Bedding

[Kelly]

What is the best bedding that you use for calves? Most affordable but provides a nice warm , dry enviornment for bedding down especially during cold and damp weather. It also has to be easy enough to clean out of the shelter. I am just looking for opinions on what you may use.
Thanks

 

[Alice]

We housed our bottle babies in the white calf hutches....ya' know, look like little houses with a vent in the top and a window with a drop door on the side, and an big opening in front that sat on the ground.

Now keep in mind, we're in Texas.

That said, I started raking leaves when they started to fall at the beginning of autumn. That's what I used for bedding when the temps dropped down to a point that I knew they needed the extra warmth. I'd put 2 huge trash bags full of those leaves in the hutches and those calves would burrow down in them. The reason I used the leaves instead of hay? The cost, but they worked good. And, there wasn't any dust.

Where you are...pine chip bedding, straw? I dunno. There is cost involved, I know.

Alice

 

[BH]

I have always used wheat straw to bed with. I keep some square straw bales around just in case. When you need some just break one open and spread it around.

 

[msscamp]

If they are calving in the corral (first calf heifers), we use old trashy hay or straw to keep the calves out of the muck. If they are calving in the pasture, we don't use bedding - period. At the risk of sounding like Caustic, it is the mother's job to clean the calf, keep it warm, and raise it. With the exception of a few complications brought about by a major snow storm (or delivering twins), our girls are quite capable of performing their job quite nicely.

 

[Limomike]

Same here msscamp; my mommas take care of the little ones out in the pasture quite well! Now if by chance I have a problem one, I bring it in to a shelter and put down some hay for it to lay on.

 

[tlmcr]

We have a sawmill about 45 minutes away and they sell shredded wood bedding. It is more course than sawdust and finer than mulch. It works great because it absorbs far more moisture than hay or straw and it is very cheap, $5 for a pick up load. We use it in the pens for sale/show calves and they stay clean longer. Good luck

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

We also use shredded wood "chips" in pens in the barn - $25/pickup load. $5 would be nice :shock: easy clean out compared to straw, but they cannot "snuggle" down in it. We ususally build a "nest" of straw in the corner for the calf and they ALWAYS use it.
Bedding depends on your location and time of year. Many people here in NY say "we calve outdoors" - but than when you get asking, they have a lot of dead calves, unless they are waiting til May. March & April too much mud, unless there are very few cows on lots of land, and you can keep moving hay feeder so that it is not a bog waiting to suck down a newborn. Winter waaaayyy too cold & DAMP. The dampness & wind is what will kill the calf.
A large producer out here does calve outdoors (southern NY) in the pines & heavily bedded with straw & has great success.

 

[Kelly]

Thanks for your ideas.
I am not talking about calving ..I have some early weaned calves that are still quite small that are getting over a cough and I just want them to have a nice dry place to stay warm on the cold & wet nights. I have been using my square bales of hay & really want to find something cheaper and with easy clean up.

 

[Alice]

I know that sale barns around here use animal bedding, and the feed stores keep a large supply of it. I think it is probably the kind of stuff that tlmcr was talking about. If you can, make sure it's low dust stuff.

Alice

 

[Engler]

Do you have access to round bales of corn stalks? Those are as good as I've found for nonshow prep cattle. I've been told that bean stubble works better yet, but never have tried that.

 

[randiliana]

We use Rye, Barley, Wheat, Oat or Durum straw. What ever we can get ahold of. They really like the taste of Oat straw, especially if it was baled a bit green. Same with year old Barley or Wheat straw. But for calves any of those would work well.

 

[Susie David]

Wheat straw...alot of it around here.
Keep the loafing shed in the claving pen full.
DMc

 

[CWT Angus]

We calve out the older cows in a small field around the barn & working system in case it is needed. They usually don't get bedding unless it freezes, then some extra grass hay in the areas where they lay down. The heifiers calve indoors & are bedded down in a layer of shavings then a couple of bales of wheat straw. Easy to clean out, the urine runs through the straw into the shavings. The shavings have so much straw on top that they aren't a danger to the newborn. Even after we open the doors & let the newborns out, the moms will bed them down in there while they go eat.

I'd better not let my cows read these posts about other cows getting bedding when it's cold! We may have a riot!

 

[randiliana]

Our cows only get bedded at calving time. Which is March/April and can be -20* now and then. Plus we always get snow then too, and need it to keep things dry. Other than that, we only bed if it is really, really cold out, and they are looking really rough.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

We do not bed at all outside for the cows. Just provide bottom land & trees for wind break. All calves are born inside (at least if I don't mess up ). I put 'close ups" in for the night, rarely have one born outside at night, but occasionally will have one go into labor in the daytime & I don't catch her before it's too late. Than I slip them in the barn for the calf to get warmed up. Cow/calf pairs rarely are in the barn more than 1 day - than outdoor. The mature cows with calves have a small shed for the calves & we do bed it with straw.
But if a calf is dry and nursing, and have a DRY spot to lay down, they do not need bedding. My calved cows are in a "dry lot" situation til grass so there isn't very many places to get out of the mud if ground isn't frozen and covered with snow.

 

[msscamp]

Thanks for your ideas.
I am not talking about calving ..I have some early weaned calves that are still quite small that are getting over a cough and I just want them to have a nice dry place to stay warm on the cold & wet nights. I have been using my square bales of hay & really want to find something cheaper and with easy clean up.

That's a different scenario than what I thought you were asking - sorry about that. In the case of calves with no mothers, we put them in a open shed with some type of straw or old hay for bedding. The shed opens into a fair sized pen, and we tie the gate back so they can get under the shed in bad/cold weather, but still run around the pen in good weather. Water and feed is provided outside the shed.

 

[1848]

Hello msscamp...you were being missed!

 

[msscamp]

Hello msscamp...you were being missed!

Hi 1848, thanks. I just hit a rough spot in the road of life.

 

[GMN]

What is the best bedding that you use for calves? Most affordable but provides a nice warm , dry enviornment for bedding down especially during cold and damp weather. It also has to be easy enough to clean out of the shelter. I am just looking for opinions on what you may use.
Thanks

I'm assuming your talking dairy calves, we use straw, it is work, changing and cleaning it up, but in my opinion it does keep tham nice and toasty in the middle of winter, on the otherwise cold ground.

My neighbor uses rock, it works great for him, we tried it, was a disaster.

GMN

 

[Kelly]

No, I am talking early weaned beef calves.
We have had quite a few nights of below zero windchills lately. I have been using my square bales of hay but they are going way too fast!