The move has saved them both time and money and ensured the best outcome is achieved for their calves.

Wendy James was employed three years ago to rear dairy and beef calves, manage cow and calf records and herd testing and manage general animal health on the Telford's Mundoolun Dairy at Mount Schank in South Australia's South East.

In the 2011 spring calving, James reared around 670 calves.

Travis Telford, who runs the dairy with his family and staff, said she plays a key role in ensuring young heifers reach the dairy in prime condition.

"Wendy has done a great job in ensuring all our calf rearing runs smoothly and efficiently," Telford said.

"Her keen sense of observation has meant that of all the calves she has reared, we have only lost around 10-12 in total while the calves were in the shed last spring."

In preparation for the dairy herd increase and increase in calves, the Telfords converted an old hay storage shed into a purpose calf rearing shed.

Telford said the decision was both practical and economical, with the open sides making it easy to keep clean and easy to ventilate.

"We can shed the calves cheaply without compromising production.

"The shed is protected from the elements but due to its open front, allows us easy access for cleaning and it has plenty of ventilation.

"The walls, floor, posts and feeders were sprayed with Virkon S - a Virucidal broad spectrum spray that kills bacteria – at the outset. Misters were also installed in the roof.

"In between calvings the shed is fully stripped, cleaned and sprayed with Virkon S so it has time to ventilate before the shed is filled again with wood chip at a depth of 450mm.

"We also use Nature Clean to maintain hygiene in the calve pens. When the shed is cleaned out we then use the wood chips again on our laneways to maintain them, improve cow flow and foot health."

Telford said once calves are collected and their records are taken down, they are moved into the shed where they receive an iodine spray on their navels and a probiotic paste straight away, before decisions are made about colostrum.

He said it is possible to determine whether a calf has had colostrum from its mother and any further colostrum intake is based around this observation.

"It's a method that we've used for a while and we've had a very good strike rate."

Calves are then put into pens of five; ensuring small calves are not put in the same pen as bigger calves so they are not competing for food.

While in the shed, calves are fed 2 1/2 litres of calf milk twice a day and have access to fresh water, straw and a calf museli. Healthy Calf Plus is also added to the milk.

"In the first two weeks it is important to feed the calves twice a day, particularly so that they can be supervised by the rearer more readily and any problems can be identified promptly.

"Sick calves can then be separated to minimise the risk of any diseases spreading.

"By having the sick calves in their own separate pens, they are easier to monitor. We also get tests done as soon as possible and jump on any illness before it has the chance to spread.

"The most common time to discover sick calves is after a week or two when all the calves are feeding well and one suddenly stops drinking or becomes fussy."

Calves stay in the undercover shed until it reaches its capacity of 200, or until they reach 3-4 weeks of age, whereupon they are moved to acre-sized, outdoor yards with around 30 other calves.

Once they are outside they are fed five litres of calf milk once a day, with Bovasol added to the milk.

"Since we have been adding this we have seen a postive response with better, stronger and healthier looking calves.

"Instead of the museli, the calves are transferred to our own calf mix which we make ourselves.

"By doing this we can add what minerals we like and change the compostion to what is best suited to the calves' needs and to what feeds we have on hand."

The calves stay in the yards until they reach 10-12 weeks and are trained to troughs. The Telfords have also planted shelter belts to further protect the calves from temperamental South East weather.

Following a poor conception rate last autumn, the Telfords increased their calving to three times a year.

This has meant extra attention to detail on the calf rearing system. Travis said the success of autumn calving will continue to determine whether the dairy does an additional calving in a given year.

The Telfords also raise Friesian bull calves and grow out Angus steers for the export and bullock markets, with the majority being sold to bull beef operation Coola, at Kongorong.

Most heifer calves are retained for the dairy, but up to 110 head a year are exported to China.

"Last year we sold 50 heifers to China and made $1300 a head, this year we are registering cattle which should add another $300 to that sum," Telford said.

The cost of getting a heifer calf on the ground is around $105 with the artificial insemination and ranges from $1800-$2000 for everything involved in getting the heifer into the dairy system.

But the Telfords are also working to save more money on the most expensive item in the dairy – power costs - by becoming self-sufficient with their energy supply over the next two years.

"We are putting in three wind turbines on the property which will not only make us self-sufficient, but allow us to put power back into the grid. Power bills have rocketed in recent years and the cost of putting the turbines in can be recovered, we estimate, within four years."

The self-sufficient mantra also extends to the dairy's wider operations, with all earthworks, silage, pasture renovation and ground preparation, roads and maintenance done by the family, which includes Travis's parents Trevor and Lyn, his brother Justin, two herd managers, a maintenance worker and seven milkers.