Calf and Youngstock Care on an Organic Dairy

This fall we’ve heard from several dairy farmers who have had calves with respiratory problems, and yearlings heifers coming in from pasture with poor condition and parasites. A certified organic dairy farm can only use antibiotics, coccidiostats (a drug such as Deccox to treat coccidiosis), and most dewormers to save the life of an animal, which they must then sell as non-organic. Under the National Organic Standards, Ivermectin is the only synthetic dewormer allowed for dairy animals, and it is not effective against several problem organisms including coccidiosis. An animal treated with ivermectin can never be sold as organic meat, and there is a 90-day milk withholding.

So with these limitations on what can be used to treat animals with, prevention is clearly the best plan. This article will briefly outline a few of the key issues to consider.

If you are interested in developing a more comprehensive parasite management plan or preventative health care plan, you can call the NOFA VT Dairy and Livestock Technical assistance program and talk with Sarah or Willie. You can also read some of the fact sheets on the website www.nofavt.org, and your veterinarian can also help you with diagnosis, treatment and a prevention plan. Also Dr Hue Karremans website www.penndutchcowcare.org has some great articles. His April 2002 newsletter has a good article on feeding calves and scours prevention, and the January 2002 newsletter has an article on coughing calves.

KEY POINTS FOR CALF AND YOUNGSTOCK HEALTH:

Dry cow management: The health of the calves starts with the health of the dam. A healthy mother, bred to a well-selected bull, fed a balanced diet in a non-stressful environment, will produce the healthiest possible calf. Check the mineral nutrition of dry cows, and consider talking with your vet to see what vaccinations may be appropriate for your farm.

Calving and colostrum: Sanitation in the calving and calf housing areas is important. After birth, colostrum intake is the most important thing to assure good calf health. Colustrum, which is rich in protein, fat, antibodies, minerals and vitamins helps prevent disease. Calves must receive this colostrum within the first 24 hours to allow their gut to absorb the antibodies.

Clean housing and clean pasture: Housing for calves needs to be managed to prevent infection with coccidiosis and other diseases which can become a serious problem in if feed or water gets contaminated with manure. Ventilation is important in prevention of respiratory problems like pneumonia. Housing can include pens, hutches, tie stalls or individual pens. Some farms put calves on pasture at birth, and some wait until they are six months old. If the existing system is working, keep it. However, if there are problems with parasites or disease, switching to a different system is worth investigating.

When calves go out on pasture, internal parasites can become a problem if the pasture is contaminated and calves are susceptible. Unlike a pen in the barn, pastures can’t be “cleaned” by shoveling or bedding. The parasites in the calf pasture can continue to infect any animals which graze the area for 12 months. Dr Ann Wells recommends putting the younger and more susceptible heifers out onto pasture which hasn’t had cows or young stock on them during the past 6 to 12 months. The best pasture to start grazing calves or heifers on is an area which was hayed the previous year since these areas will have the least parasites. Up til 6 months, calf housing can be indoors, but all calves over 6 months on an organic farm must have access to the outdoors. For farms which are experiencing serious parasite problems in young stock and who don’t have “clean” pasture to put calves onto, it may be worth considering housing them in a clean or well bedded pack until they are bigger (up to 6 months) before putting them onto pasture. You can read Dr Wells article on parasites on the NOFA VT website, or ask Sarah or Willie for a copy of it.Nutrition: Most dairy farms feed whole milk, dry hay and grain to calves, and wean no earlier than eight weeks. Some farms raise calves on milk for much longer than 8 weeks. Milk can be fed from buckets, bottles or sucker buckets with many nursing teats for groups, and some farms raise calves on nurse cows or leave them with their mothers for a period of time. An increasing number of farmers feel that a calf on whole milk for at least 3 months and then gradually wean. They’ve found these calves are better grown and able to withstand the stress of weaning and parasites. It is also best to not make housing or group changes or dehorn at the same time as weaning.

Other issues: Avoid overcrowding in pens and pastures. This can stress the animals and makes it more likely that parasites or disease organisms will spread. Probiotics, which are “good” gut bacteria may be a useful part of a prevention plan. They should be considered if scours is a regular problem on the farm. Be sure to check that the brand of probiotics is on VOF’s list of approved health care products. Probiotics can be fed preventatively in milk or given in a paste form. They can also be a useful part of a treatment plan along with herbs, electrolytes and immune boosting products.