: A field study was conducted to collect the information on calf management practices followed by the dairy animal owners of Navsari district of South Gujarat. Two hundred respondents of 10 villages having elite dairy animals were included in the study. Majority of respondents (97.67%) of Navsari district attended calving and took care of the calves after parturition while only 2.33 per cent of the respondents didn't do so. Barring 3.5 per cent of the respondents of rural area all others in rural as well as in urban areas attended calving and took care of the calves after the parturition. It was found that majority of the (83%) respondents cleaned the calf soon after calving and remaining 17 per cent of the farmers didn't followed this practice. The practice of cleaning of the calves just after calving was practiced by 74.5 per cent of the rural and all respondents of the urban areas.Around 40.5 per cent of rural and 61 per cent of the urban respondents allowed the calves to suckle their dams before expulsion of placenta whereas 59.5 (rural) and 39 (urban) per cent of respondents allowed the calves to suckle their dams only after the expulsion of placenta.

Dairy farming is emerging as commercial enterprise and milk as the part of dietary food but the milk productivity of the cattle varies with the variation in climatic factors. So, breed selection plays imperative role on maintaining productivity and adoptability in different environments. Holstein Friesian and Jersey being the temperate breeds with high milk producing capacities could not perform well on the tropical and sub-tropical region. With proper feeding, Holstein has higher milk yield and low-fat percentage than Jersey. Milk yield varies by 2.58% in Holstein and 2.09% in Jersey cow with the change in climatic factors (minimum temperature, relative humidity and solar radiation). In hot areas, both breeds suffer from heat stress showing low feed intake, higher body and rectal temperature, high respiration rates and high heart beats. Holstein has high increase than Jersey in rectal temperature and heart beat by 0.550C and 15.4 inhalations/min respectively which shows Jersey are more heat tolerant than Holstein. It is due to the larger heat dissipating area, short and light hair, lighter body coat and thin fat. Heat stress can be managed by providing shade, nutritious feed and genetic improvements. As the climate change is emerging, it can affect cattle in tropical regions even more in near future. To overcome this future challenge, further research and study must be done for the proper management of Holstein and Jersey in stress condition and heat tolerance breed must be developed by genetic improvement.