Two & a Half Year Calf to Beef System

 In this unit you will learn about A two and a half year calf to beef system Which entails...Feed, Housing/grassland management, Disease control for a beef animal from birth to slaughter.

 In a beef herd calves are allowed suckle the cow until about 8 months.  Calves are born without antibodies. NO Immunity- very subjected to disease  Colostrum must be consumed within 6 hours of birth as this is when the ability to absorb antibodies is at its highest. If weak hand feed.  Should be fed for 3-4 days as it is high in nutrients, very digestible and has a laxative effect.  Animals that do not get colostrum will have very little resistance to disease

 Points to look for when purchasing calves at the mart:  Conformation: ◦ Shoulders wide ◦ Wide Hind Quarters ◦ Deep Barrel  Health: ◦ Eyes Bright and Clear (no discharge) ◦ Ears Pricked Up ◦ Nose Clear (no discharge) ◦ Naval clean, no swelling ◦ Anus should show no sign of scour. ◦ Generally lively and alert.

 Care should be taken not to stress the calve during transport.  Calves should only be fed water and glucose for the first 24 hours.  This is done to clear the contents of the stomach.  After 6 days the calve should be on full strength Milk Replacer.  The calf will subsequently weaned onto Hay and Concentrates and later grass when available!

 A calves rumen is not fully developed, hay/silage/conc. Should be introduced gradually as soon as possible.  The silage/hay introduce micro- organisms into their rumen which digests the cellulose  His consumption of grass will increase as he gets older  4 weeks old= 500g/day

 Ventilation- good supply of fresh air- removes pathogens.  Dry bed- 80% of its time lying down – reduces heat loss- straw, shavings. Good floor drainage.  Draught free-prevents pneumonia  Floor space- adequate- according to their size  Lighting  Aspect- away from prevailing winds  Dung Removal

 Disbudding must be completed within 3 weeks of birth unless buds have not developed

 Newly purchased calves should be isolated from others to observe signs of ill health.  Buy from known source- insure they were fed with colostrum  Flush system out with glucose & water & gradually introduce on to milk replacer over a period of 2-3 days  Feed colostrum  Dose  Look for lice, etc  Isolate sick animals  Vaccinate- protect against

 Turnout date depends on Weather. Soil conditions. Availability of Grazing.

 By the time the calf is four weeks old, he / she should be eating g of concentrates daily.  When the calf is weaned from milk replacer, he / she should be eating 500 g a day.  At this time the calf is allowed onto grass, but is still fed concentrates, hay and water.

 Calves should be allowed onto grass until the weather is warm.  The change from warm housing to cold outdoor conditions can cause a shock and can disturb the calf’s growth.  Meals should be fed for 2 – 3 weeks after being put onto grass, to help the calf adjust to the new diet.  Calves are selective grazers, and should always be kept on fresh, palatable grass and certainly should not be left graze pastures bare.

 They should graze under a leader – follower system.  They should always graze in advance of older cows.  This also inhibits the spread of stomach and lungworms.  When grass is scarce at the end of the summer, concentrates should be fed.  When calves are housed for the winter, they should weigh 200kg.

 May/June 25 calves/ha  July/August 12 calves/ha  September 5 calves/ha  October 2.5 calves/ha

 Creep feeding- access to both cow & fresh grass & Conc.  When grass is scarce should be fed conc. again.  Small weak calves should be separated & fed better to achieve target weight

Leader follower system  Calves first out onto grass followed by weanlings followed by yearlings, etc  Calves are more susceptible to picking up diseases than older cattle so calves are introduced first to avoid stomach worms etc  Rotational grazing- pastures are rested 3 weeks  Wormed & vaccinated before turnout

When to house  Weather  Breed  Soil type  Stocking rate  Grass supply  Housing: mid November  1.4m2 Floor space  0.7 m3 Air space  Slatted unit, cubicle,etc  Adequate space  Good flooring, as before

 Weaned off milk/milk replacer  Silage 0.75 tons/month  Good quality silage is capable of giving 0.5g/day weight gain  Conc fed if poor quality silage  0.5g conc. = good silage  2kg conc. = bad silage  Should be grouped according to size for ease of feeding.

 While out on grass calves will pick up stomach worms, liverfluke, mange & Lice= cause setbacks  Dosing & parasite control  Lice infestation can cause 30% setback  Lameness can be a problem due to overcrowding, poor floor conditions, etc.

 As before  Grass growth has be fertilized, N is spread once animals are removed  Soil sampling

 Less susceptible to disease than younger animals  Rotational grazing  Liverfluke  Stomach worms  Dosed  Vaccinated  Tested for TB & Brucellosis Veronica Walsh

 LWG 0.8kg/day  As before

 2.0 m 2 floor space  10m 3 air space  Silage  Disease & pest control as before  Ready for slaughter

1. Weight. 2. Fat Cover, Excess is wasteful and expensive. Condition Scoring is carried out..

Animals are fasted to:  Allow the rumen to be emptied prior to slaughter.  Decrease the chances of meat hygiene risk.  The glycogen in the muscle turns to lactic acid if the animal is stressed, this results in poor meat quality. Hanging the carcass:  Allows the blood to drain.  Also the enzymes breaks down tough fibres in meat.  Overall it results in better meat quality.

 Is the dead weight of an animal expressed as a percentage of its live weight.