Email the milk replacer specialist for your region.

When a newborn calf enters the world, much of its future lies in our caring hands. Unlike humans and many other species, bovine mothers have a limited ability to pass immunity to their offspring in-utero.

Dr. Kimberley Morrill sees a lot of corollaries between raising kids and raising calves. “Our kids are the future, and my own boys are my life,” she declared. “Similarly, calves are the future of the dairy industry. For so long, they were viewed as an annoyance or a second-tier priority on dairies. “

Coccidia infections can damage the villi or limit their growth. That animal is then less able to absorb nutrients and efficiently convert feed over its entire lifetime, whether it is headed for the milking parlor or the feedlot.

So, what makes a “good” calf milk replacer? And what factors can make it even better?

It takes hard work and considerable investment to create a newborn calf. So, when that calf hits the ground, we want to do everything we can to give it the best possible start to a healthy and productive life.

When Nick Zubke started his job in maintenance at Strauss Feeds in 2013, it was a homecoming of sorts. “I’m from Watertown and live in the  house where I grew up, which is about 2 miles from the Strauss plant,” he shared. “The plant has been a part of our ‘neighborhood’ for my entire life.”