by: Rory Lewandowski, Extension Educator Wayne County
OSU Extension Wayne County is hosting a Dairy Calf Management Workshop on Tuesday March 8 from 9:00 am until 3:00 pm. The workshop consists of morning classroom sessions and an afternoon on-farm session. Raising dairy heifer calves to freshen at 22 to 24 months of age requires good management that maintains calf health. Each dairy heifer represents a two-year investment before any economic returns are realized. In these times of low milk prices, volatile market conditions and high feed prices, dairy producers and managers need to evaluate their calf rearing program and make sure that it is effective and efficient.
The purpose of the dairy calf management workshop is to help participants:
- Improve the growth efficiency of dairy heifer calves
- Foster sound health of calves through management of their feeding and housing programs along with a prescribed vaccination program
- Improve the financial understanding and implications of raising dairy heifer calves
- Review the pros and cons of various rearing systems
- See an example of a local dairy calf rearing system
The workshop will begin with registration and refreshments at 9:00 am at the Wayne Presbyterian Church located at 7152 Burbank Rd (SR 83) Wooster at the intersection of SR 83 and Jentes Roads. The program will begin at 9:30 am. Morning topics include: Feeding, Housing Options/systems, Costs of Raising Heifers and Developing a Vaccination Program for Heifer Calves. A hot lunch will be provided at noon. The afternoon session will take place at the Virgil Gasser dairy farm located at 3093 E Pleasant Home Rd, Creston OH 44217. At the Gasser farm participants will see an automated calf feeding system and hear about the farms calf raising program.
The cost of the program is $25/person or $40 /farm (2 persons). Checks can be made payable to “OSU Extension”. The cost includes refreshments, lunch, and program handout materials. Pre-registration is required and the workshop limit is 32 persons. Registration deadline is Tuesday, March 1. Registrations can be sent to: Rory Lewandowski, OSU Extension Wayne County, 428 West Liberty Street, Wooster OH 44691. A brochure that includes more details about the topics and a registration form is available on the Wayne County Extension web site at: http://go.osu.edu/calfmgmtworkshop . For more information contact Rory Lewandowski at the Wayne County Extension office at 330-264-8722 or via email at: lewandowski.11@osu.edu.