Strategies for keeping dairy cows and calves together on European farms

Summary

The purpose of this study was to identify and describe strategies used by European dairy farmers with cow-calf contact (CCC) systems. Farms allowing at least 7 days CCC in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Sweden and Switzerland were interviewed between September 2018 and January 2019 following a standardised questionnaire. In total, 104 interviews were included in the analysis; no CCC farms were identified in Poland. Average herd size was 53±59 (mean ± SD) cows. Dam rearing was practiced on 34% of farms, while 12% used foster cows, 28% used a mix of dam and foster cows and 23% first let the calves suckle their dam and then manually milk fed them. On 46% of farms, the calves had full day contact (except at milking), while 5% practiced half day CCC and 36% let the calves suckle at milking. Farmers perceived several benefits with keeping cow and calf together, including improved overall health (79% of farms) and weight gains (84%) in calves. Udder health in suckled cows was most often perceived as the same (40% of farms) or improved (38%) as in systems with early separation. Common drivers for using CCC systems were improved calf health, more natural farming system and increased labour efficiency. The most commonly stated barrier for implementing CCC was barn construction, while stress responses when separating cows and calves were observed by many farmers (87% of farms). The study suggests that there is a range of different strategies allowing CCC used on European farms, and identifies research regarding suitable housing during the suckling period and routines for cow-calf separation as key.