Maternity Management Practices in Dairy Farms: Colostrum Management Practices

(logo bangs and clicks)

- [Instructor] Welcome to the colostrum management practices Learn Now video.

This video discusses important practices needed for properly harvesting and managing colostrum in maternity operations.

The colostrum is the first udder secretion after calving, containing nutrients and immunoglobulins that are crucial for the proper nutrition and immunity of newborn calves during the first days of life.

Newborn calves are born without immunological defenses, and therefore must receive the proper quantity and quality of colostrum within four hours of life.

Colostrum is usually obtained from the first and second milkings after calving, and rarely from the third.

To determine if the second and third milkings provide proper colostrum for feeding newborn calves, the colostrum quality can be measured.

Proper milking practices, such as pre-dipping and wiping teats clean, stripping for mastitis diagnosis, and providing enough teat stimulation are needed to stimulate colostrum let down and avoid bacterial contamination of the colostrum.

In addition, using clean and disinfected milking equipment contributes to the prevention of contamination.

After harvesting the colostrum, personnel must make sure the quality of the colostrum and feed it or store it immediately.

Lastly, the equipment used should be cleaned, disinfected, and stored in a clean area that allows for proper drying.

To measure colostrum quality there are two tools most commonly used in dairy operations, the colostrometer and the Brix refractometer.

The colostrometer measures the specific gravity of the colostrum, which is directly associated with immunoglobulin concentration.

This method is temperature-sensitive with an optimal temperature range from 102 to 103 degrees.

When measuring colostrum quality using the colostrometer, personnel must always ensure that the colostrum temperature is adequate.

Personnel should wait until the device stops moving and then read the colostrum quality.

This device has a colored scale composed of green, yellow, and red, allowing for quick interpretation of the results.

Green means that the colostrum quality is above 50 grams of immunoglobulin G per liter, which is the quality needed for the first feeding of a newborn calf; while yellow and read means that the colostrum is of poor quality and should not be fed as a first feeding.

However, this colostrum can be used for second and consecutive feedings.

There are two types of refractometers that are most commonly used, the digital and the eye piece.

The only difference between these is that the digital device displays the value on the screen, while the eye piece requires the personnel to watch through the lens.

Regardless of the type used, the procedure is the same.

One or two drops of colostrum must be placed on the sample site of the device, indicated by the red arrows, and the cap must be closed.

Then, the eye piece can be read by looking through the lens, and the digital device will display the value on the screen.

Once the quality of the colostrum is measured, the colostrum must be fed or stored within an hour after collection.

Bacteria in the colostrum exponentially grows after harvesting, especially in warm conditions.

A funnel can be used to pour colostrum into the storing containers in order to avoid any spillage or waste.

The most common colostrum storage containers are bottles and one-gallon zip-lock bags.

However, zip-lock bags are less durable and can break in the freezer or during the thawing process.

After placing the colostrum in the container, the container must be labeled with the harvesting date and the colostrum quality, and the personnel ID can also be added.

The colostrum can be stored in the fridge at 40 degrees for two days; in the freezer at minus 20 degrees from six months to a year.

Fridges and freezers must be kept clean to avoid colostrum contamination, and proper functioning of the device must be regularly monitored by placing a thermometer inside.

When the colostrum is inside the udder, the concentration of bacteria is non-existent or very low.

Colostrum can be contaminate at harvesting mainly due to dirty harvesting equipment.

Bacterial colostrum contamination decreases immunoglobulin absorption by the calf's GI tract, and increases the risk of diseases such as diarrhea.

Basic practices to prevent colostrum contamination are proper cleaning and disinfecting of harvesting equipment; excellent milking practices such as pre-dipping, wiping, and stripping; avoiding pooling colostrum from different dams; and discarding colostrum with mastitis.

Other, more complex practices, include colostrum pasteurization and colostrum replacer or supplement.

Colostrum pasteurization is a heating process of the colostrum at high temperatures for a specific amount of time.

The pasteurization process does not affect immunoglobulin concentration or the physical feature of the colostrum, and reduces the concentration of pathogens.

However, this equipment is costly and requires regular maintenance.

There are two commercially-available products that can be used either as an alternative or a complement of colostrum.

The colostrum replacer can be used to replace natural colostrum, ensuring excellent quality of immunoglobulins and nutrients, but it's an added cost to the operation.

It can be beneficial when controlling diseases that can be transmitted from the dam to the calf, such as Johne's disease, and when there is a short supply of colostrum in the operation.

The colostrum supplement is cheaper than the colostrum replacer, but cannot be used to replace maternal colostrum, mainly because it contains less than 50 grams of immunoglobulin G per dose.

However, it can be used for a second feeding, allowing personnel to reserve the good quality colostrum for the first feeding.

Also, it can be used to improve the quality of bulk maternal colostrum.

Thank you for watching, and for more information regarding proper recordkeeping practices in maternity operations, watch the next module of the maternity management practices Learn Now video series.