Getting Calves eating Meal.

O

Ozzy Scott

Well-Known Member
Its a problem I have every year, getting calves between 30 and 80 days to eat enough meal. Changed to a nut this year and things are worse again. Not even getting a half kilo a day into calves due to be weaned off milk. My calves go outdoors on very nice quality grass once the weather allows and a brought back indoors for poor nights/day. Is it a case that they are just consuming allot of grass and have no need for the meals. they are stocked at about 10 to the acre but are keeping on top of the grass easily. They are eating little straw, and on .6 of a kilo, once a day of a good milk replacer. Im happy with their thrive but will weaning, really knock them back. I will cut back slowly with milk and hope they may start eating more meal.

Any other ideas
 
Ozzy Scott said:
Its a problem I have every year, getting calves between 30 and 80 days to eat enough meal. Changed to a nut this year and things are worse again. Not even getting a half kilo a day into calves due to be weaned off milk. My calves go outdoors on very nice quality grass once the weather allows and a brought back indoors for poor nights/day. Is it a case that they are just consuming allot of grass and have no need for the meals. they are stocked at about 10 to the acre but are keeping on top of the grass easily. They are eating little straw, and on .6 of a kilo, once a day of a good milk replacer. Im happy with their thrive but will weaning, really knock them back. I will cut back slowly with milk and hope they may start eating more meal.

Any other ideas
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Having a similar issue this year too, older calves (8 weeks+)not even fussed with replacer, but mowing the grass out of it. They look full and healthy so I'm not overly worried.
 
We had the same issue, we were using a very well known starter meuslie and they had no interest in it at all, bought an expensive calf nut then and mixed it through it and no better so went elsewhere and got a different calf nut and they are really tearing into it. Found it hard for them to eat much at all when they were on the 750-800 grams twice a day, moved to 4 litres OAD and around 600 grams of powder and intakes shot up. No calves out yet, they are on straw and maize
 
I'd normally get calves out fairly early but just have not bothered this year yet, I've no interest in bolloxing about out then in then out with this weather.

But on eating meal, have no bother here getting them eating it, I go in with a calf ration from when they are 10days old, usually all eating something after 2 or 3wks, I move them onto a nut slowly after a month. Always have some good quality straw which they eat plenty of, obviously decent bit of fresh water needed with the nuts as well.
 
One bunch of calves were knocking back meal when they came, I have used both a nut and a crunch and now they have little interest in either. Maybe they just prefer the green stuff as they are out fulltime.
 
Ozzy Scott said:
One bunch of calves were knocking back meal when they came, I have used both a nut and a crunch and now they have little interest in either. Maybe they just prefer the green stuff as they are out fulltime.
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Im the opposite to you 32 6-8 week old calves out on grass feeding them twice a day with elvor milk powder but they go mad for meal... I could give them 3 buckets a day and theyd have it ate ...only giving 1 though and they all surround the trough for it
 
A little off topic but my prob is that I bought 4 Hereford calves and can't get one of them to drink milk. Bought them from dealer who said all was drinking out of a trough. Calf age on card is 19/3 so would like her to hav milk for while longer. She won't drink out of trough or a bucket or bucket with teat. She will eat crunch and hay. Any suggestions appreciated.
 
Cruiser said:
A little off topic but my prob is that I bought 4 Hereford calves and can't get one of them to drink milk. Bought them from dealer who said all was drinking out of a trough. Calf age on card is 19/3 so would like her to hav milk for while longer. She won't drink out of trough or a bucket or bucket with teat. She will eat crunch and hay. Any suggestions appreciated.
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Hunger
 
Have calf a week now try her every evening and she drinks feck all only what squeeze n to her which is very little.
 
Cruiser said:
Have calf a week now try her every evening and she drinks feck all only what squeeze n to her which is very little.
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Was it in poor shape when you got it? Is it eating meal and dunging well?
If it's eating feed and it's going through it I'd let it keep doing that. If it's not eating at all then maybe stomach tube electrolytes and give it vitamin E injection
 
jcb411abuser said:
Was it in poor shape when you got it? Is it eating meal and dunging well?
If it's eating feed and it's going through it I'd let it keep doing that. If it's not eating at all then maybe stomach tube electrolytes and give it vitamin E injection
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Calf in good healthy form on arrival same as 3 comrades. Spilling some milk down on her crunch and pickin away at crunch have gave up on chasin her around shed forcing milk down her neck. She has failed a little but not too bad considering. Chatting a lad 2day at mart reckons table spoon of salt down neck gets them thirsty?
 
Cruiser said:
Calf in good healthy form on arrival same as 3 comrades. Spilling some milk down on her crunch and pickin away at crunch have gave up on chasin her around shed forcing milk down her neck. She has failed a little but not too bad considering. Chatting a lad 2day at mart reckons table spoon of salt down neck gets them thirsty?
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I'd be wary of trying to get it drinking milk that way, is the milk nice and warm?
 
what a about a milk replacer nut, might be more suited to the calf digestive system at the present time. we used to just feed a course blend to calves here, u could tell when it had a bit more molasses as the ate it better to get started. never liked pellets, place we used to work turned away a poor straight and it was directed to a plant that made pellets, stuff didn't look as it was supposed to and would be easily seen in a blend but not a nut.
 
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