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Questions |
QuietWean
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How
do nose-flaps stay in the calf's nose / do many fall out?
2. How do
nose-flaps prevent nursing / how effective are they?
3. How long
should the nose-flaps be left on the calves?
4. Can I
remove nose-flaps and keep cows and calves together?
5. What are
the major advantages to using QuietWean?
6. Are there
drawbacks to using QuietWean?
7. Can
nose-flaps be recycled and used again?
1. How
do nose-flaps stay in the calf's nose / do many fall out?
The tag simply
hangs from the calf's nose! They are made of lightweight plastic and are
non-invasive (there is no piercing of the nasal septum to keep flaps in place).
The unique one-piece design of these flaps makes them less-likely to break or
fall apart.
It seems
nothing is ever perfect and a few nose-flaps may indeed fall out as some have
during our own experimental trials. We have had some reports of worse but in
general the retention rate with these flaps has been 95% or better. Flaps
sometimes fall out during the jostling that occurs as the cattle are being
handled.
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2. How
do nose-flaps prevent nursing / how affective are they?
The
nose-tag acts as a physical barrier preventing calves from getting a teat into
their mouth. Recent feedback from producers suggest there can be considerable
variation between farms in the number of calves that figure out a way to suck
while wearing our nose tag (e.g. 5-30%). In our own test trials a small
proportion of calves (fewer than 10%) did manage to suck despite wearing the
device.
We are
highly dedicated to improving the overall effectiveness of our nose-flaps. Your
suggestions are essential to help us in this process and we strongly encourage
all who use our product to send feedback about their experience!
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3. How
long should the nose-flaps be left on calves?
We
recommend nose-flaps be worn for 4-7 days. Our research on calves 6-7 months of
age has shown the same benefits whether nose-flaps are worn for 4 days or 14
days so we recommend the former. We have found that cows are quieter after
separation when nose-flaps were worn for 8 days compared to if it was worn for
4 days. The calf's nostrils may eventually become irritated if the nose-flaps
are left on a very long time.
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4. Can
I remove nose-flaps and keep cows and calves together?
The
second step of the QuietWean protocol, the physical separation of cows and
calves, is essential to its
success! Separation across a fenceline is sufficient but it is
important that once nose-flaps
are removed, pairs are not immediately reunited. If this
is done we know that cows and
calves will pair-up again and continue nursing.
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5. What
are the major advantages of using QuietWean?
The
QuietWean protocol virtually eliminates changes in behaviour which normally
occur as a result of weaning
stress. We believe the QuietWean protocol reduces weaning stress. This
translates into calves spending less time and energy bawling and walking after
weaning while they increase the amount of time they spend eating. It
seems likely that reducing
weaning stress with QuietWean will have long-term benefits on calf health and
performance. We are currently investigating this possibility.
The
QuietWean method may also help prolong the life of your fences since calves
weaned this way are much more
calm and are less likely to break-through fences after separation.
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6. Are
there drawbacks to using QuietWean?
Some will
say extra handling is a drawback to this weaning method. True calves
need to be handled twice; once
to put in the nose-flaps and once when they are
removed. How stressful the
additional handling is on the cattle will depend on how roughly you handle
them! This also has to be weighed against the stress of
traditional weaning methods!
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7. Can
nose-flaps be recycled and used again?
Use them as
many times as you like! QuietWean nose-flaps can be used again and
again. We recommend washing and disinfecting nose-flaps after each use.
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