After a relatively mild November and December, it came as a bit of a shock to have a cold spell in late January and to have the first frost of the season.
The sudden decrease in temperature meant that the calves had little time to adapt and acclimatise, therefore they were exposed to all kinds of stressors that became harder to control as the temperature continued to drop. I remember there being an eight degree temperature difference over night which is hard enough for us humans to adapt and we have clothes to put on and take off!
Something had to be done quick as the symptoms for pneumonia were becoming more and more evident. As a result, we decided to construct calf canopies over the back of the pens from gates and wads of straw. This made such a difference as the calves had three temperature zones within their pens and so could choose to lie according to the varying outside temperature.
The sudden decrease in temperature meant that the calves had little time to adapt and acclimatise, therefore they were exposed to all kinds of stressors that became harder to control as the temperature continued to drop. I remember there being an eight degree temperature difference over night which is hard enough for us humans to adapt and we have clothes to put on and take off!
Something had to be done quick as the symptoms for pneumonia were becoming more and more evident. As a result, we decided to construct calf canopies over the back of the pens from gates and wads of straw. This made such a difference as the calves had three temperature zones within their pens and so could choose to lie according to the varying outside temperature.
Although the canopies proved to be a great success for the majority of the calves, we were still having cases of mild pneumonia in the weaker, smaller and younger new borns. We decided to trial some calf coats, however there had been mixed reviews on the beneficial impacts they can have, so we were slightly dubious as to whether they were worth investing in a bulk load of jackets. We ordered 5 coats and within a couple of days they were all occupied and the calves were already showing sighs of improvement. With the temperatures continuing to decrease (>-3) we made a rapid decision to buy 10 more. We then made it protocol that any new calves entering the farm who were less than 60kg or showing any signs of weakness had a coat put on immediately. This worked really well and was evident by the fact we were treating (injecting) calves less and less each week.
The addition of calf coats and canopies to our farming practice greatly enhanced the daily weight gain of the weaker calves as they were no longer expending energy to keep warm, but instead was using this energy to grow. As a result, we will definitely be using them next year!!
Since then, the sun has finally made an appearance and the calves no longer benefit from the extra layer, so last week I had a 'fun' afternoon pressure washing them clean and putting them into storage ready for next winter.
The addition of calf coats and canopies to our farming practice greatly enhanced the daily weight gain of the weaker calves as they were no longer expending energy to keep warm, but instead was using this energy to grow. As a result, we will definitely be using them next year!!
Since then, the sun has finally made an appearance and the calves no longer benefit from the extra layer, so last week I had a 'fun' afternoon pressure washing them clean and putting them into storage ready for next winter.
Now we are well into spring, all the cattle are eager to get out to the fresh grass. However with the recent heavy downpours, this has delayed our plans. We are hoping to let some out later this week which will hopefully decrease the workload, as well as making space for new calves to enter. We are currently operating at maximum capacity and with the beef trade slowing up, coupled with the falling producer prices, we ask you more than ever to support British farmers and to buy locally produced goods!