Jersey Bottle Calf - Share your experience

[cjc]

I already have a thread going but I wanted to gain some more traction on this. As you may have seen I was given a Jersey bottle calf. This is my first jersey on a bottle. Everything I have read says they are harder to raise as a bottle calf and I am seeing that is true. I am not worried about her, really, but I wanted some advice.

I have her on milk replacer. I started with the normal amount I feed my bottle calves which is 150g of the powder 3 times a day. She never finished a bottle so I pushed her down to 100g 3 times a day. She went from milk to replacer at 5 days old, pretty standard practice for my bottle calves.

This calf strangely likes to eat sand. I let my bottle calves play in the riding arena during the day which is sand, well needless to say we stopped that because I cant get her to stop eating the sand. What does this mean? Is she missing something.

About 4 days ago she refused her morning bottle. A few hours later she got the runs. But she started eating again just like normal that afternoon but the scours has continued.

I started giving her grain a few days prior to that and she has access to hay. She gobbles grain so I am now limiting her intake.

She still has scours. She is acting totally normal other than she's clearly got the runs.

I have her on 100g milk replacer in the morning, electrolytes at lunch, 100g milk replace in the evening. I have a blanket on her to keep her warm something I don't do with my angus calves but I have read jersey calves need to be kept warm if they are scouring.

She does not have a temperature. She is playing and alert and happy just has scours which I assume is food related. My angus bottle calves I never have this issue with but everything I read says Jersey's are the worst on a bottle.

Advice? Would you change what I am doing?

 

[Green Acres Farm]

I know nothing about cows, but have you tested yours for Johnes? I know it shows itself mostly in adult animals, but my vet said that it sometimes shows up in young animals as well.

Sorry, probably nothing to do with it.

 

[farmerjan]

It's funny, as I find jersey calves some of the easiest to raise on bottle. I am not good at conversions. 100 gr of powder is converted to what, in a bottle? I realize that a liter is approx a quart. We use a standard size cup that comes in the milk replacer bag as a measuring cup. It is more like 8-10 ounces but I have no idea of the weight conversion to grams. That is in a 2 quart (half gallon) of water. So, my first thought is she is getting too much milk. If she is already trying/eating some grain, I would cut the bottle again by a third or just cut her back to 2 a day. Make sure she has water free choice when she wants it. Also let her have up to 2-3% of her body weight in grain. That's 1.5 to 2 lbs. of grain, if she weighs 60 lbs.

Now the sand thing I really don't know. Never had to deal with that. But it seems like a need for some bulk? But if she has hay, that shouldn't be a consideration.

Watch her close for coccidiosis. Sometimes it doesn't show up as blood in the manure and if she gets at all dehydrated and lethargic, I would treat for that immediately. I think she is just getting too much milk replacer.

I never bottle feed three times a day simply because I can't, due to my schedule. It's definitely better than 2 big feedings; more like nursing off the cow. Jerseys need less than most people think. They are little and their stomachs are little. I know you raised your steer but I'm pretty sure he was on his momma right? He got a little, frequently.
If she is acting fine, cut her back. I would cut out the electrolytes and see if she firms up also. Sometimes they are counter-productive if the calf needs the nutrition from the milk. They are great in dehydration cases as you are well aware.
Another thing, try giving her an anti-diahrrea ....like Immodium that people take. Really, no drugs, just something to "stop her up " a bit.

Less is better. If she were mine, I would not give her any bottle for 12 hours, let what is in her system just "run" through her. Then start her back on a bottle, half of what she was getting.
Sometimes I make the milk in the bottle a little thicker...use a little less water....you just might have to play with the formulation. Jersey milk is thicker, higher butterfat than say holstein milk.....I don't feed but about 2/3 to 3/4 a bottle to a jersey as compared to a holstein or beef cross calf, until they are 4-6 weeks old, and then they will get a full 2 qt bottle but they are usually eating pretty good too.

 

[farmerjan]

If she gets too much sand in her gut it can play havoc with her digestion so I think it is wise you are not letting her in there right now.

 

[cjc]

It's funny, as I find jersey calves some of the easiest to raise on bottle. I am not good at conversions. 100 gr of powder is converted to what, in a bottle? I realize that a liter is approx a quart. We use a standard size cup that comes in the milk replacer bag as a measuring cup. It is more like 8-10 ounces but I have no idea of the weight conversion to grams. That is in a 2 quart (half gallon) of water. So, my first thought is she is getting too much milk. If she is already trying/eating some grain, I would cut the bottle again by a third or just cut her back to 2 a day. Make sure she has water free choice when she wants it. Also let her have up to 2-3% of her body weight in grain. That's 1.5 to 2 lbs. of grain, if she weighs 60 lbs.

Now the sand thing I really don't know. Never had to deal with that. But it seems like a need for some bulk? But if she has hay, that shouldn't be a consideration.

Watch her close for coccidiosis. Sometimes it doesn't show up as blood in the manure and if she gets at all dehydrated and lethargic, I would treat for that immediately. I think she is just getting too much milk replacer.

I never bottle feed three times a day simply because I can't, due to my schedule. It's definitely better than 2 big feedings; more like nursing off the cow. Jerseys need less than most people think. They are little and their stomachs are little. I know you raised your steer but I'm pretty sure he was on his momma right? He got a little, frequently.
If she is acting fine, cut her back. I would cut out the electrolytes and see if she firms up also. Sometimes they are counter-productive if the calf needs the nutrition from the milk. They are great in dehydration cases as you are well aware.
Another thing, try giving her an anti-diahrrea ....like Immodium that people take. Really, no drugs, just something to "stop her up " a bit.

Less is better. If she were mine, I would not give her any bottle for 12 hours, let what is in her system just "run" through her. Then start her back on a bottle, half of what she was getting.
Sometimes I make the milk in the bottle a little thicker...use a little less water....you just might have to play with the formulation. Jersey milk is thicker, higher butterfat than say holstein milk.....I don't feed but about 2/3 to 3/4 a bottle to a jersey as compared to a holstein or beef cross calf, until they are 4-6 weeks old, and then they will get a full 2 qt bottle but they are usually eating pretty good too.

Thank you for this! She is the 13th bottle calf I've raised in the last year and the only one I have had this issue with, but also my only jersey. I will pull back her feedings a bit but I am still going to give her the 3 a day, just less in them. I am going to give her 2lbs of grain and see how she does on that. I am going to also put some Imodium in her bottle tonight.

All my bottle calves have been purely on a bottle. I did manage to get one steer to transition to a nurse cow at 2 months old but other than that I have bottle fed all my 11 weaned ones up to 4 months old on bottle and no cow and never this issue. I will try pulling back on my little jerseys water in the milk a bit and make a thicker bottle. I am always doing the opposite and giving them a more watered down bottle as my Angus do well on that. I am always aiming to get more water in them then less but you are right, I know when we milk our jersey its pretty thick stuff we get out of her.

I think I may give her a pneumonia nasal spray as well tonight. My mother is raising her right now I am off of bottle calf care so I am just ordering these changes haha. I am 8 months pregnant and my mom is terrified of me being around any cow with any sign of illness.

 

[Bossroo]

Just think of all of the antibodies you will give your new minikid in your colostrum. Win, win !!

 

[cjc]

@farmerjan Well my little Sass's scours seems to be doing better with your advice. Still on the runny side but took a firmer poop today. I never thought I'd be happy to see a nice firm poop in the paddock until I started raising bottle calves haha.

 

[farmerjan]

Glad to hear that "Sass's" poops are a little firmer. I really think it was just more "milk" than her system needed. The immodium never hurts either unless you get her too "firm" and she gets stopped up!!! But often I have found that you can get around the "drugs" just by getting their system to slow the speed of the movement through the intestines/bowels; so that their bodies can absorb the "food" out of it. Of course, watching for things like coccidiosis, but it just seems like once they start to scour, they can't get it stopped long enough to absorb the nutrients, and then they get weak and then are subject to so many "bugs" and really get sick.
Another trick, thoroughly beat a raw egg and add to the replacer just before you feed. It adds protein and is very digestible. The egg white also seems to help to slow the speed of travel through the digestive system.

 

[farmerjan]

The raw egg thing is also not taught in any "modern" calf raising manual....old trick of an old black guy who used to take scoury, sick calves and "revive" them. Also add a tbsp of ALUM to the egg mixture.

 

[cjc]

Awesome thanks for that! She is seemly like she's 90% better now. I've got her on frequent small feedings. I also think blanketing her may have helped. Dairy calves are really something I am new to and they are just so different! I need some more experience with these jerseys that's for sure. I am finding they just have such different nutritional and even bedding requirements to my beef herd.