Animal Husbandry Information

Frequently asked questions in Animal Husbandry

1. What is inbreeding? How will it affect my livestock?
2. I have heard that a commercial or purebred Sire should not be too heavy to breed cows and heifers. Not too heavy not too weak or thin. Then, what is the Ideal weight for bulls to breed regardless if they are show bulls or not ?
3. Pregnant cow? Details on "bumping" technique.
4. How many cows can you run with a bull?
5. The Fat & SNF content of the milk (yielded by a farmer) is not up to the standard. How can the quality of milk be improved ?
6. We have been observing a 4-day-old calf whose cord has dried, but the area is protruding. Would this be considered a navel hernia, and is this something that will go away as the calf grows? Or is this something that a vet should address?
7. From time-to-time we will get a newborn calf that just doesn't want to get up and go. If we catch it before it's mouth goes cold we can usually get some warm colostrum and then milk replacer in it, and it will come around. But if its mouth has gone cold, nothing seems to work. What can be done to get these cold calves going?
8. What is the proper way to tube feed a calf?
9. We have a problem with enterotoxaemia (overeating) in baby calves every year. Will vaccinating with 7-way or C&D at birth help?? Have heard baby calf's immune system is too immature to respond before 2 weeks of age.
10. How do I care for a newborn calf?
11. I have a 7 month old steer calf losing his hair around his front shoulders and head. How can I tell whether this is lice or if it is ringworm?
12. What is Brucellosis?
13. What causes calfhood scours?
14. What are scours?
15. What is the cause of mastitis? What are the clinical signs for it? And how can it be treated?
16. What is vibriosis?
17. How do I treat calfhood scours?
18. What are warts and how can I treat them?
19. What can I do to prevent my cow from bloating? She bloats every time she eats feed.
20. Is the tendancy for a cow to have a retained placenta somehow related to genetics and/or lack of proper nutrients?
21. We have had four of our five cows to lose a calf over the past year or so. One heifer just lost her calf at four months gestation, that was approximtely the time the other cows lost their calves. One other cow has gone on to have a very nice pretty heifer calf, and the other has carried just fine now and is within three months of calving. We have vaccinated on schedule after a bvd scare. Any help would be appreciated, we are new at this.
22. What is artificial insemination (AI)?
23. How long can semen be stored?
24. How should frozen semen be handled?
25. We have a small herd, good nutrition, mineral, seeing good heat, AI technician with 30 years of experience. Conception rate is worse than ever. Any thoughts? We use only AI, no clean-up bull.
26. How do you tell when a cow is in heat?
27. What is the normal temperature for cattle?
28. With a few new people here, and a lot of experienced people in the middle of calving and breeding, I thought taking a few minutes to post helpful hints and safety reminders would be nice for all of us. Here are some tips that come to mind.
29. What should I consider in choosing a breed of cattle to raise?
30. At what age does a calf or cow need a salt or mineral block? I'm pretty sure my calf (who is now 2 months old) is too young, but I'd like to know when I should get him one and if he'll even need it.
31. Our cattle were found to be severely deficient in copper, so much that it caused their immune systems to be compromised. Found out on posts from calves that died of pasturella. Any thoughts as to why this happened? We do feed a loose, complete mineral. We were told by the vet to force feed copper in the ration along with having free choice salt/mineral in front of them at all times. Anyone else ever have this happen?
32. What is the specialty of the Sunandini breed?
33. What is the Breeding policy of Kerala?
34. What is Progeny Testing Programme and what are its activities in Kerala?
35. What is Bull Rotation Programme?
36. What are the functional units of the Three-tier A.I. Network?
37. Not getting reasonable price for the milk sold to a Co-operative Society. Why?
38. What should do to cultivate fodder ? Where will get the seeds or cuttings
    (Root slips?)
39. How to organize and register a Dairy Cooperative Society?
40. Whom should be approached to redress a grievance about the functioning of a
    Dairy Co-operative Society?
    
    
    

Frequently asked questions in Animal Husbandry

1.What is inbreeding? How will it affect my livestock?

Inbreeding is breeding between close relatives. If practiced repeatedly, it often leads to a reduction in genetic diversity, and the increased gene expression of negative recessive traits, resulting in inbreeding depression. This may result in inbred individuals exhibiting reduced health and fitness and lower levels of fertility. Livestock breeders often practice inbreeding to "fix" desirable characteristics within a population. However, they must then cull unfit offspring, especially when trying to establish the new and desirable trait in their stock.

2. I have heard that a commercial or purebred Sire should not be too heavy to breed cows and heifers. Not too heavy not too weak or thin. Then, what is the Ideal weight for bulls to breed regardless if they are show bulls or not?

Prefer bulls with a body condition score around 6. A mature bull with body condition score of 6 would probably weigh between 1700 and 2100 lbs. For heifers the smaller bull would be better.

3. Pregnant cow? Details on "bumping" technique.

Once your cow is further along than 41/2, 5 month, you can generally see a triangle, a sunken in place on her right flank. When the fetus becomes large enough to fall over the pelvic rim and into the body cavity it sags the attaching muscles down and creates this sign. One day flat cow, next day great sunken-in place. In chute: With both hands flat and fingers spread wide out, place firmly against the right side of cow below this place on belly and push quickly and fairly hard in, and try to hold that position and feel. The little bulk of the calf within will swing back and 'bump' into You. Also, watch her right side when she drinks water. Often this will make the calf active and you can see the movement. As she trots away from you watch for the muscle attachment at the sides of her tail pull in response to the bobbing weight of a calf.

4. How many cows can you run with a bull?

It depends on the age of the Bull and the terrain of the land the cows are he is expected to breed. A yearling bull usually can handle around 20 cows in average conditions. A 2 year-old or older can handle around forty cows. Rough ground or when the cows are spread out can cut these numbers by half.

5. The Fat & SNF content of the milk (yielded by a farmer) is not up to the standard. How can the quality of milk be improved ?

Natural and man -made factors affect the Fat & SNF content of milk. Factors due to genetic inheritance of the animal cannot be rectified. Feeds and feeding can influence the Fat & SNF content of milk. For Technical advice, the Dairy Extension Officer of the area may be contacted.

6. We have been observing a 4-day-old calf whose cord has dried, but the area is protruding. Would this be considered a navel hernia, and is this something that will go away as the calf grows? Or is this something that a vet should address?

Could be, maybe not, I have a 4 month old heifer that looks like a Brahma in the naval area, whenever the vet stops by he checks her out and just shakes his head, not a hernia, just a floppy naval area.

7. From time-to-time we will get a newborn calf that just doesn't want to get up and go. If we catch it before it's mouth goes cold we can usually get some warm colostrum and then milk replacer in it, and it will come around. But if its mouth has gone cold, nothing seems to work. What can be done to get these cold calves going?

Would say that if they have had their colostrum and they still manage to get chilled, you have to get them warmed up by running heat on them, bringing them in the house and wrapping with blankets. We have found that just bringing them into the house will sometimes not warm them up enough, but to take a space heater and run the hot air right into their nose to that they breathe the heat will warm them up from the inside out. You can keep checking the rectal temp of the calf until it rises to a normal level and don't take the heat off of them until it is normal. Taking their temp will tell you if you have them where you want them.

8. What is the proper way to tube feed a calf?

Have someone hold the bottle so contents do not pour out or into the calf until the tube is set. I assume you have an esophageal feeder? It Must have the little bulb on the end of the tube or you will likely put the tube in the lungs. Now. straddle the calf and open its mouth wide enough to get the tube in the mouth and guide it to the back of the throat gently, then pushing with a slight upward motion feel it pop past the vocal cords. It should easily go in the calf about a foot. You can feel the bulge of the bulb through the fur on his neck. I prefer a flexible tube but many of the ones available are rigid so it is a little more uncomfortable on the calf. When you are satisfied that it is in the esophagus, firmly hold the tube in his mouth and let your partner hold the jug up to allow the milk to flow in by gravity. Then slowly pull the tube out and let a little milk end up on his tongue to help activate his senses. One to two liters is plenty for the first feed.

9. We have a problem with enterotoxaemia (overeating) in baby calves every year. Will vaccinating with 7-way or C&D at birth help?? Have heard baby calf's immune system is too immature to respond before 2 weeks of age.

First, an overview of enterotoxaemia. Its first symptom we notice are stools that were a watery, grayish color. But the calves seemed to feel fine.

We use a product on the cows and also vaccinate with the C and D within 24 hours after birth and then boost 21 days later. We have found that just the shot to the cows does not prevent it, but with the shot at birth to the calf, we prevent it almost completely. We, also, have heard that it doesn't work when they are so young, but experience has proven to us that it does. The vet told us to do this. It is cheap insurance (under 50 cents/shot), so why not use it? As the calves got younger when they got it, it looked like a bellyache, with the calf having a somewhat bloated tummy and lying on their side and kicking at their belly in pain. Stools then could be scoury or more normal. Once in a while, we would find a calf just dead for no apparent reason; learned that that was most likely a C and D death. Sometimes scour pills would cure it, but the best thing is to completely prevent it with a vaccine shot. We also raise sheep and the c & d is a very important shot for them also.

10. How do I care for a newborn calf?

Nature usually runs its course and everything goes fine with newborn calves. But there are several things that a rancher needs to check for, and several things you can do to make sure that your calf gets off to a good start. In order to survive, your calf absolutely MUST get a good dose of colostrum. Colostrum is the first milk from its momma and is rich in nutrients it needs for the calf to survive. Your primary concern when you first spot your newborn calf is to make sure that the calf gets up and nurses from the momma. If there is some problem preventing the calf from nursing, you either need to fix the problem or give the calf an alternative colostrum (such as frozen colostrum or dry-mix colostrum). When in doubt, call your vet and ask for advice.

As soon as your calf is born, you need to give it some form of identification. This is particularly critical if you are raising purebred animals. For most herds, this identification is a numbered eartag given either at birth or at the calf's first working. When you tag your calf, be sure to write down identifying characteristics -- sex, color, funny features (like that little spash of white in the center of its forehead). This gives you something to fall back on if for some reason your calf loses its eartag.

Dip the calf's navel cord in a treatment to prevent navel ill. Navel ill is a bacterial infection that travels up an infected umbilical cord soon after a calf is born. The disease is easily prevented by using a navel dip. You can buy the dip through your feed store or veterinarian or you can use the old stand-by, a solution of iodine.

Once you're done tagging and treating your calf, you need to ensure its safety and comfort. Like everything else in cattle care, common sense should be your guide. If it's cold out (particularly if snowy or icy), dry your calf and provide it some shelter. Make sure it's not near any immediate threats such as loose barbed wire or running creeks. Do what you can to minimize the threat of predators.

11. I have a 7 month old steer calf losing his hair around his front shoulders and head. How can I tell whether this is lice or if it is ringworm?

If it's lice you should notice the calf rubbing his head and body against anything that's standing around. If you can get close enough to him you could pull out some hair and if you look at it closely you might even see the lice crawling around in the hair. The other cattle are more than likely already infected too so you have to treat the whole herd. Any farm supply store has products for treating lice. I use Synergized Delice and dilute it with fly spray and use a garden sprayer to spray it over the animals. You can spray the whole animal but the lice seem to concentrate from the shoulders forward and back in the tail head area. Delice is actually a pour on but it's much faster to just spray it on than to run the animals through a chute and pour it on. I tried spraying it undiluted but it's too thick to get it through my sprayer. If anybody is wondering the garden sprayer is only used for spraying cattle. Cattle will lose their hair from ringworm too but that would leave a scaled appearance to the hide.

12. What is Brucellosis?

Here is an exerpt from UNEB on brucellosis. "Brucellosis (contagious abortion, Bangs disease). Although federal and state regulations have helped to control this disease, brucellosis is still a threat. Brucellosis is caused by the bacterium Brucella abortus and it is spread via infected placentas, vaginal discharges and aborted fetuses. Following the ingestion of B. abortus, susceptible cows or heifers may have abortions, retained placentas, weak calves or infertility problems. Milk from an infected cow also may harbor B. abortus. The infected milk creates a public health problem because B. abortus causes brucellosis ("undulant fever") in humans.".

13. What causes calfhood scours?

There have been a number of agents incriminated as causing calf scours, both bacterial and viral, which can occur singly or in combinations. The most frequent culprit continues to be the enteropathogenic E. coli organism. Although various types of E. coli are normal inhabitants of the intestine, some forms occur that are highly pathogenic (disease producing) resulting in severe scouring and often death.

Occasionally, bacteria such as Salmonella and viruses such as IBR virus cause outbreaks or isolated cases of calf diarrhea but their economic impact is minimal in the total industry. Viral diarrheas due to rotavirus or coronavirus are being diagnosed more frequently but at the present time there is no effective vaccine available and prevention through management and hygiene is the most effective measure.

Neonatal calf diarrhea is usually seen in calves one week old or less. Diarrhea problems in calves over 1-2 weeks of age are usually caused by agents other than E. coli organisms. Septicemic forms of colibacillosis may occur where sites of infection are located outside the intestines. These animals usually have a high temperature, they will be weak, off feed, and depressed. Frequently swelling of the joints and infections of brain tissues occur with accompanying blindness, weakness, stiff joints and occasionally convulsions. A very acute form of colibacillosis that causes death within 2 to 6 hours of birth has also been seen. In these instances the animals do not live long enough to show any evidence of scouring and the cause of death can only be diagnosed at a postmortem examination.

14. What are scours?

Scours is diarrhea in calves that can be either viral or bacterial in nature. It can be life threatening if not dealt with immediately.It can also be transmitted to humans if the proper precautions aren't followed.

15. What is the cause of mastitis? What are the clinical signs for it? And how can it be treated?

Mastitis occurs most frequently when you have a heavy milking cow and a calf that is not eating enough. The down side of cows that produce lots of milk is they are more likely to get mastitis and they are harder to keep through the winter. The up side is they raise the biggest calves. So you have to maintain a balance.More is not neccesarily better. The factors mentioned by lisa are also possibilities.

There a number of causes: stress infection, stepping on the bag, etc. One of the more prominant signs would be swelling in the udder. We treat our dairy cattle with antibiotics usually up the quarter that is infected, but if you don't have a good diagnosis as to what strain of bacteria, it might not be easy to find the right antibiotic. Maybe you could get a sample run to see then you would know what to treat with.

16. What is vibriosis?

Vibriosis is a nasty contagious, sexually transmitted disease in cattle, which you can protect against by vaccination. Periods of infertility, early abortions and slow return to heat, continuing services without conception, strung out calving. Cows can be carriers for long periods of time, and the bull spreads it.

17. How do I treat calfhood scours?

To understand the treatment of calf diarrhea it is perhaps easier to break it into its three parts: (1) control of the milk intake; (2) replacement of the calf's fluid and electrolyte intake requirements with warm electrolyte water solutions; and (3) the use of antibacterial drugs to remove disease producing bacteria from the gut.

The first two should be used simultaneously early in the course of the disease. The third may be used after veterinary consultation determines its necessity.

At the first sign of scouring in the calf the milk intake should be markedly reduced for 24 hours (preferably) or 12 hours (at least) and a warm electrolyte solution substituted (using a bottle and nipple for sucking calves).

The electrolyte solution concentrate should be purchased from a veterinarian who can advise on its use in conjunction with other management procedures. If is diluted with water heated to body temperature and the calf fed as much as it can consume (every 3 to 4 hours if the calf is dehydrated). The material can be given simply in a large pop bottle with a nipple. A calf may consume as much as 160 ounces of the material in a 4-hour period. If properly used the electrolyte solution will help prevent the dehydration and metabolic upsets which eventually kill the animal. They should be maintained in the calf's diet after the initial treatment until it is gradually back on a normal milk intake and is showing no signs of diarrhea.

Antibacterial drugs tend to be very overrated in the treatment of diarrhea but they are sometimes indicated. The choice of the drug and when to use it should be left with your veterinarian. The usefulness of these agents is continually changing as more and more bacteria become resistant to those in common use. The veterinarian is in constant contact with this disease and knows what drugs and current procedures are and are not effective. He should, therefore, be fully utilized by the farmer as a resource person in controlling the problem. By following the three parts of diarrhea treatment, beginning as soon as scouring is evident and continuing with a sound control program, the calf producer should expect to have few problems with neonatal calf diarrhea.

From time to time the owner may find a calf with diarrhea that is severely dehydrated, depressed, and unable to stand. This animal should receive veterinary attention and intravenous therapy as soon as possible. If a delay is encountered in getting assistance to the animal and it is still able to suck, the owner should give it all the warm electrolyte solution it can drink until the veterinarian arrives. Even with the best equipment and treatment an unacceptably high percentage of these calves die. Therefore, the owner must do everything he can to prevent his calves from reaching these final stages.

Occasionally difficulties are encountered in the feeding of calves from a bottle. The owner may consider obtaining a small stomach tube from his veterinarian and receiving training from him in the technique of using it. If a stomach tube can be used the electrolyte solution may simply be funneled through the tube into the stomach and the replacement of fluid made easier. The owner must, however, be adequately trained in using this technique or he can kill the animal very easily.

18. What are warts and how can I treat them?

If they are the warts that stick up the best way is to use a pair of pliers, grasp it firmly with the pliers & squeeze(you don't have to pull it off) this will release an immunity property into the bloodstream that will cause the wart to die & drop off(it will probably bleed). If it is just a small wart the sunshine will eventually kill it.

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19. What can I do to prevent my cow from bloating? She bloats every time she eats feed.

There are two temporary measures that will help alleviate the problem but it won't cure it. One is to get some mineral oil (about a quart or two) down her with a coke bottle or a tube (but it isn't a good idea if you don't know what you are doing with the tube), the other thing that works is Terramycin Crumbles (get it at your cattle supplies store) Mix it with her feed. There is a more permanent solution you can try & that is Pro-bios. It will put the bacteria back in the stomach so she can utilize her feed better. If she continues to bloat I would recommend a vet, or if you have already had one out you probably should consider selling her. There is also a bloat medicine you can buy but I have no idea what the name is ( ask at your store.)Hope this helps.

20. Is the tendancy for a cow to have a retained placenta somehow related to genetics and/or lack of proper nutrients?

Lack of proper nutrition, our vet implicated lack of selenium. We made sure selenium was in our mineral mix this past year and have not had a problem. I've heard a vitamin (can't think which one right now) might be responsible, also. The main thing about vitamin and mineral deficiencies is they usually take a long time developing and a long time fixing. There are exceptions to this rule, of course. The herd health will be greatly improved by providing vitamins and minerals year 'round and based on what else they are fed. Lots of people on this board will testify to the value of regular mineral supplementation.

21. We have had four of our five cows to lose a calf over the past year or so. One heifer just lost her calf at four months gestation, that was approximtely the time the other cows lost their calves. One other cow has gone on to have a very nice pretty heifer calf, and the other has carried just fine now and is within three months of calving. We have vaccinated on schedule after a bvd scare. Any help would be appreciated, we are new at this.

Abortion from bvd happens from 30 to 130 days of gestation, while bangs and lepto are in the last trimester. You said that vaccinated for bvd, all vaccines that I have seen require two shots 3 to 4 weeks apart and then once a year. If yours cows were bred at the time you vaccinated you should use a vaccine safe for pregnant cows.

22. What is artificial insemination (AI)?

Artificial insemination (AI) is the process of impregnating a cow with semen that has been removed from a bull. When done effectively, AI has success rate similar to that of natural breeding.

AI is used for a variety of reasons, some of which include:

• choosing the sire (or sires) for your breeding program from a world-wide pool of genetics.
• avoiding the expense and added trouble of keeping bulls in pasture.
• breeding more cows to a single bull at one time than would be possible with natural breeding.

23. How long can semen be stored?

Indefinately. You may lose some potency, but as long as the tank is full of nitrogen, it will keep for years. Use tongs to retrieve semen.

24. How should frozen semen be handled?

Semen want last long out of the tank. Your supposed to transfer semen from one tank to another in less than three seconds. When getting ready to A.I. a cow you transfer it from the tank to a water bath which should be 95 degrees, you want to do this as fast as possible. You can leave it in the water bath from 30 seconds to 15 minutes. You can touch it for a short period of time, I have removed it from the tank with my hands before, but I use tweezers most of the time.

25. We have a small herd, good nutrition, mineral, seeing good heat, AI technician with 30 years of experience. Conception rate is worse than ever. Any thoughts? We use only AI, no clean-up bull.

A successful AI program is dependant on dozens of factors, any one of which, if lacking, can ruin your results. Its impossible to identify what your problem might be without alot more information, but some things to think about would include:

1. Semen quality - not all semen sold is of the same quality. Semen can be mishandled. Consider having it checked.

2. Days post partum - conception rate on cows that have not had adequate time to recover from calving may be lower.

3. Heat detection and timing of breeding - are you sure the right cows are being brought in to breed, are they in heat, and are they being bred at the right time? The best time is approx. 12 hours from onset of standing heat.

4. Stress - are cows subject to undue stress prior to and during breeding?

5. Cow condition - are cows overfat or too thin? Condition of the cow when she calves is a major factor in determining how long it takes a cow to begin cycling. Cows have a higher conception rate when they are gaining weight.

6. Trace minerals - are cows receiving adequate trace minerals? Water quality can affect trace mineral availability. Might there be a benefit to feeding chelated mineral?

7. Urea plasma - a condition characterized by sores or blisters inside the vagina which can reduce conception rates.

8. Cow fertility - what is the reproductive history of the cows in question?

9. Disease - hopefully not, but it is a good idea to vaccinate for the common problems in your area. See your vet.

10. Luck - a necessary component of every AI program. Hope yours improves!

26. How do you tell when a cow is in heat?

It can be a little difficult to tell if you don't have at least 2 or 3 head of cattle together. If a heifer or cow stands still to be mounted by another cow or steer, she will be ready to inseminate about 10 hours later. We glue heat mount detectors on the rumps of our cows and check the cows as frequently as possible. At a minimum, you should check once very early in the morning, and observe the animals for at least 20 minutes, and once in the evening. Most cows tend to come into heat in the mornings but that can vary widely. If we miss observing the standing heat, our heat mount detectors will change color when the cow stands for mounting and give us some clue. Our friends who have a large ranch have a "gomer" bull who has had a vasectomy. He can't impregnate a cow, but doesn't know that, so he goes about his business with all of the enthusiasm of a complete bull. They watch to see who he is following around and have a better than 80% successful insemination rate, which is excellent. Then, there is the exception - we have one cow that we always thought had "silent heats." But, by observing her closely, I learned to know she is coming into heat when she stands gazing through the fence and moans a lot. The heat mount detectors can work on her, but she is such a dominant cow in the herd that the other cows don't mount her as readily as they do others. Now that we know what to watch for, we inseminate her without difficulty. Take a look at my web site. This cow is the mother of Hannah, our 76 pound birthweight heifer calf who was 40" tall at the hip weighed 320# at 81 days of age!

27. What is the normal temperature for cattle?

101.5 F +/- 1 degree, 38.5 C +/- .5 degree

28. With a few new people here, and a lot of experienced people in the middle of calving and breeding, I thought taking a few minutes to post helpful hints and safety reminders would be nice for all of us. Here are some tips that come to mind.

1. Confine the cow for your safety, and hers. I would NOT recommend hobbles unless you're experienced with these.

2. If you use gates or panels as a chute to confine a cow, use extreme caution reaching between boards to administer shots. If the cow jumps your arm could be pinned. Don't reach between boards to milk her, if she kicks your arm is history.

3.The best way to handle bulls: both the bull and the handler should have a great deal of respect for the other.

4. Take a extra few minutes to do it right the first time.

5. If that newborn is stressed that is when it really needs warm colostrum the most, and the least likely to get it on his own. I found tubing reconstituted dried colostrum to be easy, economical, and gets that calf going fast. It can be done in the field, so you may not have to pen that cow.

6. Watch how those little ones act. If you have a newborn that is still wet, it's cold outside, and that calf is flat on his side, you may have trouble. Rub it down and get it on its belly with legs tucked under. If he's dry, it's 70 degrees and sunny, he's just sunning himself. (But sometimes I walk up and make sure!)

29. What should I consider in choosing a breed of cattle to raise?

The kind of environment your in makes a big difference. You need to match your cattle to the environment. Brahman cross cattle don't do as well in colder climates, they do quite well in hot climates. Some of your decision will be based on what works best for your individual circumstances. I can't believe that there is one breed that is PERFECT for every circumstance. Everyone would raise that particular breed if it was perfect for everyone. Hereford-Angus crosses have worked for over a hundred years in the plains states.

30 At what age does a calf or cow need a salt or mineral block? I'm pretty sure my calf (who is now 2 months old) is too young, but I'd like to know when I should get him one and if he'll even need it.

Are you talking dairy or beef cattle? They have different requirements. Dairy cattle will get most of the nessary salt from grain and other sources that are fed in the course of milk production. A selenium/salt block or trace mineral or both would be appropriate for dairy cattle. With beef cattle, it depends on the region of the country you live in. Here in Idaho there is very little natural salt. Our recommended dose is two 25# bags of free salt, one bag of magnesium, and two hand-fulls of selenium. I put these out in old mineral tubs as a free choice feed where the cows tend to gather. Your calf will start on the blocks at a pretty young age. Its system will tell it when it needs the minerals. By the way, a selenium shot when the calf is first born, especially for beef cattle, will prevent white muscle disease. For dairy calves, it's not quite so important, as the mother passes on a lot of this in her milk. I'd still give the dairy calf a shot, if it were me.

31. Our cattle were found to be severely deficient in copper, so much that it caused their immune systems to be compromised. Found out on posts from calves that died of pasturella. Any thoughts as to why this happened? We do feed a loose, complete mineral. We were told by the vet to force feed copper in the ration along with having free choice salt/mineral in front of them at all times. Anyone else ever have this happen?

Yes, in the western US. It has to do with certain minerals tying up the absorption of others, I believe molybdenum ties up copper. All our calves receive a bolus at 500 lbs, like a magnet - heavy -which stays in the rumen for some time and slow releases copper. Our primary symptoms were light colored & thin hair coat and too much snots, etc, some delayed conception even on very good feed.

32. What is the specialty of the Sunandini breed?

Sunandini is a minor miracle of sorts wrought by the Kerala Livestock Development Board and the dairy farmers of Kerala over the last four decades: a new breed of dairy cattle custom made for the God’s own country: Kerala. There are of course many examples of new breeds of cattle created in the developed world during the 19th and some in the 20th century, but nothing comparable in size (over 2 million individuals in the population) and economic importance: the mainstay of the dairy industry in Kerala, major livelihood support for over a million small holder households and a whopping Rs.2700 crore contribution to the state GDP annually!

Sunandini is a combination basically of the Kerala non-descript cow and the Brown Swiss and Jersey breeds, developed initially under the Indo-Swiss Project Kerala and later with contributions of Holstein Friesian in small measure and with some inputs of Sahiwal, Gir, Rati and Kankrej breeds. For over forty years the male and female of this mixed breed had been mating among themselves (genetic isolation) under a well-planned breeding programme with moderate to intense selection pressure. In the development programme of Sunandini, there is no further input of Brown Swiss while there are increasing inputs from HF and Jersey according to changing preferences of the dairy farmers. Under this careful breeding programme the production parameters of this breed / population had steadily improved in terms of milk yield and sustainability.

Through the implementation of a scientific and structured breeding programme, the genetic architecture of the cattle population of Kerala changed - 78 per cent of the cattle were converted into the new breed, Sunandini by the year 2000 – increasing the total milk production to 26 lakh tonnes.

Intensive and structured breeding programmes taken up in the State during the last 3 & 1/2 decades have considerably increased the milk production. The accepted breeding policy of the State envisages crossbreeding, limiting the exotic inheritance to around 50% followed by selection and inter se mating The new 'composite breed' of cattle evolved by crossing nondescript cattle with exotic donor breeds (Brown Swiss Jersey and HF) limiting the exotic inheritance to 50% was formally named Sunandini.

34. What is Progeny Testing Programme and what are its activities in Kerala?

In order to assess the breeding value of the Sunandini bulls for milk production, the Board started a progeny testing programme during the year 1977 based on a field milk recording system. This is a joint project of the State and the Central Government. The ICDP regions of Mavelikara, Kanjirappally, Vaikom and Kattappana were selected for carrying out the inseminations using semen from the young Sunandini bulls (test bulls .

The factors influencing the selection of those areas were :

i) density of cattle population
ii) diversity in the geography among the locations
1500 test inseminations are being carried out using semen from each bull tested with the intention of obtaining at least 50 completed first lactation records from the progeny.

35. What is Bull Rotation Programme?

The RSBs collect the semen doses from the bull stations as per requirements from time to time. The bulls used for the AI programme in the state are grouped into 3 families. Related bulls are kept under the same group and when new bulls are added, they are enrolled under the concerned bull families. (predetermined by their parentage) The state is divided into 3 breeding zones for the purpose of bull rotation and one group of bulls is employed under a zone for a period of 3 years and then allotted to next. The procedure helps in the distribution of the genetic materials more or less in an uniform pattern throughout the state, thereby minimising the chances of inbreeding.

The State has a three-tier Artificial Insemination (A.I.) management system to provide the inputs for cattle breeding namely:
Bull Stations
Regional Semen Banks (RSB)
Artificial Insemination Centres

37. Not getting reasonable price for the milk sold to a Co-operative Society. Why?

 Ensure that no adulteration takes place to the milk from the time of Milking till it reaches the society by any other person handling it. If the complaint still persists, contact the local Dairy Extension Officer or Quality Control Officer.

38. What should do to cultivate fodder ? Where will get the seeds or cuttings
(Root slips)?

Suitable well drained land with sufficient irrigation facilities should be selected. Land may be prepared for sowing or seeds or planting root slips. For seeds/ root slips & technical advice the nearest Dairy Extension Service Unit may be contacted. Seeds / root slips are made available free of cost.

Ensure from the Dairy Extension Service Unit that the place is outside the operational area of any other dairy cooperative society. A formal application signed by at least 25 members belonging to different families may be submitted to the Deputy Director of Dairy Development of that district. He will issue directions to the Dairy Extension Officer to conduct the organizational meeting for the formation of the society and take further action.

40. Whom should be approached to redress a grievance about the functioning of a
Dairy Co-operative Society?

The Dairy Extension Officer of the area may be contacted for the redressal of grievances. If a solution is not found, the Deputy Director may be contacted.

Last updated: 16-1-2007