Welcome back to the American Dairymen Podcast. Just ahead, we have Dustin Hector, he's the Host of the American Dairymen Podcast, and he sits down with Georg Weitzel, with Crystal Springs Ranch and Kalf Kozies. In this episode, Georg and Dustin will dive into the Kalf Kozies product and how it was designed to help calves out in the cold.
Georg explains that his family ranch calves out around 500 cows in January, February, and March, often in temperatures reaching 30 to 40 degrees below. Calves are usually born outside and then brought into the barn, but limited barn capacity means they can only stay inside for about 24 hours before returning outdoors. Even when calves were dried off, their ears frequently froze. Over the years, Georg and his family tried multiple existing products, but none performed the way they needed.
That led Georg’s wife, Sarah, to design the Kalf Kozies. It is a custom-woven, water-resistant fleece hat that slips over the calf’s head, with dedicated ear pockets and eye holes. The material has stretch built into the right areas for a secure yet comfortable fit. Adjustable snaps on the neck band allow a single hat to fit a wide range of calf sizes, from small preemies to large beef calves. To solve the issue of losing visual identification when all the calves were wearing hats, they added a leather patch on the outside that can be marked with a reusable grease pencil.
Georg emphasizes that comfort and functionality distinguish Kalf Kozies from competing products. The design allows the ears to remain in their natural forward position, so calves stay comfortable, active, and inclined to get up and nurse. The fabric wicks moisture away instead of trapping it, helping ears naturally toughen over several days of use. The ear pockets also help keep the hat in place, reducing the need for constant adjustment. Economically, preventing frozen ears can avoid substantial market discounts on calves, so a single saved ear can more than pay for the product. Georg notes that dairy producers use the hats to safely house multiple calves together and that calves wearing Kalf Kozies tend to be warmer, happier, and healthier throughout the winter.
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