Blind calf with 'gunky' eyes - *UPDATE: 10/19 Ulcer Pictures*

[Bleenie]

This is an awful picture but here it is.

I am also concerned with her overall body condition,it seems like she's just not filling in at all. You can see just how bony her butt it in this picture and her backbones are protruding a lot too. Butterscotch is still skinny but seems like she's doing better at "putting weight on". The really weird thing is that Bella hasn't been scouring like Butterscotch.

I gave both of them electrolytes(with yogurt added) around 5pm so I am about to head out to check bellies and see if they are hungry tonight.

 

[redtailgal]

love the head gear......It's like a halloween costume. only I cant figure out what she is, lol.

Her little body has been thru alot, so I am not surprised that she is thin.

Have you had a fecal ran? If not, see if you can check her coccidia levels. Esp on Butterscotch since she is still scouring.

Is she drinking full strength milk yet? ease her on up to it.

What is her feeding routine and what exactly are you feeding her? AND butterscotch?

Check the bottom inside of her eyelids......is it pale?

If you have a way to weigh her, go ahead and weigh her about every three days for 2 weeks, you should see some weight gain. When they get thin like that, they have to gain a little before you even notice it.

And her hair is a little thin along the back bone. Make sure she doesnt have live (you will see the tiny little snots by parting her hair in varioius places, esp right behind the ears and along the backbone). If she does, pour some sevin dust in a sock, bang the sock on the wall a couple times (to get the dust thru) and give her a thorough and vigorous rubdown with it.....being sure to get in the "nooks and crannys".

Her hair may be thin because she has been so sick.

 

[Bleenie]

They're both eating full strength milk,the brand is Elenbaas i believe. I have it stored in a bucket and don't have the bag anymore. I do know it's non medicated... we quit using medicated because it was causing scours so bad with previous calves(i had a similar problem with chick feed a few years back!). They're getting fed at 7am and 7pm. Their schedule got messed up last night because of the electrolytes/pro bios so theydidn't get milk last night. They ate really well this morning though.

I don't have a way to weigh them. I can call my vet today and see if he does fecal testing. I dusted both girls down with Sevin because the flies were so bad(because of scours) and i read that large fly populations contribute to pink eye infections. Her hair is thin on her back and probably because of her condition.

I took Bellas mask off this morning to check her eyes and put some more medicine in. The yellow is GONE!! they still look "rocky" a little but i am glad the yellow is gone. I put some more medicine in. I think I am going to cut her mask back to just behind her head... it's a real pain getting her feet out and she hates me picking them up.

She's kind of wobbly in her rear end. I suppose because of her weight and not feeling well?

 

[redtailgal]

At their age they can have 2 quarts of milk each am and each pm. You can add a third, noon time feeding to help them condition. If you do, start with only half a quart for two days, then a quart for two days, then a quart and a half........and so on.

Wobbly.......is this new or sudden? if not, then yeah, I'd think she is just weak and worn down, poor baby.

If you could get your hands on horse fly mask (foal size) that would be great for her. It would keep bugs and dust off but still allow some air flow.

I'm so glad that the yellow is gone. Stick with it, your doing great

 

[Bleenie]

I did some more reading online today and came to the conclusion that I have been overfeeding them. Funny,I had already made up my mind to cut them back to 2pints per feeding and to feed them 3 times a day.... 8am - 2pm - 8pm

Also, I am going to continue to add the yogurt plus 1 egg to the formula when I mix it. I looked around the pen tonight and saw a couple decent-looking poo's, much firmer than it has been... I had to scoop a little pile out of their house and it was ridiculous how excited I was that i got it ALL in one scoop!

If I didn'thave chickens all this poo talk would seem really weird to me... the things animals make us do!

 

[redtailgal]

lol, some folks dont understand when people come out of the barn exclaiming "YAY, she/he made purty poop!"

 

[Bleenie]

Pictures of how good Bella's eyes are looking! First is the Left Eye, this is the one that the ulcer seems to be peeling off of... tried to get a good picture of that but Butterscotch was shoving me.

Right eye

She's gaining weight & Her hair condition is also improving!

 

[redtailgal]

Are you seeing any evidence that she can see yet?

She will probably have some impairment, but I still think she may come out of this sighted.........

That ulcer may take awhile to clear up and the milky eyes can take quite a while.

 

[Bleenie]

She is getting in & out of her hutch with no problems but that could all be because she's used to it and knows where it is. But,she is not tripping over the water bucket anymore, finds the hay & grain easily and her bottle as well. She has some trouble finding me when I am in the pen but it may be because I'm moving too fast for her to be able to focus.

She's still getting the puffer in her eyes at each feeding but right now the left one is looking a lot better,not nearly as weepy as it was, the right one definitely needs to improve some more though, I am still cleaning it up once a day.