Calves & Calving - LSB - Lifestyle Block

Calves and calving

The articles below cover almost everything there is to know about calves and calving. There are more articles in Cattle Behaviour, Cattle Handling and The Basics sections too. If you're looking for something in particular then use the search box above. If not, then browse the article titles and see what there is to help you. If you can't find an answer here then why not ask in our discussion forums? One of the very friendly and helpful members is sure to be able to help you.

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Calf rearing

Every spring, a new group of people get the urge to rear 'a few calves' to make some extra income.

Prepare for calving

Every lifestyle farmer who breeds cattle needs to have a good calving kit.

Buying calves?

If you buy calves directly from the farm where they were born you can see the conditions they have come from.

Digestion in the calf

The very young calf is described as "monogastric", ie. it has a single stomach like pigs, poultry, and mankind.

The importance of good calf rearing

Growth follows an S-shaped curve, and each stage on it affects the next one along. Birth weight strongly affects weaning weight, which then affects weight at puberty, which then affects weight at maturity.

Signs of calving

A few weeks before calving the cow will 'bag up'.

Cattle Twins

Twins in cattle are not common- about 1 set in every 4000 births. Some dairy farmers find they have a run of twins in some seasons and these are difficult to explain.