Cattle Differences

There are several obvious differences between bottles and pails. A pail has a single component whereas a bottle also requires a nipple. Empty pails can be stacked for transport and storage, and pails can hold a greater volume of liquid than most bottles. On the other hand, bottles let the calf consume milk in a more natural position and at a more natural rate. Anatomical, physiological, nutritional and management aspects of bottle and pail feeding are explored in the sections that follow. Research evidence is provided wherever possible.

Esophageal Groove

When a calf swallows, solid food such as starter grain moves down the esophagus and passes through an opening called the esophageal groove just before it enters the rumen. Prior to
Wise and LeMaster (1967) also found that enzymatic activity in gastric solution is greater with nipple-feeding, resulting in more effective stimulation of protein digestion activity in abomasal fluids. In addition to greater protease secretion, Ternouth and Roy (1978) report secretion of more abomasal acid with nipple feeding. They also found a lower level of protein nitrogen relative to total nitrogen (PN:N) in the duodenum when calves were fed with nipples, indicating a higher level of protein digestion in the abomasum than with bucket
Automatic washers. Many calf-raising operations now use automatic washing units as a way to control their cleaning and sanitizing process of calf feeding equipment. These washing units use the same technology developed for commercial dishwashing units in restaurants and cafeterias and are available for farm use. (Reference No. 4).

Nutrient Consistency. Delivering a precise, consistent amount of milk or milk replacer to each calf at each feeding is an important control measure for minimizing nutrient variability. Although either feeding method can be managed to minimize nutrient variability, pails can pose a particular challenge. The biggest challenge is the calf itself. If the calf has access to the pail while it is being filled, it can be difficult to gauge how much the calf actually receives. Often a calf will drink at the same time the pail is being filled. This is a problem if the pails are filled to a specific level at each feeding. In addition, the calf may put its head directly into the flow from the hose. Combine this with a forceful flow rate and milk or milk replacer can end up splashing into the starter feed as well as all over the calf. This not only encourages a healthy fly population, but can also decrease the palatability of the starter. Installing