Measuring health and performance in preweaning dairy calves

The main aim of calf rearing is to produce a healthy calf that is achieving the target growth rate. Calf mortality rate and daily liveweight gain represent appropriate bottom‐line ‘output’ measures for evaluating the success of a calf‐rearing programme, and they are affected by various ‘inputs’ or aspects of the calf‐rearing process. This article summarises how these outputs can be monitored, and highlights how some key input areas can be assessed when output targets are not met.