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Golden Rules Of Heifer Rearing

Dairy Extension Officer at Kyabram, John Moran has written some great material on calf and heifer rearing, including setting and hitting targets for your heifer rearing this season.

By Department of Primary Industries - 15th March 2004 - Back to News

Targets

The optimum pre-calving live weight of heifers varies with their target milk yield as mature cows. This can range from 500 kg at 5000 L to 560 kg at 7000 L.
Target weights and wither heights for ages with Friesian heifers in well managed herds are:

During their first lactation, well reared heifers should produce at least 80% of the full lactation milk yield of their mature herd mates.
Heavier heifers must be fed well to achieve their economic benefits. There is little point in growing out heavy heifers then underfeeding them as milkers.
Heifers should be managed to grow at an average of 0.7 kg/day from weaning to first calving, although this can vary from 0.5 to 1.0 kg/day depending on seasonal conditions.

Feeding

Provide a good quality diet for the first 12 months, containing 10-11 MJ/kg DM of energy and 12-16% protein.
High energy supplements are often required to achieve target growth rates of young heifers (up to 6 months of age), particularly during their first winter.
Grazed pasture is generally the cheapest feed, but it must be in sufficient supply, at least 1500 to 1800 kg DM/ha.
If insufficient pasture is available, only feed top quality supplements, preferably concentrates.
Any hay or silage fed must be of good quality, at least 10 MJ/kg DM of energy and 14% protein.
Be wary of feeding too much low protein grain during the 3 to 9 months of age critical period, as excessive growth rates can lead to fatty udders.

Management

If young stock are allowed to lose weight or grow very slowly for lengthy periods, they will not achieve their potential frame size.
Low mating live weights can lead to calving difficulties 9 months later. Excessive feeding after mating can also result in dystocia. Dystocia (calving difficulties) reduces milk yield and increases days to conception.
Use AI and quality Friesian semen on well grown heifers to provide replacement calves from first calf heifers.
Heifers should be regularly weighed, at least every 3 months, with wither heights recorded at each weighing.

STOCKOWNERS - BEWARE OF FARM DAMS

As water levels drop, the slope of the dam sides flattens. This often means more mud for animals to negotiate before, during and after drinking. This sticky mud can be a death trap especially for weak animals.
Any animals stuck in muddy dam banks will usually die without human intervention either by starvation, thirst, inhalation of mud and water, or attack by predators.
Fortunately these consequences are preventable either by regular monitoring or by fencing off unsafe areas of a dam.

WULGULMERANG FENCING DAY

Doggers and Catchment Management Officers from Gippsland and the North east recently met at Wulgulmerang to spend two days participating in a wild dog exclusion fence training exercise. This training included theory on electric fence construction and maintenance, Mark Bennett from Gallagher provided the technical information. During the course of the afternoon a practical, hands on fence construction session took place, where 500mtrs of 7 wire wild dog exclusion fence was constructed in relatively rough terrain.

DPI is conducting this initiative on behalf of DSE as part of the Victorian Pest Animal framework (VPMF).

Chair of the Gippsland Wild Dog Management Group Judith Henderson, who attended the training session, said the group fully supports exclusion fencing as an effective long term wild dog management control method when used as part of an integrated program.

"The electric fence training exercise has re enforced some doggers and Catchment Management Officers knowledge of wild exclusion fences and given new knowledge to others that can be passed on to landholders during the course of their working day."

Source: http://gippsland.com/

Published by: news@gippsland.com

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