Age of calf by teeth

[Mpwelch50]

We just picked up a pretty angus heifer calf at a herd dispersal. 120 lbs. We brought her home and have tried to give her a bottle without success. She eats calf starter and drinks water. Won’t eat hay. She had 8 teeth. Is it possible she’s old enough to go without a bottle and straight to weaned? She was pulled off the mother the day of the sale because mom was already bred back.

 

[farmerjan]

If the cow is bred back, did they say how far along she is? That will give you an indication of her age. 120 lbs is not very big. I would say that she has to be at least 2-3 months... but there was no good reason to wean off a calf that young. If she is 4-6 months, it is likely the cow did not have much milk, and good thing you did not buy her. Now, one thing, a calf is unlikely to want to take a bottle if over a couple weeks, if it has been on the cow.... doesn't taste the same or feel the same as momma's teats... That could be what you are running into, especially if the calf is in the 4-10 week range. They just don't transition as well if over 4-6 weeks.... Either keep trying the bottle for at least a week (I would make up only a pint or so of milk replacer so you aren't wasting it.... you can refridgerate and reuse for at least one more feeding without it getting off tasting..).....which is what I would do if she was mine.... or give her a good calf starter feed, some real decent not stemmy, 2nd cutting type hay like orchard grass that is soft to chew kept in front of her, and water. You can also try mixing a little milk replacer - dry mixed in - into the feed - sweet feed works best - so she ingests the extra nutrition that way.
If she is older, then I would be very concerned that she is not growing properly. She ought to weigh in the 450-600 lb range by 6-8 months for normal weaning. That is why I question why she was taken off the cow if the cow was bred..... because if she is far along, then the calf was not growing... if she was only 1-2 months bred back, then there was no sensible reason to pull the calf, she should have been sold as a 3-in-one; meaning cow, calf and rebred back.....
Figure that MOST cows will come back into heat 30-45 days after a calf is born..... IF they are in real good condition and they are getting all they need nutrition wise so their reproductive system has had time to recover and start cycling again. So if the cow was bred back the calf is at least 1-2 months old at the very minimum, and probably 2-4 months at least.... which leads me to wonder why she is not further along in growth.
Not saying she can't grow up to be a nice cow.... but she has some strikes against her already.....

 

[Mpwelch50]

They pulled all the calves, no matter the age and sold them separately. They didn’t indicate any timeframe about the mom. Not sure the auctioneer even knew who the mom was. She eats calf starter, drinks water, and has been grazing. Her poop is solid and regular. She won’t even suck your fingers if they are wet with milk. We gave her 48 hours to see if she would get hungry enough to take a bottle but she has shown no interest. I’d say she’s eating about a pound and a half of calf starter. She won’t eat hay. But she does graze. I put some alfalfa pellets in her food last night and she ate those. She refused the calf manna she seems self weaned but we will keep an eye on her. She’s out in the pasture with the other calves and seems happy and content. I wish I had a way to weigh her. But I’ll keep a close eye on her. When should I vaccinate her?

 

[farmerjan]

Okay, sounds like she is weaned to at least the point where she will be okay. The eating grain and drinking water means she won't starve. You could try mixing in a little calf manna in the grain. I have never fed that straight anyway.... it is a supplement, not meant to be a sole feed. Adding the alfalfa pellets is good. I would up her feed a bit if she is cleaning it up to get her to continue on the plus growing side. Maybe 2 lbs or so a day.
You say she out with the other calves. How many, are they on cows, or are they weaned calves?
When do you vaccinate your other calves? Since she is out with them, and is obviously weaned, she should at least get a 7 way blackleg vaccination. I am not a big vaccination person, and only use killed virus vaccinations. That said, if you have other cattle, then you should follow your own vet's advice. But I do vaccinate all our cattle with Triangle10HB which is a killed virus vaccine, and covers pretty much everything. It will not cause abortions in pregnant cows which a MLV vaccine can do. You have to be careful with when you give mlv shots.
If you are able to get her in, and she gets calmer and friendly, you could try using a cattle weight tape on her. It goes around their body behind the front legs and will give you a ball park figure of her weight. She may weigh more than you think.
Glad that she has "buddies" to be with. No animal likes to be isolated. If they are friendly and come in for you, then she will learn the routine faster. It does sound like you can monitor her intake of feed....that is good.