Incidence of digestive upsets and bloat in calves at a Co. Limerick dairy farm has almost been eliminated, since a milk replacer made from low-heat skimmed milk and buttermilk was introduced.
Michael and Margaret O’Reilly and their son, Brian, produce milk from their 450 high economic breeding index (EBI) Friesian-cross cows on their farm at Caherconlish.
Up until five years ago, they reared calves on a milk replacer that had a high crude protein level, but was not made from low-heat skimmed milk.
That resulted in calves getting digestive upsets, including bloat, and that meant challenges with rearing.
The O’Reillys switched feed to Shine Original, then known as ‘Shine Once-a-Day,’ convinced by the benefits of its casein protein content, together with low-heat skimmed milk and buttermilk.
Calf health and performance improved dramatically on this system, with virtually no cases of bloat or other digestive upsets.
“With Shine Original we now get consistent results with our calves, and peace of mind, which is priceless,’’ says Michael.
The O’Reillys feeding system is unique. Calves are reared indoors until they are five weeks old, initially on cow’s milk twice daily for the first two weeks. A mix of cow’s milk and Shine Original is then introduced.
Beef and male calves are mainly sold within that five week period, while heifers are turned outside at five-weeks-old.
These heifers are fed Shine Original once-a-day via a trailed feeder until weaning, a process which is determined by liveweight – Friesian-cross heifers at 100kg and crossbreds at 90kg – but at no older than 12 weeks.
Performance is from the ingredients, not the crude analysis
If you add up the percentages of what is declared on a label, it rarely comes to 50%, so what makes up the other 50%.
In milk replacers, it will be a form of milk sugar or lactose. These sugars are key to calf health and comfort, and they are vital for heat and T cell production.
Immune T cells are essential for vaccines effectiveness and defence against viruses. Milk sugars will also provide a food source for the microbes in the calf further, aiding development and health.
If a product has 20% extra fat or protein, then it has to have less lactose.
By adding less crude protein and more milk protein, there is more space in the formulation for other important ingredients. This is one of the keys to the consistent performance of SHINE ORIGINAL on Irish farms over the last 16 years.
Some pointers on an ingredient list are:
- Buttermilk is similar to skim milk and contains the outer coat or membrane of the butterfat droplet. This membrane is important for fat digestion and health and as buttermilk contains 20% more casein than skim milk, it helps to form a strong curd in the stomach, slowly releasing nutrients throughout the day.
- Calves, like all animals, can only utilise amino acids, the building blocks for all proteins and low heat milk ingredients (skim, buttermilk, whey) is the only way to ensure the amino acids in the diet are available. (see video, Not all skim milks are the same)
- Whey powder will only ever make up a small fraction of the crude protein in a calf milk as it can contain as low as 6% CP and a maximum of 11% CP, but is a key source of milk sugar and valuable minerals for bone development.
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