Calves with Sam

34% Passive Transfer Failure

Yes, 34 percent passive transfer failure among 882 calves from 49 farms in the state of Washington. 

This study, completed in 2010, reported wide variation among farms. Of the 18 calves that were sampled on each of the 49 farms, 2 farms had no calves below 5.2g/dL blood serum total protein. In contrast 7 farms had 13 or more calves out of the 18 calves sampled (>70%) with passive transfer failure.

Only 36 percent of the farms had 20 percent or fewer calves with passive transfer failure. The industry standard for profitable calf survival and health is 90% above 5.0g/dL and 75% at 5.5g/dL and greater.

Colostrum management practices associated with high rates of passive transfer failure in this Washington State study were:

• Who collected the colostrum - passive transfer failure was 3.7 times greater if a regular milker collected the colostrum compared to other personnel.
• Evaluating colostrum quality - passive transfer failure was 2.3 times greater if the colostrum was NOT evaluated for antibody concentration.
• Adding supplements to the colostrum - passive transfer failure was 8.9 times greater if a supplement was added to the colostrum.

 No data were reported regarding the species and quantity of bacteria present in the colostrum   

Reference:  WSU Vet Med Newsletter