These Milk Bar™ Teats fit tube feeders and some other types of feeders with a round clip on system.
It is important for calf health that milk is delivered at the right speed to optimise digestive health and performance.
As a teat ages, the rubber becomes softer and milk flow increases. As a calf approaches weaning the more developed digestive system can manage this slightly increased flow but for young calves a faster flow impacts health and can result in cross suckling and nutritional scours.
Seasonal/ batch rearing: we recommend you start the season/ batch with new Milk Bar™ Teats in your feeders. This minimises the disruption from a mid season teat change and gives calves the perfect flow from start to finish.
How long will my teats last?
We have very strict quality control and only accept teats that perform at 20 hours on our feeding simulator. 20 hours is around 10 weeks or 140 feeds.
Any more than that and it’s to hard for the calves to drink, any less and the teats don’t last, it’s a finely tuned process!
Depending on what system you use on your farm will determine how long your teats will last.
If you are feeding 100 calves using only a couple of Milk Bar™ 10 feeders, then the teats will need to be replaced more frequently.
The calves will tell you when the teats have become soft and need replacement. As the milk flow increases they will start to suck on each other or their surroundings (cross suckling). As soon as you start to see cross suckling, change your teats to prevent the next stage of fast flow which is diarrhoea.
How do I change my teats?
- Pull the Milk Bar™ Teat into the feeder.
- Push the tube into the back of the teat.
- IMPORTANT! Do not use a non return valve on the tube. A non return valve increases the flow of milk and can leave calves at risk of digestive upsets.
Milk Bar™ Teats have a pull through design to sit snugly against the feeder wall for optimum hygiene. However, while this is the most hygienic system, it can also be difficult to change teats!
Use a Teat Tool: This is by far the easiest method. The purpose designed Teat Tool plucks the teat from the feeder with minimal effort in seconds.
Pull the teats out by hand: When removing by hand, make sure to either pull the teat directly down or up. If you try to pull the teat straight out, it will be a tough job!
Cut the teats out: Make sure the blade is sharp and you use the knife away from you. Be sure to check the teat alignment is correct and the slit is vertical!