Evaluation of changes in calf management from 2012 to 2022 on Austrian dairy farms using an online questionnaire

Calf management is important for the development, health, and welfare of the animals. In this follow-up study, we evaluated calf management practices on dairy farms in Austria using an online questionnaire in 2021 and 2022. We tested the hypothesis that farmers changed calf management on their farm within these 10 years. The total amount of analyzable surveys in 2022 was 2,314. All variables changed significantly between years. Therefore, farms were chosen randomly by controlling for confounding changes in herd size (number of dairy cows), farm type (conventional vs. organic), and type of cows' barn (free stall vs. tied up). From 2012 to 2022, the median number of cows per farm increased from 20 (interquartile range (IQR) 13 to 30) to 22 (IQR 13 to 35), and the percentage of organic-producing farms increased from 23.9% (2012) to 30.6% (2022). The number of farms offering colostrum within 4 h after birth increased from 83.7% to 87.2%. This change was significant when subsampling was performed. The quantity of first colostrum offered to the newborns was mainly 2 to 4 L (69%), with an increased percentage of farms offering less than 2 L (13.3% vs. 18.3%). The percentage of farms testing colostrum quality using an objective method (hydrometer, Brix refractometer, outflow funnel) increased significantly by 4.9-fold and was 9.4% in 2022. On most farms (88.8% and 86.6% in 2012 and 2022), calves were housed individually after birth. A higher percentage stated to group calves at an earlier age than in 2012. In both years, mainly whole milk was fed (85.1% vs. 86.3%). The number of farms where non-salable/waste milk was fed to calves decreased significantly from 84.0 to 74.1%. Milk allowance increased non-significantly. Subsampling revealed that the age at weaning increased significantly between years. The most important health problem in calves was diarrhea (in 59.8% of the farms over 10% of the calves and in 27.4% over 25%), followed by respiratory tract disease (in 39.8% of farms over 10% of the calves and on 16.4% over 25%). Compared with 2012, in 2022, a significantly higher percentage of farmers stated that they had a calf diarrhea incidence of >10% (39.8% vs. 59.8%). In our study, weak points regarding calf management on farms were not offering enough first colostrum, missing testing for colostrum quality, not housing calves socially in the first weeks post natum, and feeding restricted amounts of milk. The median mortality rate of 3% (IQR 1 to 5) and increasing diarrhea incidence also show that calf management practices need improvement. Thus, it is still an open question of how to get farmers motivated to implement changes in their management in accordance with science-based recommendations.