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blairsville,pa | So i've been workin in our old bank barn the last month or so gettin ready to pour concrete and built some pens to start bottle calves. I've read every piece of info I can find online. And I have a little experience with them but haven't raised any since I was 14. My question is about milk replacer..... Is the dumor's brand from TSC any good or are there better options? they have a special grade 20/20 that suggests 10oz 2x a day and a supreme 20/20 thats 10oz 2x. They only difference I see is the special one says from 21 to 60 days of age and the supreme one is from 2 to 60 days of age. Its also $16 more a bag. Should I start em on supreme one and switch to cheap one @ 3 weeks or just pick one and run with it? also I got a coupon for 10% off anything in the store if I stock up on these how long will they last on a shelf in the old milk house? sorry this got long winded just didn't wanna leave anything out. thanks! |
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north-central Indiana west of Fulton | Start with the supreme,and it should keep ok if you keep it dry. |
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northeastern Ohio | According to TSC's website, Dumor Ultra is made from 100% milk. Supreme and Blue Ribbon are a mix of soy and milk. I've always had better luck with the 100% milk products, but I've never used the Dumor brand.
My wife is the calf feeder and is currently feeding pasteurized milk. Since the switch, she has not lost any calves and has had very few scours. |
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NE Iowa | Been few years since we bought any bottle calves but always used the higher cost "all milk" for the first couple weeks. We then switched to the less expensive one that had soy in it for the rest of the time. I like to stock up on most things but I wouldn't want to get more then 2 months ahead in buying milk replacer. |
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blairsville,pa | thanks guys, think we'll start with the good stuff n switch em over after the 20 days. |
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SC KY | calves are babies. soy products are beans. |
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north east IN | I would buy some hutches to put the calves in and forget the barn till they are older |
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NWIN | I would put them in hutches for starters our death rate went from 40% to less than 5% when we took them out of the barn. As for you milk replacer question I wouldn't use cheep milk replacer, we tried a high quality milk replacer like land o lakes cows match. It is about $90 a bag and we feed 2- 2 1/2 lbs. a day and are weaning calves almost 30lbs heivier than with the cheap stuff. My opinion would be to at least talk to a land o lakes rep. and get an understanding of thier product. Hope this helps. |
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Southwestern Ohio |
Do not buy anything but all milk milk replacer, if you do you won't be starting calves long. Find somebody in your area that is starting calves and talk to them, they can tell you where to get good milk replacer at a reasonable price. People that are feeding their own calves can get away with things that calf starters can not get by with. Find somebody that is starting calves. Come back here and we will try to help you.
Larry |
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blairsville,pa | thanks larry & others. I have read the horror stories bout starting them in barn I should clarify some details my barn has 2 26x80 bays with milk house attached to one was planning on startin 30-40 in the pens wean em and move to other side to background em (steer stuffer) up to 500lb or so then try to market them as group vaccinated, implanted, wormed, n ready to go. I was thinking i'd be okay in the barn because it has 9' ceilings and is basiclly a wind tunnel with the doors open lots of light and air on both sides but you guys are scarin me now.
Edited by rocky grounder 2/22/2013 06:50
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indiana | the barn will be fine i have raised hundreds in barns over the years. but don't skimp on bedding and do not shut it up tight. and never waiste you money with less than all milk replacer. the stuff with soy you might as well just feed them from the garden hose as to use that junk. there is a knack to raising bottle calves. but once you learn you will be fine. |
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candor ny | Don't be to scared but in 05 when I wanted to start a herd to milk we raised them in my parents bank barn. It was a nightmare best thing I can tell you is cleanliness keep every bucket and bottle clean. Don't let them suck on each other or touch each other keep them on medicated starter with coccidiosis treatment. The wall for mow sweats and humidity is always high. Run a fan even on coldest days. You always want to pull air out and you can seal it up but run fan on east side or side with least wind. If one gets sick it spreads fast. Only buy from a farm if you can one that you know gives them there needed colostrum. I sold all my bull calf to a neighbor last year for one fee across the board and gave him a 4 day guarantee and if one was sick I hung onto it till I felt it was healthy enough to transition. It worked good for both of us. He lost three out of thirty |
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michigan | If you can single source your calves. Even if you have to pay a little more. We used to raise bottle calves sometimes had to buy from sale barn to fill pens up. I learned the hard way there are no bargains if you are buying sale barn calves you need to be paying at the top of the market of that day. You will be bidding against people that buy calves everyday. You need the patience of a saint and if not already a regular church goer. The best of luck to you. |
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Embarrass WI | I think you need to start less calves at a time, or put some of them outside in hutches. I feel it is important for baby calves to not be able to touch each other.
Do you have a better market for started Holstein steers than we do? Or are you just looking for a hobby? "Here", what you are proposing would be a guaranteed money loser. You might make something if you raised them up to slaughter, though corn would likely need to be less than $7 for that to work. |
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ND | Never use anything but all milk. Usually you get what you pay for and a cheap bag of milk replacer will likely give you poor results. I've switched to a 26% protein replacer and I won't go back to 20. My calves have never grown nicer or been healthier since I switched a few years ago. A little more money but IMO it definitely pays in the long run. You should be able to store the milk replacer for many months and not have a problem. |
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Eastern Ohio | You might want to use some "Calf Pro" in you milk replacer. |
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SoCenIL | After we switched to hutches are death loss went to nearly zero. All milk replacer like everyone else posted. |
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holsteins(again) milk replacer question
