# New Calves - How do you prevent illness



## cjc (Feb 22, 2016)

Hello Everyone,

I am just over a month away from expecting the first calf for us for the season. Last year my first calf died due to a navel infection and I still feel terrible about it. I know I could have prevented this. That same cow is now expecting her second and I MUST ensure I keep this calf safe for her. Here is what I will now do when my calves are born. I did this with my last calf and he is almost 7 months old now and very healthy. Please share what you do with your calves when they  are born and what you think about my regimen. 

At Birth:
Iodine cleaning of the naval
Covexin (8 way) 1.5mil
Vitamin A&D

1 week after birth:
Nasal Spray for pneumonia

8 weeks old:
Repeat the Nasal Spray

Your advice is appreciated!

Thanks!


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## WildRoseBeef (Feb 22, 2016)

If you're in a selenium deficient selenium and cows aren't getting enough selenium supplement, a shot of that will be needed as well to prevent white-muscle disease. Usually cows would be getting that shot a few months or so before calving, because the white-muscle disease will show up in newly born calves. 

Vitamin A&D is good, but so is Vit. ADE. 

And as far as Covexin is concerned, if he's already at weaning stage, he should be getting another shot of Covexin soon.


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## cjc (Feb 22, 2016)

Ok great. A local cattle rancher mentioned selenium to me on the weekend. I will add that to be list. For the 8 way. I should give it a week after birth, at 8 weeks and then again at 6 months? 

My girls are due in April. Should I give them a shot of selenium now?


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## Latestarter (Feb 22, 2016)

I believe typically those type shots are given about 4 weeks before birth. That way the mom passes some benefit on to the offspring...


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## WildRoseBeef (Feb 23, 2016)

I'm agreeing with @Latestarter you should be vaccinating the cows around that time (or 2 to 8 weeks before calving), so that you don't have to hit the calf so early with covexin. I just feel that the covexin was given way too early. Have you given the 7 month old another covexin shot since then, or no? If not, then he should get one ASAP and, if I'm right (though I'm no vet so what do I know?), again when he's a yearling. OR, and probably the best alternative because we've practiced this ourselves with the calves we've gotten about that age, is to vaccinate NOW, then follow up with a booster 4 to 6 weeks later. Especially for this 7 mo. old calf. Not so much for the expected calves. 

If you (and you should) vaccinate the dams, and I'm hoping "April" doesn't mean starting the first of April, but more into mid-April or late-April, you should give them a shot, as mentioned, when they're 2 to 8 weeks away from calving. Then you can follow up with a first shot for the calves when they're 8 to 12 weeks old (2 to 3 months), and give a booster at weaning or 4 to 6 weeks later. But if you miss the window to vaccinate the cows, hold off on giving calves Covexin until they're at least 2 weeks old. Otherwise, it'll be just like squirting the vaccine on the ground if you do it as soon as they are born. Reason for this is that the calf has literally no active immunity, just the passive immunity it's getting from its mommas colostrum. 

As for the other vaccinations, I really recommend you talk to a local large animal veterinarian about your herd vaccination schedule. I can't give you the real nitty gritty details about vaccinating, but I do think that you should start getting your cows done before calving so that you don't have to be vaccinating so early, like at a week of age. Eight weeks should be your first time you give the Covexin, then before weaning you should follow up with a booster plus a vaccine for IBR, PI3, BRSV, and BVD. With cows, scours vaccine may be needed if they're going to be calving in an area where calves can get affected with bacteria that cause scouring. If you're calving on grass, then you shouldn't need to do that. But again, talk to a vet. 

Finally, I think the protocol for dipping navels is what saved this 7 month old. Navel ill isn't associated with clostridial diseases (not as far as I know).


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## cjc (Feb 24, 2016)

Thank you very much for the help!

My calves have had the 8 way a week after birth and then 8 weeks later. They are now 6/7 months old and I just started weaning and have not given them another 8 way booster, but I will. I will do that this weekend.

One my girls is due early April but I will give her and the other 4 a vaccine this weekend.

I do have one heifer that I was uncertain if she took but a few days ago she started to develop udders. I did see some action between her and our bull and if my math is right she is looking to calf around mid April. When does a heifer usually start to show udders before she calves? @WildRoseBeef


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## WildRoseBeef (Feb 24, 2016)

Udder growth in heifers normally is progressive, so you won't see any definitive signs that she's in milk until she's anywhere from several weeks to even a day before she calves. Heifers can be really tricky that way. 

With the bull, I'm hoping that he's not rebreeding an open heifer, but courting a heifer that is showing initial signs of being ready to calve. Bulls will become as interested in cows just coming into labour (and throughout) as they would be with an open cow because of the estrogen being produced and given off as pheromones. So it sounds like she might be calving sooner than you think, but like I said, heifers can be tricky. They can show signs of calving, but not actually calve out until weeks later. 

Instead of looking at the udder as imminent signs of calving, look at her tail head region and her vulva. When the tail head region sinks in and the vulva becomes more loose and swollen than usual, then she's getting close.


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## cjc (Feb 25, 2016)

No, she was bred to the bull and that was it. There was no continued interaction between her and the bull or any other bull. I just assumed she took on the first try as there were no signs after that, that she didn't.

Thanks for the advice. I will watch for those signs. I am a little nervous with this heifer as she is quiet petite. I had a friend look at her and he said she was more than ready but she is just so small compared to our other girls. Wish me luck!


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## WildRoseBeef (Feb 25, 2016)

How old do you figure she was when bred? And what's her and the bull's breeding? I'm hoping too you have no problems with her, otherwise have a vet on speed-dial just in case...


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## cjc (Feb 26, 2016)

She was about 1.5 years. I borrowed the bull from a friend who breeds show cows and he had recommended that she was ready. She is what I believe to be a cross between a Red Angus and a Hereford. The bull is a Short Horn. Which is also my concern...our short horns are bigger than our angus but our friend who is very experienced didn't see this as an issue.

Here is a picture of me standing in the field with her and my other girls. She is the little red one to the left. Hence her name  "Little Red".


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## Latestarter (Feb 26, 2016)

Wow, she really is smaller... Nice looking cattle   It's so "green"... Is that a recent picture?


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## cjc (Feb 26, 2016)

Thank you! @Latestarter. Yes, that picture is about a month old. It rains an absolute TON in British Columbia where we live but because of all that rain we are blessed with green pastures for the most part, all year round. Although last summer was an off summer and we had barely any rain and therefore, brown pastures. Praying for a rainier summer this year. I mention to our herd all the time that they don't know how lucky they actually are haha.


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## Goatgirl47 (Feb 26, 2016)

I also have a heifer who is quite petite. We got her and her Momma when she was five-months old, and she had been weaned at four-months, but when we bought her we put her back on her Momma. Her dam is small, and so is she. At the time we bought her our bull calf (now he's been deemed a steer ) was two-months younger then her, was a good bit bigger then she was. Now she is catching up with him though. 
I can go and get a picture of her (her name is Georgia) right next to a yearling steer (today is his birthday!) so you can compare. She will be a year old March 20th. I am planning on breeding her when she's about eighteen months old, and we'll have her A'I'd to a small-sized Jersey most likely. She is 1/8 Normande 7/8 Jersey.


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## cjc (Feb 26, 2016)

@Goatgirl47 I would love to see a picture of your Georgia.

I am starting to wonder if maybe she had some jersey in her or something. She was from a large herd and they couldn't guarantee the breed. They just had mainly Angus and Herefords...but there were a few Jerseys in there. Little red definitely has some angus in her because she has that classic angus head bob when she walks...but the other breed is questionable


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## Goatgirl47 (Feb 26, 2016)

Ok - here is Georgia the day we got her




With her Mom (the same day as the above picture)



This was taken sometime in November or early December (note how much taller she is compared to the fence then in the picture above)



December 9th


 
I don't know when this was taken - probably mid-December.



Yesterday (Piper is on the left)



Frankie (1 year old) is on the left, Georgia (11 months old) the middle, and Linus (9 months old) on the right (Frankie is a little bit shorter then Piper). All three are still nursing when we don't milk their Momma's.


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## Goatgirl47 (Feb 26, 2016)

Oops, I uploaded a lot more pictures then I had planned.  Hope you don't mind... 

@cjc, did the herd Little Red come from have any Jersey crosses in it?


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## WildRoseBeef (Feb 28, 2016)

Well Lil' Red is still only 1.5 years (18 months?) old so she still has a bit more growing to do. But to me she certainly looks like she has something else in the woodpile that isn't just Hereford and Shorthorn. From the lighter colouring on her lips I am thinking she's got some Jersey that is keeping  her a little smaller than the rest of the herd. And I'm also suspecting she was bred pretty early. Usually, even for a Jersey cross, she'd be bred by 15 months and set to calve when she's 24 months old. So I am really hoping no complications come up for this heifer.


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## cjc (Feb 29, 2016)

@Goatgirl47 wow isn't she sweet! They are all very cute. I just love cows. Jerseys have the sweetest faces. Your Georgia is petite but I think I am just so used to looking at these giant girls that I have lost sight of what is "normal". Georgia's mom looks just tiny when I compare to my girls! Makes me have a lot more faith in Little Red. Thanks for sharing your pictures!

@WildRoseBeef yes Little Red would have been about 18 months when we bred her. I am starting to think she has some Jersey in her as well. If my math is right Little Red will be just about 2 when she has her calf, so based on that I think my timing for breeding her was right. Her little calf will be the most crossed cow we have ever had on the farm that's for sure!


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