Milk feeding schedules – the right strategy for every farm

The feeding intensity of calves has been the subject of much discussion among practitioners and consultants in recent years. As a result, both ad libitum feeding in the first few weeks and classic restrictive feeding are being reconsidered.

Conventional calf feeding

With conventional feeding calves are fed twice a day. It is important to remember that during the main liquid feeding phase, until the animals reach their sixth week of life, the calves should be given at least 1 kg of milk replacer or 7 litres of whole milk. The main liquid feeding phase is followed by the weaning phase (see Fig. 1).

The advantages of conventional calf feeding include a lower hygiene risk, as the liquid feed is given to the calves straight away, a lower consumption of milk or milk replacer and less leftover feed that then has to be thrown away afterwards.

Ad libitum feeding with acidified liquid feed

In line with the motto “all you can drink”, with ad libitum feeding calves are given as much milk as they want at any time of the day during their first two or three weeks of life. Due to the long standing time of around 12 hours and the fact that it is cooled in a pail, the milk needs to be acidified to a pH value of 5.5 by using SCHAUMACID MILK (see Fig. 2). All the leftover milk is thrown away and the pail cleaned once a day.

After the third week of life, the calves are switched over to rationed liquid feed and then they should be moved onto a fixed feed plan little by little (see Fig. 3). The amount of liquid feed given should be based on the amount of feed consumed by the calves at the end of the ad libitum phase, otherwise the calves may develop nutrient deficiencies that cancel out the effects of the ad libitum feeding.

The advantages of ad libitum feeding for calves as an alternative to restrictive feeding include an optimal supply of feed for the calves and the full optimisation of their genetic growth potential, which is reflected in a better health status. The daily gains of calves that are fed ad libitum can be up to 30 % or 40 % higher than those of restrictively fed calves.

What do you need to watch out for during weaning?

Whether your calves have been fed restrictively or ad libitum, when it comes to weaning there are some important points that must be taken into consideration:

• The weaning should only start when the calves are eating 1 kg of supplementary fodder in addition to their liquid feed.
• The concentration of milk replacer should not be reduced towards the end as this can cause digestive disorders in the calves.
• The calves should always be given at least 1.5 to 2 litres of milk each mealtime. If smaller portions are offered during the weaning phase, the calves will not be full after feeding and may not be able to fully satisfy their urge to suckle, resulting in a risk of cross-sucking.