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Dr. Brandt, California Veterinarian
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Myth: Removing the babies from their mothers shows that dairy farmers don’t care about their animals.
Fact: The future of any dairy herd depends on the health of newborn calves.
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Calves grow up to become the cows that produce milk, so getting them off to a healthy start is really important. A farmer spends two years taking special care of each calf before she produces milk for the dairy.
The newborn calf is closely monitored and receives a bottle of colostrum, which is its mother's first milk and is rich in fat, protein and natural immunity-building antibodies.
Most farmers separate the calf from the cow within 24 hours of birth, which eases the stress on both animals. It also helps prevent disease in the vulnerable newborn calf by moving it to a nearly sterile environment such as a calf hutch.
For the first three months, most calves live in a hutch, which is an individual housing unit designed for young calves to move around, lie down, eat and drink as needed, while protecting their health and controlling their environment.
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