Source: University of Wisconsin-Maddison
Summary
Dr. Catie Cramer, Assistant Professor in the Department of Animal Sciences at Colorado State University, discusses stressors associated with transport date (WI and US) from a fit-for-transport survey conducted by Colorado State University and offer some ways to mitigate transport stress.
In this video: Discussion of effective strategies for preparing dairy calves for transport, focusing on minimizing stress and improving health outcomes.
Highlights
🐄 Importance of Calf Welfare: Understanding the impact of transport on calf health is essential for ensuring their long-term productivity.
🚛 Challenges of Early Transport: Many calves are transported at a young age, making them more susceptible to stress and disease.
🌡️ Stress Factors: Transportation exposes calves to multiple stressors, including thermal stress, co-mingling, and inadequate access to food and water.
📉 Financial Implications: Early stress and disease can lead to significant losses in weight gain and future milk production.
🥛 Colostrum Management: Providing adequate colostrum shortly after birth is critical for calf health and immunity before transport.
🔍 Fitness for Transport: Assessing the health and condition of calves before transport is crucial to ensure their welfare.
📈 Need for Supply Chain Accountability: Enhanced communication and management practices across the supply chain can improve calf welfare and mitigate stress.
Insights
🧠 Understanding Stress in Young Calves: The lack of developed immune systems in calves makes them particularly vulnerable during transport. Stress from co-mingling with other animals, extreme weather conditions, and inadequate nutrition can severely impact their health and growth. This vulnerability necessitates a focus on minimizing stress during transport to ensure calves are fit for their future roles, whether in dairy or beef production.
🕒 Timing of Transport: Data indicates that calves transported at an older age (beyond 24 hours) tend to have better health outcomes and reduced incidence of dehydration and respiratory issues. This highlights the need for producers to reconsider transport schedules and practices to improve calf welfare.
🤒 Health Management Practices: Prior to transport, it is crucial that calves receive adequate care, including the timely administration of colostrum and necessary vaccinations. The webinar emphasizes that, despite some producers still transporting calves showing signs of illness, such practices should be avoided to ensure better outcomes at calf raising facilities.
📊 Economic Consequences of Poor Practices: The financial impact of calf health issues is significant. Each pound of weight lost due to stress or illness can translate into substantial economic losses for producers in terms of future milk production and market value. This underscores the importance of effective calf management strategies to improve profitability.
🧪 Preconditioning as a Strategy: Implementing preconditioning practices, such as ensuring calves have adequate colostrum and vaccinations before transport, can significantly improve their health post-transport. The webinar suggests that preconditioning should become standard practice to enhance calf welfare.
🚚 Handling and Transport Logistics: Proper handling during transport, including avoiding overcrowding and providing appropriate bedding, can reduce stress levels in calves. Additionally, the duration of transport should be minimized wherever possible, as longer transport times have been linked to increased health issues and mortality rates.
🔗 Supply Chain Collaboration: Effective communication and collaboration among all stakeholders in the supply chain are essential. The webinar highlights a disconnect between dairy producers and calf raisers regarding the implementation of preconditioning practices. Building accountability and mutual understanding can lead to better welfare outcomes for calves and more efficient operations for producers.
