Help! Calf Down!

[WildRoseBeef]

Those first pictures made it look like the calf's head was odd looking, and it wasn't the breeding I was looking at either. But it may have been the angle of the picture and the way the calf was holding his head that made me think that, and I think your vet would've said something about it too when looking at him. Sorry, he just seemed odd to me and I had to say something about it.

In this new picture he looks more like a normal calf, like any normal calf should. I'm glad to hear he's getting better, so hopefully he will make a full recovery and be as bouncy and a schitzen-disturber as any healthy calf should be. And again my apologies for jumping to conclusions on you.

Too bad about his dam though, must've been some unnoticed genetic abnormality that caused her teats to be like that. Weird.

 

[Ferguson K]

He's looking much better!

 

[GLENMAR]

I'm raising a bottle beef calf too. It's not as time consuming as I thought is was going to be. Good luck.

 

[cjc]

@GLENMAR yes its not as much work for me now that he is up and on his feet. Now I am trying to teach him to walk on a halter. That is hard haha.

How much are you feeding your bottle calf? I was just feeding 2x a day plus one bottle of electrolytes but I really feel like he needs more. I just gave him a big bottle of milk and he was crying out after so I gave him a bottle of electrolytes after. I am going to feed him another bottle of milk at noon and then again at 8pm. I also got him to eat a little calf starter this morning! He was confused but interested.

 

[TAH]

We did a gallon a day of milk.

 

[cjc]

Ah ok maybe I do need to give more than. With the mix I'm using it says feed 2x a day which is about 2 pints per feeding. There are 8 pints in a gallon. I bumped him up to 6 pints today plus the electrolytes. Will a calf just continue to drink and drink or will it stop when its had enough?

 

[jhm47]

The instructions on the milk replacer tags are correct. Do not feel that these calves are not getting enough just because they seem to be hungry when you've fed them their bottle. Overfeeding kills many more calves than underfeeding. Calves are born with a "sucking reflex", and it takes up to 1/2 hour of sucking to satisfy it. In watching my calves while they suck on their mothers, it takes 20 - 30 minutes for them to get done sucking. Feeding with bottles rarely takes over 5 minutes, so these calves will act like they are ravenously hungry. 2 quarts of milk replacer fed twice a day is the correct amount. Feeding more will only encourage a bad case of scours, and likely will necessitate an expensive vet bill, or worse. Good luck!

 

[cjc]

@jhm47 thank you! really appreciate the advice. I did give him one bigger bottle this morning, before your message, and I am really regretting it! I am just worried I messed him up now! Could one big bottle cause scours or is it many days of overfeeding that puts them at risk? This guy never got colostrum so I need to be really careful with him. When I went to check on him at lunch today he was a little quieter than normal and seemed to have a little limp in his step. I am trying to tell myself he just tripped or is tired but I worry about him. I lost a calf from this cow last year.

I will go back to my original schedule. 2 quarts at 6am, 2 quarts at 6pm. I have also been giving him electrolytes at lunch time. Is that ok or should I stop that? The reason I originally started was he was very ill but now that he is improved should I stop with the electrolytes?

I also have put a little bit of calf starter in his mouth in the morning after his feeding. Only a handful. At the feed store they had said its good to give him a handful like this starting at 1 week old, which was yesterday. He is 8 days old today. Bad idea or is this ok?

Sorry I am asking you a ton of questions because I really need the advice haha! He has only pooped 3 times since he has been born. Today he actually took two, which I was happy about haha. It is normal consistency but is yellowish in colour. Definitely not diarrhea. Is this normal? Maybe from the electrolytes?

I am just second guessing everything I am doing! I really want to give this little bull calf a good start at life.

 

[Pamela]

Yellow, soft ploppy poo (think pudding consistency) is completely normal for a milk fed calf. If it gets watery, mucousy, bloody, then you have trouble. IMO, I would discontinue the electrolytes. They are costly, and if he is eating and pooping well they aren't necessary. However, if you don't want to give up the noon bottle, plain water will suffice. We've found that especially bigger calves and especially in warm weather a bottle of plain water midday was helpful in keeping them healthy and hydrated. We always used warm tap water. Hope the limp turns out to be nothing. Good luck!

 

[jhm47]

One extra large feeding can easily cause scours. If he quits eating or gets lethargic and gets the "runs", you might be in trouble. Doubt that the limp was caused by digestive issues. The electrolytes would not be necessary unless he gets scours. I'd allow him access to a bucket of plain water, and if he needs more hydration, he'll learn to drink from that. The starter is fine, and I'd also give him access to some good quality grass hay. Poop sounds about normal for an 8 day old.

I'm in the middle of calving my herd. Got another calf this AM. Mostly bull calves so far this year. Next week I'll start the AI season for one of my neighbors. He synchronized them to be in heat on Tuesday. Doesn't seem possible that AI season is already here. A couple thousand cows/heifers signed up so far.