# I have a Jersey bull calf "on order" ? as to feeding/vaccination



## PattySh (Jun 15, 2012)

I have always used milk replacer however I have goats milking right now.  The farmer thought raw goat's milk was great to give to the calf instead of formula but looking for opinions. I probably won't have enough goat's milk for the calf longterm because we use it but am wondering about the feasibility of mixing 1/2 goat milk  and 1/2 with store bought whole cow's milk after the first few bottles of goats milk. Thinking the raw goats milk would be more beneficial than formula. I remember scours with formula. Opinions. Refresh me on the age to give CDT shot to the little one. Getting the Jersey bull calf so I  won't have to mess around with getting Tinkerbelle bred next time.  His Jersey bulls are pretty mellow til age 2 so we will freezer this one and get another and so on. I have round pen panels if I need to safely contain him  and know what I am getting into. Farmer will keep him for 3 or so days to give  him colostum and get him drinking good. Cow's are due soon to calf.


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## kfacres (Jun 15, 2012)

We have fed many a calves on goats before...  Actually had an old goat raise 16 calves one summer.  

We always had best luck with 2 pints goats milk- and 1 pint water-- 2x a day for the jersey calves.


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## PattySh (Jun 15, 2012)

Did you find the calves scoured on whole goat milk?


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## kfacres (Jun 15, 2012)

PattySh said:
			
		

> Did you find the calves scoured on whole goat milk?


yes.


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## Cricket (Jun 16, 2012)

I think I would mix the goat/cow together right from the start instead of switching around, and I do think it's better than replacer ($75.00 a bag now!).  I agree with KF on the qt a day, esp. to start.  I'd do the qt of milk with a qt of warm water chaser, then if he's drinking fine you can just do it all in one bottle.  I'm ignorant about vac.s--just do rabies.

Not that you asked, but if he's going to be in a barn where they already have e-coli, I would bring him home as soon as possible.  The calves that I get that are born at pasture and we don't run thru the barn seldom get sick.  The minute they start licking the wall where calves have been pooping for 150 years, you KNOW they're going to get something.  I usually just run back up to the farm and get cholostrum if it hasn't been with his mom long.

Good luck!


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## kfacres (Jun 16, 2012)

if you are using milk replacer, or cow's milk-- jersey calves only need 2.5 pints 2x a day-- otherwise they'll scour, their little bodies can't handle anymore than that until they are a month or so old...  The need fed 2 pints- 3x a day in the winter as they don't have enough natural body heat to stay warm.  You have to remember, those jersey's will weigh 30-40 lbs-- instead of 100 like aHolstein.


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## redtailgal (Jun 16, 2012)

My calves all get 2 quarts of milk......twice a day and when that no longer is sufficient for them, they start eating grain.

A properly fed bottle calf should not be very much smaller than a dam raised calf.


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## animalfarm (Jun 16, 2012)

My Jersey calves get all they want from mom from day one. No scours. I am bottle feeding an Angus bull calf (one month old now) and he drinks 6 qts. 2x a day of straight Jersey milk. No scours. He started off with 4 qts but 6 is all he is gonna get as he is learning what big cows eat now. 

 I think it may be down to getting enough colostrum at the start; seems like most calves that are sold as bottle babies don't get much. I got up and fed my lad 2 qts of colostrum every 4 hrs through his first night/day. I knew his momma didn't produce milk and was prepared.


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## kfacres (Jun 16, 2012)

of course--  those who raise 2 or 3 calves a year- or a lifetime-- know everything...

those of use who raise dairy calves for a living on our dairy farm-- we don't know anything.

calves eating from their mothers- is a completely different ballgame.


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## PattySh (Jun 16, 2012)

I'm grateful for all of the information.  I do know that Jersey's are more delicate than larger calves. This will be our first pure Jersey, and hopefully bigger than our smallest calf  and this one has a planned arrival. We raised a 25# premie hereford heifer. She was SO CUTE.  I remember being hopped up on dimatapp for a horrid cold when my neighbor called and asked me to come and get a "Cat" that showed up and she had to work in the morning!!! Well little misunderstanding and kids so excited when I walked in with an itsy bitsy baby calf in arms I think it was January and colder than cold here. She did great but was a congenital dwarf so I hate to say went in to the freezer at a couple years old. I'll see how tiny the calf is and what he looks like when he gets here. I am going to ask the farmer to let him go after he gets colostrum. The guy is older than dirt and sure he wouldn't mind. He is right around the corner from me so calf won't travel far.


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## redtailgal (Jun 16, 2012)

Jerseys can be more delicate than other breeds. I worked on a diary with holsteins, then on a diary with Jerseys, and while the holsteins were tough little boogers, the Jerseys needed more consistency in their routine.

Here are a couple articles that you may find helpful:

http://www.backyardherds.com/web/viewblog.php?id=2952-bottle-calves

http://www.backyardherds.com/web/viewblog.php?id=2952-calves-scours

Others may do things differently, but this is what I have done for plenty of calves and it has always worked for  me.  Jersey's can be tough to start on the bottle.  Some take right to it, but others, well, they wait until you have pulled your hair out before deciding to drink.


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## Cricket (Jun 17, 2012)

I guess I should have said "I start them off at 1 qt per feeding 2x a day'.  Then I keep tweaking it up until the poop starts to loosen up.

We had a couple of really tiny Jersey heifers born last year that did great on 2 Corona bottles of milk each feeding with a lamb nipple.  I can't quite imagine what that would look like in a Hereford skin!  (Last year I brought an unplanned calf home and my husband was having a bird.  He finally realized I was saying 'calf' not 'cat'--wouldn't you think a cat would be easier to deal with?!)

Animalfarm, it's not just that bigger farms don't give enough colostrum, it's the timing, too.  If I understand correctly, a calf is born with no protection against e-coli bacteria.  So if he ingests poop before he gets a good colostrum feed, he WILL have bacterial scours.  That will be compounded by overfeeding.  But the e-coli actually destroys the lining of the stomach, so (I think) by the time they heal up, they're already old enough to wean.  My heifer, Peanut, never got over a qt per feeding without her stools loosening--and I was only tweaking it up 1/2 cup to a time.  

It's GREAT to have home-born and home-raised calves!

Patty, I'm getting my bull castrated and dehorned Wed.,--will ask my vet about vaccines.  (Maybe we have the same vet)  Good luck--we're always happy when someone gets a bull calf at the farm--good to know they'll have at least a little bit of the good life!


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