Beef Calf Health

Beef Calf Health – Start Fast & Respond Fast

Raising healthy, fast-growing beef calves is key to not only building strong replacements but hitting growth and performance targets to maximize your return on calves destined to provide protein and nutrition for the consumer’s dinner table.

Beef calf health management starts well before the calf is born and carries throughout its lifetime.

  1. Always select quality inputs going into the animals, including feed ingredients, vaccines, digestive support, animal health products and the farm labor that is caring for your calves.
  2. Provide proper nutrition for the pregnant cow to ensure she has the proper fuel to gestate the calf and provide high quality colostrum for the calf at birth.
  3. Implement vaccination protocols for the cow and calf that helps drive a high level of immunity for diseases they will be exposed to in their lifetime.
  4. Ensure proper sanitation and biosecurity for the facilities through weaning (including feeding equipment) and beyond tailored to how you raise your calves.
  5. Dip navel in 7% iodine suspension immediately after birth.
  6. Tag, brand and/or tattoo calf to ensure identification and proper record keeping.
  7. Monitor the calf to make sure it nurses early, within the first 4 hours, to ensure it receives adequate quantities of colostrum.  If nursing is an issue, obtain high-quality colostrum and feed directly to the calf.
  8. Incorporate eubiotics (probiotics, prebiotics, organic acids, essential oils and other novel technologies), to help maintain normal digestive health and support a healthy, functioning immune system during the first few days after birth and have on hand for any calf needing a rapid response.
  9. Utilize key partners in assessing, developing and implementing your calf raising protocols, including veterinarians, nutritionists, and allied industry experts.

While this list is meant to share high level discussion points that help you develop a sound calf raising program, here are a couple of resources that provide more in-depth information for your consideration.

  1. Beef Calf Management Birth-Weaning (University of Maryland)
  2. Beef Cow-Calf Management Guide (Oregon State University)

DBC Ag Products Helps You Meet Your Future Beef Productivity Goals

DBC Ag Products offers multiple products, including Last Stand® w/ImmWave® Calf Paste, that deliver the broadest combination of eubiotics (probiotics, prebiotics, organic acids and essential oils) and other novel technologies that are helping beef producers raise healthy, fast-growing calves.  They are designed to help maintain normal digestive health and support a healthy, functioning immune system in newborn calves after birth, through weaning and beyond.  Maintaining normal can go a long way to helping your calves reach their genetic potential and help drive future profitability. 

In addition, when you find a calf in the pasture or on the ranch that needs a rapid response, reach for Last Stand w/ImmWave.