Calf Protect Grower

Strong heifers build strong herds

Calf Protect Grower supports the rumen development and mineral needs of your R1s and R2s during this critical growth window, setting them up for smooth calvings and better lifetime production.

New Zealand pasture conditions can be tough on young stock. Variable feed quality, weather changes, and rapid growth demands put pressure on developing rumens. Calf Protect Grower helps buffer these effects, providing consistent support to keep your young stock on track.

Scientifically-proven features and benefits:

Supports rumen development for improved digestion and growth
Helps maintain condition during pasture changes and seasonal challenges
Boosts nutrient absorption for better mammary gland and tissue development
Contains targeted minerals to support immunity and overall health
Contributes to earlier, easier calvings and stronger first lactations
Simple to feed – ideal for mixed systems, shed or pasture
Made in New Zealand for Kiwi conditions

Your Agvance Consultant can help tailor a feeding plan that fits your farm.

Talk to your local Agvance Consultant

Why rumen stability matters

During the first years of life, your heifers’ digestive systems are still maturing. Any disruption, like a cold snap, wet paddock, or sudden drop in pasture quality, can set growth back. That matters when you’re aiming for on-time mating and first calving in peak condition. Calf Protect Grower is designed to help smooth those transitions. By supporting consistent rumen function, it keeps heifers eating, digesting, and converting feed efficiently.

Investing in lifetime performance

Better nutrient use in R1s and R2s doesn’t just lead to fatter calves, it drives udder development, structural soundness, and long-term productivity. Support now pays off over multiple lactations.

Easy to use and proven in the paddock

Calf Protect Grower fits easily into most systems. Just mix with feed or provide in the shed – no special equipment, no complicated prep. You’ll see the difference in condition, coat, and growth rates.

Ready to grow stronger herds?

Call 0800 BALANCE, contact your local Agvance Consultant, or log in to your account to order online. Future-proof your herd, starting with the calves you’ve already raised.

What the research shows

An invited review of probiotic use in dairy production reported that microbial supplements can influence gut ecology in ways that may support heifer growth, animal health and fermentation outcomes, although responses vary widely by product, stage of life and farm conditions. (DOI: 10.3168/jds.2023-23831)
A controlled study in weaned dairy calves found that forage source affected feed intake, average daily gain and rumen fermentation after weaning, and that live yeast interacted with forage type to change volatile fatty acid profiles, showing that rumen-support responses depend on the wider diet. (DOI: 10.3168/jds.2020-18479)
A New Zealand study in pasture-fed dairy heifer calves found that vitamin B12 status declined as calves shifted onto a pasture-based diet, and that supplementation increased serum vitamin B12 concentrations for at least 90 days, although liveweight gain was not improved under that rearing system. (DOI: 10.1080/00480169.2014.920701)

Limits

These studies assess probiotic and yeast-based rumen-support strategies, diet effects during the post-weaning period, and vitamin B12 supplementation in grazing dairy calves, not this specific Agvance product or its exact probiotic, yeast, magnesium and vitamin B12 formulation.

Study details and links

What was tested

Research on post-weaning calf development and gut support, including a review of probiotic use in dairy cattle, a controlled trial on forage type and live yeast in weaned dairy calves, and a New Zealand study on vitamin B12 status and supplementation in pasture-fed heifer calves.

What was measured

Heifer growth and health outcomes discussed across probiotic studies, feed intake, average daily gain, nutrient digestibility, rumen volatile fatty acid profiles, serum vitamin B12 concentrations and liveweight gain in grazing dairy calves.

Study links (DOI / publisher)

Invited review: “Probiotic” approaches to improving dairy production: Reassessing “magic foo-foo dust”, Journal of Dairy Science: DOI 10.3168/jds.2023-23831
PubMed record: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37949397/
Feeding various forages and live yeast culture on weaned dairy calf intake, growth, nutrient digestibility, and ruminal fermentation, Journal of Dairy Science: DOI 10.3168/jds.2020-18479
PubMed record: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32713706/
Vitamin B12 status and the effects of vitamin B12 supplementation during the first year of life of spring calves from pasture-fed dairy herds, New Zealand Veterinary Journal: DOI 10.1080/00480169.2014.920701
PubMed record: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24911912/

More detail on limits

The evidence supports ingredient categories and feeding approaches relevant to grower calves and young heifers, not Calf Protect Grower as a branded product on its own.
Results can vary with pasture quality, the balance of forage and concentrate, the stage of rumen development, cobalt and vitamin B12 status, weather pressure, health status, housing or grazing management, and the dose and duration of supplementation.