From paddock choice to late pregnancy and lactation, proactive management makes all the difference to winter calving.
Inside Dairy
Good planning helps minimise calving challenges. Choosing the right paddocks and managing transitions can improve outcomes for cows, calves and your team.
New Zealand’s pasture-based systems generally support good animal welfare, but bad weather can create wet and muddy paddocks, making management more challenging. Public concern is growing over calves being born on mud, and the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has been actively monitoring animal welfare during winter, particularly in the South Island, for several years.
Calving is stressful for a cow’s body and can put her health at risk. Sick cows require substantial extra care. This highlights the importance of planning, which minimises problems for you and your team.
Encouragingly, the 2023-24 Animal Care Consult data shows that 95% of farmers check their springing cows at least three times a day, with many inspecting them even more often. During poor weather most farmers increase calf pickups – proactive steps that help reduce some of the risks associated with winter calving.
Providing the best calving conditions starts with careful paddock selection and proactive management. Keeping good records (for example, a wintering plan or spring rotation planner with expected calving dates) also helps demonstrate your efforts if needed.
MPI Animal Welfare Inspectors will require farmers to move cows close to calving if surface conditions are unsuitable.
Use paddocks that aren’t in the grazing rotation and lock them up for an extended period before calving begins to prevent manure contamination and pugging. If possible, avoid areas close to the dairy to reduce the risk of effluent run-off – choose higher ground instead.
Ensure enough space for all cows to calve in clean conditions, and identify a back-up paddock if conditions are too wet.
The transition period (three weeks before and after calving) is critical as cows adjust from late pregnancy to lactation, navigating various physiological challenges.
Providing flat, sheltered paddocks with clean surfaces and plenty of pasture can help support a smooth transition. Ideally, these paddocks are also away from effluent areas and within easy walking distance of the shed.
Regularly draft cows into the springer mob and check springers often to help identify cows having trouble.
Calves that had a difficult birth or are born in poor weather are more likely to have trouble standing and suckling. Identify high-risk calves as soon as possible, record their numbers and bring them to the calf shed to get warm and have a good feed of colostrum.
Find more information at dairynz.co.nz/calving
After three years, the Reducing Sprains and Strains project, in partnership with ACC, wrapped up in 2024.
As a result of the project, three innovations are now available on the market: Kea Trailers’ Easy-Entry Calf Gate, the Gallagher Easy Access Calf Pen Gate, and Wheelco’s Heavy Duty Pivot Milk Bucket Trolley.
Additionally, a cups-on-mat prototype is being developed with the Wholesale Matting Co.
Sprains and strains are common injuries on dairy farms, especially during the busy calving season – but many of these injuries can be prevented. Now is the ideal time for farmers who are preparing for calving to consider tools and practices that minimise injury risk.
Find ideas at dairynz.co.nz/sprains-strains
This article was originally published in Inside Dairy May-July 2025.
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