The management of calves on an early-weaning system: the relationship of voluntary water intake to dry feed intake and live-weight gain to 5 weeks

Thickett, W. S.; Cuthbert, Norman H.; Brigstocke, T. D. A.; Lindeman, M. A.; Wilson, P. N.

doi:10.1017/s0003356100025162

Cited by 13 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 8 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The missing satiety of calves fed low volumes of milk was expressed in other trials by considerably more visits to the milk feeder without receiving milk compared to calves fed large volumes of milk (Borderas et al, 2009;de Passillé et al, 2011). It was suggested 30 years ago that calves benefit from the provision of water early in life through improved performance (Thickett et al, 1981). However, ad libitum water access for young calves in Europe is often still not realized at dairy farms because legislation dictates ad libitum water access only for calves older than 2 weeks of life.…”

Section: Feeding Regimes P Feeding Regimementioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Water and concentrate intake, weight gain and duration of diarrhea in young suckling calves on different diets

Wenge

Steinhöfel²,

Heinrich³

et al. 2014

Livestock Science

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

a b s t r a c tDiarrheic calves are fed with milk or milk replacer and oral rehydration solutions (ORS) to ensure energy and electrolyte supply. An easy and time-saving method is the preparation of ORS in milk. As milk-based ORS are hypertonic solutions administration of them may trigger thirst. Therefore, we hypothesized that restrictively fed calves receiving ORS prepared in milk had a higher water intake than restrictively and ad libitum fed calves receiving ORS prepared in water during diarrheic episodes.The daily water intake was measured in 100 individually-housed Holstein Friesian calves from day 2 to 21 of life. One group of the calves was fed with restrictive amounts of milk, the other group got milk ad libitum by an automated milk feeder. Nearly all calves spontaneously developed diarrhea within the observation period from day 2 to 21 of life. In cases of diarrhea the restrictively-fed calves received ORS prepared in milk or ORS prepared in water two hours after their milk meal, whereas the ad libitum-fed calves only got ORS prepared in water. All calves had ad libitum access to water. The daily intake of water, milk, and ORS and weight gain during diarrheic episode were determined. Data were expressed as arithmetic means ( 7standard deviation) and analyzed by using a oneway ANOVA or repeated-measures ANOVA.From day 2 to 21 of life calves fed with restrictive amounts of milk had higher water intakes related to the total dry matter intake (DMI) with 1.6 L/kg of total DMI than ad libitum-fed calves (0.9 L/kg of total DMI) per day. In cases of diarrhea water intake increased in all feeding groups. The calves receiving milk-based ORS had the highest water intake with 1.7 L/d during the period of diarrhea compared to the calves received ORS prepared in water. Moreover, the calves fed ORS in milk showed with 4.6 L/d the highest daily ORS intake. There were no differences in the duration of diarrhea or the daily weight gain during period of diarrhea between the feeding regimens. Therefore, it can be concluded that all feeding regimens were suitable in the treatment of calf diarrhea. The simplest method to treat calves suffering from diarrhea is the preparation of ORS in milk, but then ad libitum availability of water is absolutely necessary. Moreover, calves drink considerable amounts of water within the first 3 weeks of life and therefore should be provided with water for animal welfare reasons.

show abstract

Section: Feeding Regimes P Feeding Regimementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Usually great individual differences between the water intakes of young calves were noticed (Jenny et al, 1978;Thickett et al, 1981;Kertz et al, 1984). This underlines that it is not acceptable to specify an age limit from which calves have to have ad libitum water access.…”

Section: Feeding Regimes P Feeding Regimementioning

confidence: 99%

Water and concentrate intake, weight gain and duration of diarrhea in young suckling calves on different diets

Wenge

Steinhöfel²,

Heinrich³

et al. 2014

Livestock Science

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Overall, a lack of scientific evidence on drinking water intake (FWI) of newborn calves and its effect on their performance likely encumbers the effectiveness of efforts promoting the notion of offering drinking water to newborn calves at birth. Thickett et al (1981) indicated the importance in examining the effect of the age at which calves are first offered drinking water. Then, Kertz et al (1984) conducted an observational study using data from several calf trials conducted by Ralston Purina (St. Louis, MO) and demonstrated more than 30% increase in starter intake and weight gain in calves receiving drinking water from birth compared with calves deprived of drinking water until they were 28 d of age.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Drinking water intake of newborn dairy calves and its effects on feed intake, growth performance, health status, and nutrient digestibility

Wickramasinghe

Kramer

Appuhamy

2019

Journal of Dairy Science

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Although it is recommended to offer free drinking water (called drinking water hereafter) immediately after birth, producers wait, on average, 17 d to first offer drinking water to newborn dairy calves. The objective of this study was to examine water and feed intake, growth performance, health status, and nutrient digestibility of Holstein heifer calves offered drinking water from birth (W0) as compared with those offered it at 17 d of age (W17), when fed an ad libitum volume of milk. Thirty Holstein heifer calves, balanced for parity of the dam, birth weight, and birth week, were randomly assigned (n = 15) to W0 or W17. Calves had free access to drinking water and a starter ration, offered in 2 separate buckets, until they were 70 d of age. Calves were bottle-fed with pasteurized whole milk 3× per day (2.0 kg/feeding until d 14, and 3.2 kg/feeding thereafter). Calves were partially weaned (33% of the milk allowance 1 × per day) at 42 d of age and completely weaned at 49 d of age. Drinking water intake, starter intake, milk intake, ambient temperature, and the fecal consistency were recorded daily. Body weight, hip height, hip width, heart girth, and body length were measured weekly. Blood (drawn from a jugular vein) was analyzed for hematocrit and haptoglobin concentrations at 14 d of age. On d 69 and 70, total fecal output of individual calves was measured and analyzed for chemical composition to determine apparent total-tract digestibility of nutrients. When offered from birth, newborn calves consumed 0.75 ± 0.05 kg/d water aside from the water they received from ad libitum milk allowance during the first 16 d. Once offered, W17 calves drank more water (59%) than W0 calves during the preweaning period. Starter intake of W0 and W17 calves was similar, but W0 calves consumed 0.285 kg/d more milk and tended to achieve greater body weight and heart girth compared with W17 calves during the preweaning period. Offering water from birth versus offering it later did not affect the number of days with diarrhea, intensity of diarrhea, or blood hematocrit and haptoglobin concentrations of preweaned calves. Despite a similar starter intake, W0 calves had greater hip height, body length, apparent total-tract digestibility of acid detergent fiber and neutral detergent fiber, and feed efficiency than W17 calves postweaning (50 to 70 d of age). When followed up to 5 mo of age, W0 calves had greater body weight than W17 calves. Provision of drinking water immediately after birth could improve growth and development of calves pre-and postweaning, potentially by stimulating rumen development, thus increasing nutrient availability.

show abstract

“…Reported data on water intake in young calves are scarce. In general, the reported values averaged less than 2 L/d for the first 3 wk and then increased with starter intake and weaning (Thickett et al, 1981;Kertz et al, 1984). A more recent experiment determined that free water intake was similar between 2 MR feeding levels and increased as starter intake increased (Quigley et al, 2006).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…In a survey of operations in the United States, the average age water was first offered was 6.6 ± 1.3 d (range 4.1 to 10.6 d) for operations classified as large or small, respectively (USDA, 2012). However, it is important to provide water earlier to dairy calves because they increase the amount of free water they drink after both colostrum intake and transportation (Thickett et al, 1981;Kertz et al, 1984). Soon after arrival, all calves averaged approximately 1.5 L/d of free water intake within the first week of age.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Intake and growth in transported Holstein calves classified as diarrheic or healthy within the first 21 days after arrival in a retrospective observational study

Morrison

LaPierre

Brost

et al. 2019

Journal of Dairy Science

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Strategies that can improve health and maximize growth in the preweaning period should improve the subsequent production and longevity of replacement animals. Few data are available that quantify feed and water consumption, as well as growth, in healthy versus non-healthy calves-the objective of this study. A database of Holstein calves (<1 wk of age; n = 313) was developed to compare calves that developed diarrhea in the first 21 d after arrival from commercial farms to the research facility versus calves that remained healthy. Individual calf data from 4 experiments included daily intake of milk replacer, free water, electrolyte solution, and starter grain, as well as weekly body weight (BW) and frame measures for 21 d after arrival. Calves with a fecal score of >2 for ≥3 consecutive days over the first 21 d of each experiment were retrospectively classified as diarrheic (DIA; n = 96); the remainder were classified as healthy (HEA; n = 217). Other health issues were minimal. The likelihood of elevated fecal score occurrence and the cumulative number of days with an elevated score were greater for DIA calves than for HEA calves. The initial total protein concentration in blood did not differ between classifications. Cumulative milk replacer dry matter intake (DMI) and water consumed from milk replacer were significantly less for DIA calves than for HEA calves, because DIA calves were more likely to refuse milk replacer. Cumulative starter DMI was decreased for DIA versus HEA calves. As a result, cumulative total DMI was significantly less for DIA calves than for HEA calves. Cumulative free water intake did not differ between classifications. The DIA calves were more likely to receive electrolyte solution and have more days given electrolyte solution than HEA calves. As a result, total cumulative intake of electrolyte solution was greater in DIA calves than in HEA calves. Cumulative total water intake did not differ between classifications. Initial BW did not differ between classifications; however, a classification × time interaction for BW indicated that HEA calves were heavier than DIA calves and had greater ADG. Significant classification × time interactions for hip height and heart girth revealed that HEA calves had a larger frame size. Gain-feed ratios for both milk replacer intake and total DMI differed between classifications: DIA calves were less feed-efficient than HEA calves. In conclusion, diarrhea in young calves decreases DMI, BW gain, and feed efficiency relative to HEA calves within 21 d of arrival.

show abstract

The management of calves on an early-weaning system: the relationship of voluntary water intake to dry feed intake and live-weight gain to 5 weeks

Cited by 13 publications

References 8 publications

Water and concentrate intake, weight gain and duration of diarrhea in young suckling calves on different diets

Water and concentrate intake, weight gain and duration of diarrhea in young suckling calves on different diets

Drinking water intake of newborn dairy calves and its effects on feed intake, growth performance, health status, and nutrient digestibility

Intake and growth in transported Holstein calves classified as diarrheic or healthy within the first 21 days after arrival in a retrospective observational study

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About