Shine Once-a-day promotes optimal calf development on Italian dairy farm

Giovanni Mazzetti milks 250 cows in the countryside between Milan and Verona, supplying his milk to the Latteria Soresinese co-operative with 200 other suppliers to manufacturing into a range of cheeses, yoghurts, butter and UHT milk.

Giovanni’s herd calves all year round with cows producing an average daily milk yield of 35-38 litres a day.

Age at first calving is 25 months and this is improving every year.

Recent research has suggested that an age at first calving of 23-25 months gives the best lifeline production in all year round calving Holstein herds; calving heifers earlier or later has a similar negative effect on lifetime performance.

A key influencer of future performance is the calf rearing period and many farmers focus on growth, achieved through colostrum intake, calf immunity and dry feed intake at weaning.

Colostrum provides the calf with antibodies to fight disease but, importantly, it also provides the calf’s microbial community, otherwise known as the microbiome, with nutrients to grow rapidly.

This microbiome helps develop the calf’s gut as the main site for digestion and immunity.

Feeding the calf good quality milk or milk replacer together with water, dry feed and roughage will further develop the microbiome and produce a robust and healthy adult cow,

Giovanni was introduced to Once-a-day calf milk replacer a number of years ago - the Shine Once-a-day formula which is sold in Italy as Shine Once-a-day and as Technique Once-a-day in France.

He admits he was very sceptical when he was asked to trial the product.

“We thought that it is better for the calf to drink several times a day from the mother. And so, changing for a single meal from the beginning….I had doubts.

“Then I decided to try the Shine Once-a-day, and now that I have started this program, I see that calves are healthier, calves are livelier.”

Calf development is optimal, he says.

“Maybe it’s a different growth at the beginning because we are used to seeing more round calves. But actually, the calves are taller and the objective weight is reached,” he adds.

The benefits are easily seen, both for the animals and the breeder, says Giovanni.

“The unique meal with Shine Once-a-day is a very good way to rear calves,” he says.

Giovanni feeds colostrum and transition milk for the first week and then introduces the calves to Shine Once-a-day fed at a rate of 500-600g/day.

After three weeks of age, waste milk is also fed and 50g of Shine Once-a-day is added to the each litre of milk used.

Weaning starts when calves are eight weeks old and they are fully weaned at 11 weeks.

Dr Christine Cummins, of Bonanza Calf Nutrition, says Giovanni’s comments demonstrate the importance of dry feed intake for building frame and making weaning easier.

“We recommend that calves are fed Shine Once-a-day according to size, 600-800g/day, and water, dry feed and roughage are available from day one,” she says.

“Published research has found that calves offered water from day one have a better microbiome to a calf offered water from day 17 onwards.

“In the research, although the difference disappeared at weaning the calves offered water from day one continued to outperform the other calves after weaning.”