Edition • Saturday, March 23, 2019 • Page 7

Research catered to the everyday dairy SROC focuses on nutrition, housing of young calves By Jennifer Coyne jenn@dairystar.com

WASECA, Minn. – For the last 16 years, Dr Hugh Chester-Jones, David Ziegler and colleagues have conducted extensive research on dairy heifer calf performance in an effort to provide the most useful information to dairy farmers. As the industry evolves, Ziegler is hopeful their work will remain relevant in the years ahead. “We understand that there are areas of calf and heifer

nutrition that need renement,” Ziegler said. “We’re always listening to producer’s questions, wanting to provide answers to current issues.” Ziegler is the lead scientist at the calf and heifer site of the University of Minnesota Southern Research and Outreach Center in Waseca, Minn. He manages the day-today operations of the facility. In 2003, SROC entered into a partnership with Hubbard Feeds, of Mankato, Minn., to build calf facilities and do research on calf nutrition and health. The center

has worked with dairy farmers in southern Minnesota, using their youngstock to complete studies as well as serve as a custom heifer raiser. As of late, the center has placed a greater emphasis on colostrum management and reviewing the use of feed additives in milk replacer to improve overall health and performance. This has allowed dairy farmers options to consider for their own operations so they are compliant with the Veterinary Turn to SROC | Page 8

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Heifers are housed in group pens at the University of Minnesota Southern Research and Outreach Center in Waseca, Minn. The animals are custom raised for two dairy farms in southern Minnesota and also used for research on heifer calf performance.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

David Ziegler is the lead scienƟst at the calf and heifer site of the University of Minnesota Southern Research and Outreach Center in Waseca, Minn.

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ConƟnued from SROC | Page 7 R

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Pre-weaned calves are housed in a group pen and fed with an automaƟc calf feeder at SROC in Waseca, Minn. The research facility raises about 1,000 calves annually, with 20 percent being raised on automaƟc feeders.

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Feed Directive and United States Food and Drug Administration rulings on antibiotic use. With each study, Ziegler and his colleagues work closely with veterinarians to design health programs that mimic the needs of the dairy industry. “Over the last 10 years, the industry has really changed,” Ziegler said. “We want to focus on reducing the number of vaccines used and reduce the use of antibiotics in the milk feeding phase.” The animals used in these studies come from two dairies in southern Minnesota – Bombay, of Kenyon, Minn., and Clay View Dairy, of Goodhue, Minn. Together, a total of 1,000 calves are raised at the research facility. “We use to collaborate with three dairies, but the number of calves going through the facility had increased beyond our capacity,” Ziegler said. Calves arrive at the research facility twice weekly, where they are comingled between the herds. On arrival to the center, calves are assigned to different studies based on weight and age. “Ideally, those chosen for studies are 75-105 pounds at 2-5 days old,” Ziegler said. “We try to keep the perimeter window narrow, so it’s as close to a commercial farm setting as possible.” For the small percentage of calves not included in the studies due to age and weight, or health issues that would not make them good candidates for the studies, they are fed and raised simply as a replacement calf. “In some cases, they could possibly be used in other studies, but it’s not likely,” Ziegler said. “Most of our studies follow up on results from the initial nursery research.” After the animals are evaluated on site, they are placed in the nursery and are housed in individual pens where they will remain for eight weeks. There are two naturally-ventilated barns, each having two rooms with 40 individual calf pens. About 20 percent of the calves are placed on an automatic calf feeder, which feeds two pens of 23 animals. Current studies evaluate alternatives for feeding antibiotics in milk replacer to promote intestinal health and performance of the young

animals in the nursery. “One of the areas we emphasize is for producers to know their costs of production, especially for the rst 6 months [of an animal’s life],” Ziegler said. “Often, the high milk feeding programs are expensive. We have seen good results from a balanced milk feeding program, which promotes good calf starter intake. That proves to be a more economical way to raise calves.” At 8 weeks, calves are moved from the nursery in an all-in, all-out manner and housed in one of two barns. One naturally-ventilated facility contains 20 group pens that are designed with 12by 25-foot dimensions, while a manurepack barn’s 20 pens are 15- by 30-feet. Both barns have 10 feet of concrete bunk space. Both facilities are used for studies, and are managed as a continuous ow with heifers leaving SROC at 6 months of age. “An important aspect we monitor is ensuring heifers are healthy when transitioning from individual to group pens, because we know this is a challenge many dairy operations struggle with,” Ziegler said. “On-going research looks at ways to improve this adjustment period.” The performance of each heifer calf on a research trial is monitored and recorded throughout their time at the university’s facility. Data is also collected once the animal returns to the dairy through their rst lactation. “This allows us to better understand the relationship between calf growth and health and lactation performance,” Ziegler said. “A met-analysis has been completed for 45 studies to evaluate the relationships between protein and energy consumed from milk replacer and starter and rst lactation milk production milk.” After the research site’s dairy herd was dispersed in 2003, nearly 100 calf studies have been conducted. The results are shared with colleagues and dairy farmers across the industry. Tours of the facility and layout of each housing structure are also available, said Ziegler. In the end, the goal is to be able to provide heifer raising options so dairy farmers may determine which is the best choice for their farm.

Dairy Star Special Edition • Saturday, March 23, 2019 • Page 9

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Page 10 • Dairy Star Special Edition • Saturday, March 23, 2019

Raising calves, kids

Even family raises youngstock for local dairy farmers By Jerry Nelson

jerry.n@dairystar.com

ELKTON, S.D. – For many dairy farmers, calf care is another chore in a long list of daily duties. But for Jeremy and Esther Even and their family, caring for calves is a livelihood. The Evens operate a thriving calf-raising business that caters to three local dairy farms near Elkton, S.D. As many as 3,000 head of heifer calves pass through the Even farm in one year. “My dad, Rick, crops farms and raises a few hogs,” Jeremy said. “When I was a kid, my Grandpa Bob had a herd of purebred Yorkshire hogs. I spent a lot of time at Grandpa’s place, caring for baby pigs and shoveling out pens.” Things began to change for Jeremy in 2000 when a large dairy moved into his neighborhood. “The dairy needed someone to raise their heifer calves, so Dad and I started a calf-raising business,” Jeremy said. Jeremy and Esther met while attending college in

JERRY NELSON/DAIRY STAR

The Even family (front, from leŌ) – Maddie, Esther and Jeremy; (back) Morgan and Anthony – owns a calf-raising operaƟon that handles up to 3,000 heifer calves each year near Elkton, S.D. Chicago, Ill. They got married in 2001 and now have a son, Anthony, 14, and two daughters, Maddie, 11, and Morgan, 5. “Jeremy was bucket feeding 50 baby calves the year that we got married,” Esther said. “I was a city girl who grew up in Albuquerque. I knew nothing about raising calves, but I rolled up my sleeves and tried to help him as much as I could.” In 2003, the Evens moved to a 40-acre farmstead that Jeremy’s father owned. The Evens brought with them 100 calf huts and a dream of growing

Comfort

their calf-raising business. This dream has since come true. The Evens currently have 542 calf huts on their farm and take in up to 250 day-old heifer calves per month. They raise the heifers to 9-10 weeks of age before returning them to their home dairy. In 2007, Jeremy and Esther purchased the farmstead from his father. “My goal has always been to be a stay-at-home mom and raise our kids,” Esther said. “Owning our calf-raising operation has made that

It isn’t just for cows.

possible. I helped Jeremy with things until the babies came along. I remember being eight months pregnant with Maddie and helping Jeremy move calves.” Jeremy said their children are helpful on the farm. “Anthony helps me quite a bit,” he said. “Maddie wants to start helping as soon as she’s old enough. She’s interested in earning her own money.” Over the years, the Evens have learned a lot about the art of raising calves. “I can’t overstate how

important it is for newborn calves to get adequate colostrum,” Jeremy said. “I can tell if a calf hasn’t received enough colostrum. It’s an uphill battle for both me and the calf.” Calf comfort is a paramount concern for the Evens. “In the wintertime, you have to protect the calves from the elements and make sure that they have plenty of dry bedding,” Jeremy said. “In the summertime, y control is a huge issue. Controlling ies prevents a lot of sickness. We also make sure that the calves have plenty of water, especially during the warmer months.” The rst week of a calf’s life is critical. “I watch the calves very closely during their rst week,” Jeremy said. “If there’s a problem, I want to get on it right away. I’ve learned that it’s much better to prevent problems than trying to cure them.” Calves, like dairy cows, thrive on consistency. “It’s important that you keep the calves on a feeding schedule,” Jeremy said. The Evens feed their calves at 4 a.m. and 4 p.m. They are bottle feeding 350 calves and go through 15 bags of milk replacer each day. The Evens purchase a semi load of milk replacer every two months. Turn to EVENS | Page 11

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Dairy Star Special Edition • Saturday, March 23, 2019 • Page 11

ConƟnued from EVENS | Page 10

Lange

Ag Systems NEED SOME FRESH AIR?

JERRY NELSON/DAIRY STAR

Jeremy Even uses ATVs equipped with tanks and pumps to distribute milk replacer to 350 heifer calves currently being boƩle fed on his farm. Calves at the Even farm are kept on milk replacer until they are about 7 weeks old. Starter feed is made available to the calves at all times. At weaning, the calves are reduced to one feeding of milk replacer per day, but the Evens will tweak this system to t each individual calf. “We have to be here to care for the calves seven days a week,” Jeremy said. “But, I feel that it’s important to keep a balance between work and family life. A person has to get away once in a while to recharge. I have a couple of guys who can ll in for me so that I can get off the farm and spend time with our family.” Jeremy’s penchant for keeping things clean and organized has helped his calf raising business thrive. “I keep track of everything that I do for the calves,” he said. “And, keeping the farm tidy is part of my nature.” Much of Jeremy’s calf-raising knowledge has been acquired through experience, but he continues to pursue new ideas. “I might visit another operation and see something that I want to try on our farm,” he said. “I have also gotten some good ideas about raising baby calves from publications such as the Dairy Star.” The Evens have formed relationships with their dairy farmer customers which have lasted for many years. “Communication is key to

maintaining a good relationship,” Jeremy said. “Every dairy farm and every dairy farmer is unique. You have to adapt to each situation. But, the main thing is to keep the lines of communication open and let the farmer know if there are problems. Our dairy farmers have entrusted us with a huge investment. Their heifer calves are their herd’s genetic future. We never want to lose that trust.” As with any farming operation, raising calves has its challenges and its rewards. “Last summer, a thunderstorm rolled through our farm and blew away a bunch of our empty calf huts,” Jeremy said. “Some of them ended up two miles away. And, one Sunday when Anthony was a toddler, we came home from church to nd that some cattle we were keeping on our farm had gotten out. Esther and I jumped out of the car and got the cattle back in but then discovered that Anthony had locked the car doors. Thank goodness we had another set of keys in the house.” After nearly 20 years in the calfraising business, Jeremy still looks forward to each new day. “I like being my own boss,” he said. “I like it that I can step out of the house and go to work. I enjoy being able to work with my family and watching the baby calves grow.”

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Page 12 • Dairy Star Special Edition • Saturday, March 23, 2019

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