He Custom Raises Dairy Heifers

He Custom Raises Dairy Heifers DAIRY EQUIPMENT & IDEAS Dairy Equipment & Ideas 19-5-32 Custom raising dairy heifers could be a good alternative for many farmers, according to Minnesota farmer Brad Kloss, who started custom raising replacement heifers last year. "It's ideal for farmers who can't operate a large farm, Kloss told FARM SHOW. Likewise, it's good for farmers who like to raise calves but don't care to milk. It could also be an option for farmers who want to gradually get out of dairying but want to retain their buildings. For Kloss's farmer-clients, there are many advantages too, Kloss says. When space is no longer needed to raise heifers, dairy herds can be expanded by up to 25% without increasing size of facilities. More attention can be paid to milking, and money otherwise needed for raising heifers can be channeled elsewhere. It's also good for farmers who are not good at selecting genetics for their herds, he says. But there are pitfalls for both parties to watch out for, Kloss adds. For the grower, they include things like shortages of calves, high calf loss if the farmer client doesn't produce good calves, and the close supervision that calves require. For the dairy farmer, pitfalls include in-creased chance of introducing disease into - the herd, a shortage of replacements if the grower doesn't produce good calves, and failure to productively use money that would have been used to raise replacement heifers. A written contract is important, Kloss says. Typically, a contract covers approximate weight gain and death loss objectives for the heifers, payment terms, stipulations for transportation, performance guarantees, notice of contract change or cancellation and insurance coverage. The goal of the Kloss' operation, which now has 90 heifers, is to provide farmers with a 1,350 lb. heifer in 22 months. De-sired average weight gain is just less than 2 lbs. per day, with a final body score between 3.5 and 3.75. They charge $1.35 a day for each animal. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Brad Kloss, 15375 Barley Road NW, Royalton, Minn. 56373 (ph 612 584-5282). (Agri News, Rochester, Minn.)

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