Modern facilities form the basis of a model calf rearing unit Investing in a brand new calf rearing unit and feeding facilities has helped Joff and Emma Roberts of Uphampton Farm in Herefordshire realise consistent daily liveweight gains, excellent welfare standards and a rapid throughput of animals. .

To view another article reference the Uphampton Farm unit featured in the Farmers Weekly
please click here (please note this will connect you to the Farmers Weekly website).

Uphampton Farm has traditionally been a chicken unit, but when Emma had her first child in 1999 she was looking for a new project that could be managed around the time constraints associated with a young family. A new calf rearing enterprise was therefore started with 16 animals being reared in an existing farm building. Within a few years calf numbers had expanded to more than 100, with the animals being housed in two straw-yard buildings.

As workloads grew, Emma was finding it difficult to juggle the challenges of calf rearing and an expanding family. After much deliberation, two options for the future were put forward: either find additional paid labour to ease the workload, or invest in new facilities including a fully computerised milk feeding system.

In 2003, Emma and Joff took the advice of Gill Dickson, ruminant sales specialist for Wynnstay Feeds, and invested in their first calf feeding machine, a Holm and Laue unit, which was set-up to feed 60 calves from two feeding stations. It soon became apparent that this automated system was working well, with workloads vastly reduced and calf health and weight gain rates significantly improved.

In 2008 a new shed was erected complete with two Holm and Laue calf feeders and 12 H&L igloos, providing housing for up to 160 calves. The igloos, which are arranged in two rows of six around the external edge of the steel frame building are constructed from fibre-glass reinforced plastic and painted white to reflect sunlight and maintain a comfortable micro-climate all year round. Each unit is 4.4 metres in diameter with an overall height of 2.2 meters and a usable internal space of 15 square meters – along with an adjoining straw pen within the shed there is enough space for approximately 15 calves.

“We chose the igloos after doing a lot of our own research,” Emma explains. “Our whole farming philosophy revolves around maintaining the very highest standards of animal welfare. We liked the idea of igloos no just because they look different, but because they are easy to keep clean and they provide a really healthy environment for the calves. No matter what species you’re talking about, a happy animal is a healthy animal and that helps to keep disease outbreaks to a minimum.”

The igloos are also fitted as standard with four small chimneys to aid air circulation, something that is of great importance according to Matt Williams of Pfizer Animal Health. “Poor air quality can trigger serious outbreaks of calf respiratory disease and pneumonia and can cost up to £82 per suckler calf as a result of medicine costs and weight and production losses,” he states. “In some cases there can be a significant increase in calf mortality rates, but there can also be a loss of production in later life as a result of reduced lactations in dairy cows.”

It is therefore important to ensure adequate airflow to remove airborne viruses and to avoid re-circulation of dirty air. “The design of a building can dramatically reduce the disease challenge and reduce the number of susceptible animals,” Mr Williams advises. “Older buildings may need to be adapted to ensure adequate air movement, but this can often be improvised to keep costs down.” However, it is advisable to ensure that any new buildings are properly designed to allow air to flow freely without creating a strong draught that could chill young calves.

Mr Williams also advises farmers to consider vaccination as a way of boosting disease resistance. “Vaccinating young animals and modifying existing housing arrangements won’t eradicate disease threats completely, but they will reduce the incidence of pneumonia and respiratory diseases quite significantly.”

Six batches of calves are brought onto the rearing unit each year with a total throughput of 960 animals. “We try to keep the gap between each batch as long as possible to give the building and igloos a chance to rest and to minimise disease risks,” explains Joff.

Calves come to the unit at approximately 55kgs and are kept for 11-12 weeks, by which time they will have achieved a weight of 130 to 140 kilos. Each calf is fitted with an automatic identification transponder that is worn around the neck and communicates with the feeding units. The two milk powder machines supply milk via eight feeding stations according to a pre-set feed curve and monitor the amount of milk that each calf is taking. An alarm list flags up any animals that have not eaten. “The machines spot 50% of ill calves before we have even noticed anything is wrong,” Joff comments. “That aids a more rapid response to any health issues and helps us to get calves back on track as soon as possible.”

As calves arrive they are fed an initial ration of 2.4 litres of milk per day, increasing to 4.8 litres over a seven day period. This ration then drops off when each calf has consumed 13-15 kilos of milk powder at which point the weaning process begins and milk intake is reduced to zero.

“Calves are gradually weaned off the milk powder over an eight day period to stimulate dry food intake,” Emma explains. “We are planning to install front foot weighing scales in the future so that the machines automatically reduce the amount of milk when the calves reach 65kg. The current system is working well for us, but we are keen to automate the process as much as possible to take some of the guesswork out of weaning weights.”

The volume of milk taken in a single feed is automatically limited in order to maximise feed conversion rates. During the first few days, the maximum intake per feed is set at 0.6 litres, but this increases to 1.2 litres once the calves have reached the peak of the feed curve. “We actually feed more than the recommended amount of powder by using 155 g/litre instead of the recommended 125 grammes,” Joff explains.

“We have found that this improves performance, and in colder weather we crank the formulation up even further to maintain growth rates and limit nutritional stress.”

Using a specially formulated milk powder is essential to maintain rapid growth rates. “Milk powder is a safer and more efficient alternative to cow’s milk,” explains Gill Dickson, “as it is provides a consistent supply of fat and protein. It is also sterile and therefore won’t carry diseases or bacteria which can detrimentally affect growth rates.”

The calves at Uphampton are fed using the Wynngold range of calf milk powders to promote rapid growth and to boost immunity to disease. Vegetable oils provide a source of energy and are a good substitute for the short chain fatty acids found in cow’s milk, whilst a mixture of milk proteins are used to enhance muscle development.

A mixture of trace elements and minerals aid calf health and the Wynngold range also delivers a supply of polyclonal antibodies and the unique ‘Greenline’ additive which boosts immune systems by providing additional vitamin C and E. A bile stimulant is included to help the calf absorb more energy and translate it into growth, and Aurofac can also be added on a prescription only basis to provide a source of antibiotics if required.

“Preventing disease infections is always cheaper and easier to manage that curing an outbreak of calf scour or pneumonia,” explains Mrs Dickson. “Choosing the right milk powder can reduce the incidence of these diseases by as much as 15 to 20 per cent and that can have a massive impact on financial returns.”

As well as a regulated supply of milk, the calves are also fed concentrate pellets from a very young age. “It is essential to develop the rumen as early as possible,” advises Steve Brown, ruminant technical manager for Wynnstay. “At birth the rumen is only the size of a thumbnail. Milk powder will help the calf to grow in the first few weeks, but rumen development must be stimulated using a grain based concentrate to maintain growth rates post-weaning.”

Wynnstay’s Start n Wean pellets are introduced to the diet as soon as the calves arrive on the farm and are fed throughout. “It takes approximately three kilos of concentrated feed to produce one kilo of liveweight gain,” Mr Brown explains. “Milk powder is the most expensive way of achieving weight gain so it makes sense to wean calves onto a concentrate diet as soon as possible.”

“Handling calves with the level of care and attention to detail that Joff and Emma put in also saves time, with animals ready to go to fattening units up to two weeks earlier than on less focused units,” he says.

“The beef sector is currently enjoying a relatively comfortable period. We are always on the look-out for additional calf rearers, but these must be of a high standard to meet the demands of customers who are becoming ever more welfare conscious. The facilities that have been developed at Uphampton Farm really are fantastic and are a prime example of how modern calf rearing should be done.”

▲back to top▲