Spring-born dairy-beef calves have predominantly all been weaned off milk and are now out at grass for their first grazing season.
As farmers in the business of rearing calves will know, calf-rearing is a costly business and it is important to achieve good levels of weight gain in calves during their first season at grass.
Most farmers will continue to feed dairy-beef calves concentrates throughout the first season at grass with the amount of concentrates fed generally varying from 1-2kg/head/day.
Many farmers also supplement calves with fibre at grass by offering them hay or straw from a feeder.
For both male and female dairy-beef calves, the aim is for a 0.7kg/day live weight gain during their first season at grass, according to Teagasc. This equates to calves gaining 4.9kg/week.
It is important to note that some calves will perform better than this while other calves may not perform as well.
Factors such as calf genetics, grass quality, the level and feed-value of the concentrates used as well as calf health and the initial rearing stage will all impact the performance of calves.
When feeding calves concentrates at grass, it is an easy way to monitor calves and detect any health or performance issues.
Dung samples should be taken to identify any parasite burdens in calves and farmers should consult their vet for advice where they have concerns around calf performance.
Farmers who are monitoring calf performance and are not happy with the levels of weight gain calves are achieving should act early to identify the issue and rectify it.
As farmers who have reared calves in the past will know, stronger caves going into the shed for their fist winter tend to perform better for the duration of their growth period than calves that have got off to a slow start or suffered a setback in their first grazing season.