How to Wean Cattle Calves (with Pictures)

2024 Author: Samantha Chapman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 09:13

Weaning consists of the separation of calves from their milk source, a difficult time for both cows and calves as it is a very traumatic time from an environmental, psychological and nutritional point of view, especially for the calf. This article focuses on the main concepts and steps related to the weaning of calves from cows and vice versa. The article starts from the traditional separation of the mothers from the calves by bringing the calves to a place where the latter cannot hear, see or smell the cows, to arrive at the method of the anti-sucking nose ring.

Most calves are weaned between 120 and 290 days (3 to 10 months) from birth, however most farmers wean calves at around 205 days (6 months) of age. Another important factor is the weight of the calf for which it is around a minimum of 60 kg.

Steps

Part 1 of 7: Preconditioning of calves before weaning

Step 1. Trim the horns and castrate the calf well in advance of weaning

This will reduce the stress for the calves to a minimum, avoiding making these operations coincide with the time of weaning and therefore causing any physical discomfort and weight loss in the newly weaned calf.

Step 2. Move cows and calves to a small pen with a sturdy fence two to three weeks before the weaning date to accustom the calves to the new environment

If you do not have appropriate weaning pens, use grazing land with adequate fencing. Do not move cows and calves to areas where dirt accumulates to avoid respiratory disease and pneumonia caused by dust during and after weaning.

Step 3. Precondition the calves by supplementing the milk with specific feed so that the calves learn to feed at the trough before being weaned

• Preconditioning is a great way to reduce the stress that calves suffer during the weaning period. Preconditioning consists in accustoming the calves to feeding on feed and forage at the trough and drinking at the trough. This should be done away from the mothers, as cows tend to be quite aggressive near the feeder and trough and do not allow the calves to get close to the food. The use of the creep feeder is the best way to accustom the calves to feed from a trough.

  A specific feed or preconditioning ration for calves is a mixture of silage fodder (cereals, sorghum, wheat or oats) and legume hay with an addition of protein concentrate. Make sure that the concentrate does not contain any traces of animal by-products to prevent one or more cattle, especially females, from developing symptoms of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (mad cow disease) in adulthood. Also keep the feed free of dirt and dust to prevent calves from contracting respiratory diseases such as pneumonia

Step 4. Have calves vaccinated and provide booster injections

The vaccine is first given to calves when they are still breastfeeding. The booster must be administered in the times and ways prescribed by the veterinarian or the vaccine manufacturer. It is good practice to establish a cattle health check program with the local veterinarian to provide the calves with everything they may need where they are reared.

Give calves treatment against internal and external parasites

Step 5. Wean the calves by moving the cows away from the small pen so that the calves remain alone in the environment that has become familiar to them

Step 6. Monitor calves during this stressful period by treating them with the utmost care

Consult your veterinarian regarding the use of tranquilizers during this phase of weaning to keep calves calm and prevent them from losing weight.

Step 7. Do not use feeds that stimulate milk production (high protein and calcium feeds) for weaning heifers

To facilitate a rapid overcoming of the weaning process, feed the young cows a diet of only grass or hay or move them to fences with poor pasture grass.

Step 8. Do not milk the cows during this time

Check that they do not suffer from mastitis and that they do not have enlarged breasts.

Part 2 of 7: Traditional weaning with minimal stress for calves

Step 1. Make sure the time you decide to wean is on a nice, sunny, calm day with a mild climate rather than windy, rainy or cold

Step 2. Arrange feed outside the pen where the cows can see and smell it

Step 3. Get the cows out of the pen

Once the cows have reached the gate, open it and take them out calmly and carefully. Having only a few cows out of the pen at a time at regular intervals will help the calves gradually get through this stage of the process. Depending on the number of cows and calves to be weaned, you can choose to let groups of cows leave the pen once rather than twice a day.

It is possible to leave some cows inside the enclosure to take care of the weaned calves. This will be the case of non-pregnant cows destined to be slaughtered or cows that due to age require better quality pasture. One-year-old heifers are excellent for substituting their mothers for the care of weaned calves

Step 4. Once all the cows are out of the pen, make sure no calves have escaped

If you proceed calmly and efficiently, it is unlikely that the calves will come out of the enclosure. In fact, the first to come out are always the cows and the calves tend to queue up last, allowing them to be easily separated from the cows.

Step 5. Before finally moving the calves elsewhere and selling them, leave them in the pen for a few days until they are completely calm

Part 3 of 7: Natural weaning

• Let nature take its course. This method does not require any human intervention, as it will be the mother herself who will remove the calf from herself at the right moment. Generally in farms with large plots, or in any case in environments where cattle are left free to move and are not housed for weaning, the cow will separate from its last calf just before giving birth to another.

  • This often turns out not to be the best method for weaning calves. It can be difficult for the cow to recover the physical conditions useful for weaning. The cow also needs to stop breastfeeding between calving. Milking is better and cows gain weight more easily if calves are weaned earlier than the natural method requires.
  • In any case, natural weaning remains the absolute least stressful method compared to any other procedure that requires human intervention. The calf is able to maintain a family group and be included in the herd, enjoying the social advantages and protection of the group against the possibility of being suddenly moved to an unfamiliar environment and being fed on feed and silage. and having to manage alone.

  Part 4 of 7: Traditional pen weaning

  Notice what happens when the calves are removed from the pasture they shared with the cows. If you proceed to move them directly to an enclosure where they have to feed directly on feed and water and where they have to provide for themselves, the calves react by becoming agitated due to the lack of mothers. Their insecurity, panic and despair are contagious; when one calf starts bellowing and running frantically along the enclosure, the other calves tend to imitate him. This is what generally happens when calves are separated from their mothers, sent straight to a pen for sale aboard a trailer, and then transported to a distant farm where they are forced to familiarize themselves with a new environment and calm down

  Part 5 of 7: Weaning with separate pens

  

  Step 1. Prepare the calves

  Follow the steps in the previous sections "Preconditioning of calves before weaning" and "Traditional weaning with minimal stress for calves". Separate cows and calves in two separate and adjacent enclosures so that they can see and smell each other without the enclosure allowing for breastfeeding.

  Placing wire mesh and wire on both sides of the fence is a great way to prevent cows and calves from trying to get closer. Another expedient to prevent the most desperate mothers from reuniting with their calves is the double fence

  

  Step 2. Let the cows and calves get used to the situation

  Allow them to interact with each other under these conditions for 3-5 days, until they lose interest in each other.

  

  Step 3. Move the cows after a few days

  It will be possible to move the cows to other pastures after the weaning process is complete.

  Part 6 of 7: Weaning with the nose plate or the anti-suck ring

  

  Step 1. Place the calves in the appropriate containment cages for cattle

  

  Step 2. Attach the ring to the calves' nose

  In order for the ring to remain fixed to the calf's nose, it will be sufficient to manipulate the ends of the ring itself, or to tighten the screw in the center of the ring enough in the case of the plate or the anti-sucking ring. These types of rings are for temporary use only, unlike bull nose rings, and will need to be removed after just a week or two.

  

  Step 3. Reuniting the calf with the mother

  The cow will push the calf away if the latter tries to get close due to the spikes on the anti-suck ring that will prick her udder. The anti-suck ring does not prevent the calf from grazing, feeding at the creep feeder or drinking, nor does it prevent it from remaining close to its mother anyway.

  

  Step 4. After one or two weeks the cow's milk is exhausted and the calf no longer feels the need to breastfeed

  At this point the calves can be separated from the cows without great difficulty and the anti-suck ring can be removed. Ideally, weaning nose rings should be removed after 7 or at most 10 days.

  Part 7 of 7: Bottle weaning

  

  Step 1. Prepare for the weaning process

  Weaning an orphaned calf after caring for it and feeding it with a bottle for months can cause emotional decompensation for both the calf and the person who raised it. The calf will complain profusely during the weaning phase, but the breeder will have to be diligent and resolute.

  Bottle-fed or bucket-reared calves should be weaned at about 3 to 4 months of age

  

  Step 2. There are two methods regarding the milk given to the calf:

  reduce the amount of milk given to the calf day by day; dilute the milk gradually until the calf is accustomed to drinking only water.

  • Reducing the milk dose at the beginning of the weaning process will cause the calf to experience some stress. You can start by reducing the dose by 1/1, 5 liters.
  • Diluting milk with water approaches the natural way a cow weans her calf. In fact, as the calf reaches a certain age (about 3 months) the quantity of milk produced by the mother's body gradually decreases. You must then proceed by diluting the milk from time to time with a dose of water equivalent to one eighth of the total, until the solution consists exclusively of water.

  

  Step 3. Make sure the calf always has solid food, water and minerals during the weaning process

  The calf should already be used to eating hay and / or feed and / or grass by the time the weaning process begins.

  In case you have grazing land, be sure to move the bottle-raised calf to a clean, lush pasture

  Advice

  • A good fencing is always necessary regardless of which weaning method you choose to adopt. To keep the cows separate from the calves it will be necessary to use electric fences, wire mesh or barbed wire.
  • Regularly check the weight gain of weaned calves to make sure they are in good health. Talk to your vet for any doubts or concerns.
  • Make sure the weaning pen is not dusty or muddy. These conditions can cause ailments and diseases in calves that should be avoided, especially if you intend to sell your calves a few days after weaning is complete.

  • Cows will always attempt to reunite with calves, especially primiparous cows. These heifers will be less likely to leave the calf than older cows, so all sorts of attempts by the mothers to get out of the fence will need to be foreseen.

    • Confining the primiparas in a very safe enclosure for a few days in order to distract them from the urge to return to the young. Make sure the enclosure is absolutely escape-proof.
    • Cows already impregnated shortly after giving birth will be less tempted to reunite with their calves than non-pregnant cows, because they will be focused on the unborn child.
  • The less stress the cows and calves suffer during the weaning period, the less time it will take for them to no longer feel the need for each other. Calves tend to maintain a constant weight and be healthier if weaning does not cause them undue stress. The best way to reduce the stress of calves during weaning is to use preconditioning.

  • It is possible to bring forward the time of weaning in periods of drought when the cows do not have enough food for themselves or for the calves. Calves may need to be weaned around 120 days after birth, early enough for mothers not to be overly weakened.

    While the calves will have to remain in the best grazing lands until sale, the cows will have to be moved to poorer pastures or otherwise fed with hay and forage

  • In 95 percent of cases, the nose pad will work as a deterrent to breastfeeding. In 5 percent of cases, however, some calves will learn to turn the plate over their nose in order to feed from their mother. In these cases the plate will have to be put back in the correct downward position.

  Warnings

  • Don't shout or run after animals. Such an attitude will only cause further stress in the calves.
  • Arranging the food outside the weaning pen before letting the cows out allows both to close the gates before the calves run out and to avoid the risk of being overwhelmed by hungry cows.
  • Pay close attention to the reaction of primiparous heifers to weaning. They will be able to escape from the fence if it has not been properly reinforced with electrical wire or metal panels. The primiparas will be so determined to return to their first calf that they will try everything to get it back. It is vital that they fail to do so.