Penn State Cooperative Extension
Capitol Region Dairy Team
PREWEANED CALVES
AND COLD WEATHER
Dr. Arlen Mills
Extension Veterinarian
Capitol Region
We have all realized by now
that winter is upon us and hope
fully we have reacted properly to
meet the challenges of cold
weather.
We put on that extra coat,
those heavy gloves, or whatever is
needed to keep as comfortable as
possible while we wait for spring
to come.
But what about those calves?
Do they notice the cold as well?
When temperatures drop below
50 degrees, the young preweaned
calf must begin to adjust to its
surroundings to compensate for
the lowered temperature.
I have visited several farms
within the last month because
calf deaths had increased. Cold
stress was a major factor in each
of these and in two instances, no
infectious agents were identified.
Cause of death was attributed to
the cold weather.
At temperatures below 50 de
grees, the calf needs extra energy
to make body heat. If this extra
energy isn’t available from the
feed, then the calf will begin to
break down body tissue. Fat will
be used first but, if not available,
then muscle mass will be used
and the calf rapidly loses weight.
Dampness and drafts make the
problem worse.
These negative effects of the
cold can be lessened by one or all
of the following ways:
• Proper housing for calves is
important. Calves can tolerate a
lot of cold temperatures if they
are kept dry, well bedded, and
protected from drafts. The “calf
blankets” that are available are a
supplement to good bedding and
not a replacement.
• Calves bum calories to pro
duce body heat. This means that
in cold weather, we need to in
crease the supply of calories to
fuel the heater. This can be done
by increasing feed intake. Pre
weaned calves can be fed an ad
ditional volume of milk. The goal
is to feed the calf at such a level
that it will maintain a normal
body temperature and have
enough reserves left over to grow.
A rule of thumb is to increase
feeding rate in cold weather by 25
to SO percent. Tliis means feeding
up to three quarts twice daily if
two quarts is the “normal” rou
tine. I have seen some recom-
Land O’Lakes Supports Proposed PMMB Pooling Regulation
CARLISLE (Cumberland Co.)
Land O’Lakes, Inc., is encour
aging all Pennsylvania dairy pro
ducers to contact their legislators
and ask them to approve the
Pennsylvania Milk Marketing
Board’s (PMMB) proposed regu
lation to pool 45 percent of the
Pennsylvania over-order premi
um among all dairy farmers in
the state.
Land O’ Lakes was among sev
eral organizations who asked the
PMMB to draft a pooling regula
tion more than two years ago.
After a deliberative process open
to all processor and producer
Dr. Arlen Mills
mend mixing replacer 'at a
“stronger” rate but I would be
cautious in trying this, because it
can result in a nutritional diar
rhea. Another way to increase the
calf s caloric intake is to feed a
milk replacer that is higher in fat
content. Fat supplies the major
portion of the energy for the calf.
The fat content of dry whole milk
is almost 30 percent while milk
replacers vary from 10 percent to
20 percent fat levels. In cold
weather, be sure to use a replacer
that has a fat content at the top
of this level. Also, when mixing
replacer, be sure to use water that
is at least 110 degrees so that the
fat in the mix goes into suspen
sion. Colder water may result in
replacer with reduced availability
of fat. And feeding cold milk will
also drain additional energy from
the calf.
• Make sure that you keep a
high quality, fresh, dry starter
available. The very young calf
will not eat enough starter to pro
vide a major amount of energy.
The primary function of starter is
to develop the rumen of the calf.
As the calf approaches weaning
age, we hope the rumen is devel
oped enough so that the calf be
gins to transition from milk to
solid food as a source of energy.
Successful calf raising during
the winter will require extra ener
gy. This can be done in several
ways or in a combination of
ways. Start feeding increased en
ergy when daytime temperatures
are below freezing. And don’t for
get to offer water, which will en
courage calf starter intake.
And, yes, spring will be here
before we know it.
groups, the board submitted a
final regulation.
“We commend the board on its
regulation, formed through a
compromise of all groups,” said
Dennis Schad, Land O’Lakes di
rector of Mid-Atlantic regulatory
and marketing affairs. “We have
evaluated the effects that this
regulation would have on the
state’s producers and on Class I
milk sales in Pennsylvania, and
we’ve shown that pooling would
more fairly distribute the premi
um dollars without having any
impact on Class I sales.”
“With the current low milk
Commodity Classic To
Offer Profit Opportunities
ST. LOUIS, Mo. Commodi
ty Classic, Feb. 27-March 1, in
Charlotte, N.C., will be an excep
tional opportunity for soybean
and com producers to gather in
formation and knowledge that
will help them increase their fu
ture profitability. Based on indi
vidual interest, growers will
choose sessions they want to at
tend from a two-day schedule of
concurrent sessions on many top
ics. In addition, because of the
importance, all growers will have
the opportunity to attend a
stand-alone “Marketing Session.”
Commodity Classic, the eighth
annual convention and trade
show of the American Soybean
Extension Of)
EBENSBURGH (Cambria
Co.) Penn State Cooperative
Extension in Cambria County
will be conducting pesticide up
date trainings for crop producers
this winter. A pesticide applicator
certification exam will also be
given.
Meetings will take place Feb. 4
and March 4 from 1 to 3 p.m. at
the extension office in Ebensburg.
Two Category 1 credits and two
Core credits will be offered.
Topics for the three meetings
will include Problem Weeds of
Holstein Silent Auction To Feature 60 Lots
TULARE, Calif. The Next
Generation Holstein Silent Auc
tion during World Ag Expo, Feb.
11-13 in Tulare, will be featuring
60 lots from the industry’s high
est quality cow families. Com
prised primarily of first choice fe
male consignments, there will
also be some prominent flush
cows selling, as well as a number
of frozen embryo lots.
The sale will be open for bid
ding during normal trade show
Dairy Risk Management Workshop Set
SHELOCTA (Indiana Co.)
A dairy risk management work
shop is scheduled for Monday,
Feb. 10, at Sandy Kaye’s Restau
rant in Shelocta. The workshop
will begin at 10 a.m. and con
clude at 3 p.m.
The objective of this workshop
is to help Pennsylvania dairy
farmers develop the skills needed
to plan and budget future milk
production, income and ex
penses, and to incorporate dairy
futures into a marketing plan.
The workshop will focus on un
derstanding the basics of how
prices and last year’s drought sit
uation, all Pennsylvania produc
ers need those premium dollars
now more than ever,” Schad said.
“Postponing the pooling regula
tion’s release would needlessly
delay dairy producers in the state
from receiving their fair share of
the premium dollars.”
According to Schad, a proces
sor’s decision on whether to bot
tle their Pennsylvania Class I
milk in the state is dependent on
in-state and out-of-state milk
prices and should not be con
fused with the pooling regulation.
“We’re talking’ about two sepa-
Association (ASA) and National
Corn Growers Associ
ation (NCGA), provides numer
ous opportunities to learn, dis
cuss hot topics, see new products,
and network with other growers.
ASA President Dwain Ford
said, “Farmers, agribusiness lead
ers and other key players in the
agriculture sector come together
at Commodity Classic to share a
variety of valuable information
about production, products and
resources.”
NCGA President Fred Yoder
said, “With nearly 700 booths,
the trade show is an excellent op
portunity for growers to see a
wide variety of equipment and
’ers Pesticide Update Meetings
Pennsylvania, Herbicide Adju
vants, Insects in Forages, New
Herbicides, and Drift Control.
The registration fee is $3 per
person for individuals who pre
register. Cost for walk-ins will be
$5 at the door. To preregister,
send or drop off a check made
payable to Cambria County Ex
tension, P.O. Box 390,499 Manor
Drive, Ebensburg, PA 15931 at
least five days prior to the meet
ing date. Be sure to indicate
which meeting(s) you wish to at
tend.
hours (9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Tuesday
and Wednesday; 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
Thursday) in the Dairy Pavilion
of Western Dairy Business.
The sale will be organized and
managed by Burton-Fellers Sales
Inc., of Berryton and Overland
Park, Kan. The experienced sales
manager duo conducts hundreds
of sales every year, including the
Stars of the Silent Screen Sale, a
silent auction conducted during
World Dairy Expo.
The Next Generation Holstein
milk is priced, evaluating the
milk check, computing “basis,”
understanding futures markets,
learning how to forward
contract/hedge milk, developing
a marketing plan, and using a
hedging strategy.
The speaker for the workshop
is Ken Bailey, associate professor
of dairy markets and policy at
Penn State. Bailey has developed
a Web site to help Pennsylvania
dairy producers better under
stand marketing questions:
( HYPERLINK http://
dairyoutlook.aers.psu.edu/ fittp:/
Zdairyoutlook.aers.psu.edu/).
rate issues,” he said. “The pool
ing regulation addresses produc
er inequities, and it was a
compromise that pools a minority
of the premium dollars. It pro
vides little incentive for a produc
Large dairies often require a huge labor force. How do
dairies deal with communication management issues
involving Hispanic labor? What are the challenges other
producers have faced and what are their suggestions? See IBMj
the next issue of Lancaster Farming's Dairy Plus, geared
toward large-scale dairy operations, in the Feb. 15 issue.
Also scheduled: news from the Penn State Hispanic Workforce Management
Conference and what's required for the survival of the Northeast dairy
industry.
products in one convenient loca
tion, making it easier to compare
and ask questions.”
The special “evening of enter
tainment” will feature an exciting
and energy-filled show by Dia
mond Rio, an award-winning
country music group. Commodi
ty Classic is a perfect opportunity
for growers to include their fami
lies and spend a few extra days
enjoying the many activities in
and around Charlotte. Complete
details and registration infor
mation are on the Web at
www.commodityclassic.com or
call (636) 928-3700.
The pesticide applicator’s li
cense exam will be given Feb. 21
from 9 a.m. to noon at the exten
sion office in Ebensburg. No pre
registration is required to attend,
but call the extension office at
(814) 472-7986 to ensure ade
quate seating. Persons interested
in taking the exam should con
tact the Penn State Publications
Distribution Center at (877)
345-0691 to order the appropriate
pesticide training materials. The
Pennsylvania Department of Ag
riculture will be administering
the exam.
Silent Auction will feature Bxlo
photographs of the dams of each
consignment. Bids can be placed
by name or bidding number
(available at the sale information
table), with minimum bid incre
ments being $2OO.
For more information on the
sale, contact Dallas Burton at
(785) 379-9774 or fax (785)
379-9775; or Ed Fellers at (913)
897-4121 or fax (913) 897-0954.
Inquiries may also be e-mailed to
daUasburton@msn.com.
Cost of attending the work
shop is $5 per person, with a reg
istration deadline of Wednesday,
Feb. 5. This program is support
ed in part by a USDA grant from
the Northeast Center for Risk
Management Education.
Please bring a calculator and
your 2002 milk check stubs.
For additional information,
and registration detaUs, please
contact Eugene Schurman at
(724) 465-3880 or email at
HYPERLINK “mailto:exslO@
psu.edu” exslO@psu.edu.
er or producer organization to
evade it.
“Delaying the release of the
regulation any further would do
more harm than good,”Schad
said.