Can you feed a bottle calf whole milk from the store?

[MOFarmWife]

I am new to this bottle calf thing and will be going next week to purchase a few bottle calves. My question is, can I feed them with whole milk like you would buy from the store? Normally this wouldn't be cost effective for most people, but I happen to be able to get outdated (though not yet sour) milk from the local milk distributor for free. I feed it to the pigs all the time, but was wondering if it could be done with the calves. Experienced opinions appreciated!

[myheaven]

You absolutely can. Make sure they have a good mineral for them I their feed as the milk is mostly dead. They will thrive on the whole milk. If you get skim milk add either cream or butter. They have to have fat.

[Awnry Abe]

I would be all over that deal for bottle feeding.

[Tango]

Yes you can Wish I could get in on that deal too! I have to buy it, LOL. Milk prices are petty low here $3.19 / gallon and I use whole milk for bottle raising [goat] kids. Right now I'm bottle feeding a Holstein heifer calf and it isn't cost effective with her drinking 2 gallons a day

[willow_girl]

Not a problem. You can even feed it to adult cows! I tested a dairy herd that did that. That's a great deal if you can get it!

[FarmerDavid]

I want free milk.

[wannabfishin]

Originally Posted by Tango

Yes you can Wish I could get in on that deal too! I have to buy it, LOL. Milk prices are petty low here $3.19 / gallon and I use whole milk for bottle raising [goat] kids. Right now I'm bottle feeding a Holstein heifer calf and it isn't cost effective with her drinking 2 gallons a day

wouldnt it be cheaper to buy milk replacer

[Awnry Abe]

Originally Posted by wannabfishin

wouldnt it be cheaper to buy milk replacer

MR costs roughly $3/gal. Yes, it would be cheaper to BUY. It may or may not yield the best performance, though. That cost, by the way, is not happenstance. Of course, OP is getting milk for free.

[wannabfishin]

Originally Posted by Awnry Abe

MR costs roughly $3/gal. Yes, it would be cheaper to BUY. It may or may not yield the best performance, though. That cost, by the way, is not happenstance. Of course, OP is getting milk for free.

I was actually replying to tango, it sounds like they are buying their milk. I thought your price for milk replacer was high, as I havent used it for a while so i checked DuMOR® Ultra Plus Calf Milk Replacer, 50 lb. It cost 89.99 at tractor supply and makes 50 gallons. thats less than $2.00 a gallon and less trips to the store.

[MOFarmWife]

Thank you all for your responses. Should be getting bottle calves next week and was wanting to talk to some people with more cattle experience than I so I didn't inadvertently kill my investment! It has sure saved me a lot of money on my pigs and bottle calves don't sound like such a bad deal if they are quite a bit cheaper to feed. Should I supplement with some probios or something like? I know that the pasteurized and homogenized milk takes a lot of the "goodies" out of it. I also use the free milk and milk products to feed out my pigs along with almost free bread I get from our local bread distributor and they do very well. I use a starter feed on the pigs for a little while after they are weaned then transition to the milk and bread. Just got my first hog back from the processor that I fed this and she was sooo good!

[myheaven]

Use a calf starter grain with a good mineral. That's most all you need.

[dlskidmore]

Originally Posted by MOFarmWife

I know that the pasteurized and homogenized milk takes a lot of the "goodies" out of it.

If this milk was originally intended for human consumption, some of the goodies (Vitamin D) are artificially added back in. If this was somehow post pasteurization but pre fortification I'd be somewhat concerned with vitamin D content.

[MOFarmWife]

Originally Posted by dlskidmore

If this milk was originally intended for human consumption, some of the goodies (Vitamin D) are artificially added back in. If this was somehow post pasteurization but pre fortification I'd be somewhat concerned with vitamin D content.

This milk is packaged returns from the stores. They are exactly what you buy from the store. Some are "out of date" or close to it, but I drink the stuff and its still good!

[Tango]

Originally Posted by wannabfishin

wouldnt it be cheaper to buy milk replacer

Cheaper only by a little. Good quality milk-based replacer is not all that more expensive than whole milk from store. Land O Lakes at the Co-Op is cheaper than Dumor btw and better quality. Dumor has two levels of preparation which is how it can give more milk but ounce for ounce, it is more expensive than Land O'Lakes.

[collegeboundgal]

*side note* I saw (I am assuming) your post on the moSW facebook page! lol. fun to see someone else on here from around here! welcome!

[ufo_chris]

Hmmmm,i asked that very same question on here a few years ago and got all no's ,in line with dlskidmores response.
I was also able to get free expired but good milk!

[Tango]

Originally Posted by ufo_chris

Hmmmm,i asked that very same question on here a few years ago and got all no's ,in line with dlskidmores response.
I was also able to get free expired but good milk!

this question was asked on another fb page and got conflicting replies too. if the milk is not separated or rotted in anyway, as in, if you will drink the milk because it is okay to drink for a human there is no reason why it shouldn't be good for a calf to drink - it is after all cow's milk. many dairies suggest pasteurizing raw milk for the calves too and people feed calves raw goat's milk. if i could get free milk or if milk were the same price as the replacer i get, i would use milk. makes sense.

don't know if anyone can advise if there is a time that it is better to feed milk replacer than real milk?