Workshops Share Best Practices to Provide Consistent Calf Care

The Dairy Womens Network (DWN) Successful Calf Rearing Workshops that ran during the last few days of June has a simple message, ‘Keep it Simple’. Keeping the process at its most basic allows farmers to give their last calf the exact same treatment and attention as the first one. This keeps the quality of the production of each calf at a consistently high level when it reaches the consumer.

Farmers don’t have to institute sweeping changes in how they plan to do things at their farms to see quick results. Small adjustments and constant monitoring are all it takes to see improvement in the welfare of each calf and by extension, the herd as a whole.

The organisers of the workshops, however, were careful to mention that they were only suggesting practices that could work in their favour in the long run. No one attending was under any pressure to produce results by imitating the techniques discussed at the workshops.One of these methods was not allowing calves to join the rest of the herd until they are two years old and at least ninety percent of their expected adult body weight.

This has a lot to do with the nutrition of each calf, and no one knows more about nutrition than Takanini Feeds. They’ve been in the business of manufacturing calf feed for the last twenty years, and even have three retail outlets that they manage and operate to keep their names fresh in the consumer market.

Takanini Feeds are the producers of the ever-popular Chook Chow. The company also produces feed to suit any horse, regardlessof whether they’re elite sport and racehorses, or pony mounts, farm horses or weekend hacks. The Mangatawhiri Silo focuses on creating chicken feed, as well as nutritional options for pigs and horses throughout the year.

The feed the company produces is made with only the freshest and highest quality ingredients – all sourced from within New Zealand. Takanini Feeds is an active part of the Franklin/Papakura community, regularly donating Ag Day prizes for schools, supporting community sport groups and events whenever they are able.

If you want to learn more about Takanini Feeds and the specific services they have on offer, visit their website at http://www.takaninifeeds.co.nz.