Dairy Calf Health

This micro-credential was designed by Dr. David Renaud, assistant professor at the Ontario Veterinary College. With a PhD in epidemiology, Dr. Renaud has authored numerous research articles on topics pertaining to improving health and welfare of dairy calves. Successful candidates will be able to function independently and confidently as part of a veterinary service delivery team. Micro-credentials are an ideal option for achieving badges of completion for professional development that can be also placed in LinkedIn accounts.

Modules include:

Care in the First 24 Hours
Safely work with cows in the calving pen, assist a calf traumatized by birth or with poor vigor, care for an umbilical cord, and give required medications and vaccinations using appropriate techniques and equipment.

Colostrum Management
Explain what colostrum management is and collect blood samples from calves as part of a health monitoring protocal assessing transfer of passive immunity.

Pre-weaning Nutrition
Be able to implement a program to assess key preweaning parameters, including growth and disease. Describe common feeding systems, and the advantages and disadvantages of various products in use.

Weaning Management
Discuss various weaning strategies and the importance of maintaining a high plan of nutrition in the health of animals post-weaning. Utilize calf starter intakes and BHB testing to assess readiness of a calf for weaning.

Diarrhea
Be able to identify quickly the causes of calf diarrhea. classify it and provide therapy based on the severity of the condition. Use luminometer testing for routine monitoring of cleanliness of calf feeding equipment.

Pneumonia
Perform routine lung ultrasonography and be able to identify/score severity of lesions observed. Be able to implement treatment and vaccination protocals on-farm.

Calf Housing and Environment
Understand and be able to assess key environmental factors impacting calf health and productivity.

Disbudding/Dehorning
Institute technician led programs for routine disbudding according to current regulations and using appropriate analgesia/sedation.

Castration and Surplus Dairy Calves
Be able to assess and humanely castrate surplus dairy calves destined for the veal industry.

Necropsy
Perform a post-mortem examination using a standarized approach and be able to document findings and submit necessary samples for additional testing.

Troubleshooting Calf Health Problems
Utilize the skills acquired in the other units to be able to analyze and collect all necessary data to assist a veterinary
practice in diagnosing any acute episode negatively impacting calf heath.

Registration will be available at a later date.