Top tips when purchasing youngstock
In the coming weeks and months, a large volume of calves will be traded between dairy and beef farms across the UK. When purchasing calves, obtaining healthy, well-bred calves is the most crucial factor in a successful calf to beef enterprise.
The health of the calves you purchase should be your top priority when choosing what to buy. Calves showing signs of sickness like coughs, scours or looking week / sluggish will can be costly in treatment and take longer to grow.
Buying off trusted suppliers who have a good history with herd health is the ideal situation.
Transport
Moving calves can be stressful, which impacts their health, so:
- Keep travel times short where possible
- Ensure transport is clean and well ventilated
- Provide enough room for calves to stand or lie down
- Avoid mixing claves from different farms during transport
- On longer trips that can’t be avoided, ensure calves remain hydrated with breaks for water
Quarantine
Where possible quarantining new arrivals in batches by farm type for at least 2 weeks is advisable. This period ensures farmers can keep an eye on any sign of illness, without impacting the health of the rest of the herd.
In particular keep an eye out for:
- Coughs
- Scours
- Signs of pneumonia
Feed
Ensure your new calves are fed right after arrival. Good nutrition ensures calves can grow and protects them from illness. Provide high-quality milk replacer, access to clean water and a starter ration for calves to thrive.
Keeping to a regular feeding schedule and making sure feed equipment is clean will avoid any digestive upset.
Hygiene
Providing a dry, well-ventilated but draft-free space is key for keeping calves healthy. Ensure there’s plenty of clean bedding to keep them arm and prevent infection.
If you house calves in groups, look to keep them in batches of similar size and health, preventing bullying and reducing the spread of disease.
How can Herdwatch help?
When investing in youngstock, having the right data at your fingertips can make a huge difference in long-term profitability. With a Herdwatch PRO subscription, farmers can track, analyse, and manage their animals with ease, ensuring smarter purchasing and better decision-making.
1.Monitor growth & performance
The Weight Insights feature allows you to track the performance of individual calves, identifying both your top and bottom performers. By regularly recording weights, you can ensure calves are hitting their target growth rates and quickly take action if any animal falls behind.
2. Automated Cattle Margins for better management
With the Automated Cattle Margins feature, Herdwatch calculates key performance indicators such as:
- Average Daily Gain (ADG) – Monitor growth trends to ensure youngstock reach their targets.
- Daily Live Weight Gain (DLWG) – Spot underperforming animals early and adjust management accordingly.
- Cost vs. Performance Analysis – Track how much each calf is costing versus its expected return, helping to optimise profitability.
3. Easier compliance & health records
Keeping detailed health records is essential for managing disease risk and ensuring compliance with industry regulations. Herdwatch makes it easy to log treatments, vaccinations, and withdrawals in real-time, eliminating the need for paperwork while ensuring full traceability.
4. Seamless integration with your farm
Herdwatch is designed to work online and offline, meaning you can access and update records even in the yard or out in the field. The app also allows multiple users to record data simultaneously, ensuring all team members have the most up-to-date information.
Join over 20,000 farmers who are already using Herdwatch to simplify herd management and improve farm efficiency. With a Herdwatch PRO subscription, take control of your calf performance and ensure your farm is making informed, profitable decisions.