Orphaned calf

[julierx1]

We have a cow who calved yesterday. In the past several yrs all her calves die so this yr we do not want to mess up. This morning we took him from her momma and momma didnt even care. Just took a bottle out to her and calf drank all 2 qts!! No problem at all. We are not sure if she got any colostrum or not and was wondering what a good recipe is! I do have powdered goat colostrum on hand right now and thought about trying that. Does anyone know if I can do this??

 

[WildRoseBeef]

Why are you even bothering keeping a cow that won't accept her calf (no, make that calves), or even give a rat's behind that her calf is being taken away?? You've kept this cow for how many years because why? I really hope you consider growing some wheels on that cow so that you don't have to do this nor have to experience losses like this again.

What breed is she, btw? Sorry for being so harsh-sounding but I highly recommend you do something about that cow...it's certainly something I would've done from the very beginning!

Goat milk will be fine, but cow colostrum is best for this calf, not goat. Calf's a bovine, not a caprine.

 

[LadyIsabelle2011]

Poor lil baby, sounds like he was starving, especially if he took to the bottle so quickly. Sorry, I don't know any recipes myself but i wish you luck with your calf

 

[julierx1]

Thanks but we are not having a whole lot of luck here tonight. She is scouring really bad and denied the bottle later today. We did give a shot of La 300 because we suspect that the cold got to her last night while w/ mom on empty stomach. We can only do so much so I will keep u posted! I didnt get a chance to pick up colostrum today from town but she was probably over 24 hrs old when we got to her. I did on the other hand have some kid colostrum powder here at the house and that is what she wouldnt take this afternoon. Gonna try again here in a little bit when I go out to bottle feed my baby goat. Hopefully she will take enough to get her thru the night!

 

[julierx1]

We have had in mind of getting rid of her but things here on the farm have kinda of gotten out of hand this past yr. She has had 2 calves in the past but kept them so far away on the hill it was pathetic! She is defffinately leaving this time!!! Black Angus

 

[LadyIsabelle2011]

If she is a meat breed and abandoning her calves I would definitely think about giving her the boot. Although, If she is valuable, you might want to check for health reasons, if she has raised calves in the past but started abandoning them within the past years there may be a problem you can't see.

Sorry to hear about the scours, do you know any friends/neighbors around who might have cows that just gave birth or hand raises calves, they might have some colostrum they will share with you as well as some good advice, who knows, he might just not like the smell of the goat colostrum. Just a thought since I have no good advice myself.

I'm not a cow person so any advice I give is probably not the best

 

[redtailgal]

The calf is probably scouring because he had two quarts at once. That is too much for a newborn, and too much for a stressed and cold calf. Overfeeding is, in my opinion, the number one killer of orphan calves. If you are ever in doubt, remember it's better to have a calf that is a little bit hungry that it is to have a dead calf. Always feed weak stuff in small portions at first, and build up to larger amounts of the strong stuff.

Cut his milk out for 24 hours, give him only electrolytes in his bottle so he doesnt dehydrate and let his gut settle down. I know with holding food on such a little guy will be hard, but he will quickly dehydrate if you dont with-hold the milk. You wouldnt want to eat when you have the runs and an upset tummy, so dont try to force him. Just keep him hydrated for now.

After 24 hours, give him 1 quart of half strength milk or replacer, do this for 24 hours.

Then give 1 quart of slightly strong milk or replacer for 24 hours.

Then give 1 quart of full strength milk or replacer for 24 hours.

Then give 1 1/2 quart of full strength milk or replacer for 48 hours.

Then give 2 quarts of full strength milk or replacer.

When I say "give 1 quart or 1 1/2 quart", I mean that much EACH feeding. Make sure that his belly is empty when you feed him again.....go at least 6 hours between bottles.

It's too late to worry about colostrum. You should get some bovine electrolytes, or some clear gator-aide for the electrolyte substitute. It's very important to with hold that milk for the full 24 hours, so his digestive tract can completely empty and rest.

Get some yogurt or probios (at the feed store). If you use yogurt, get a brand that advertises for "digestive health", and add 1/2 of a small cup to EACH bottle for at least a week (any flavor).

And I would have that cow on the trailor and to a slaughterhouse, post-haste!

Poor little guy! Take your time in re-introducing food, dont rush it. He/She can still pull thru this and with a little TLC may turn out just fine.

I feel for ya......I hate having a weak little one.

 

[WildRoseBeef]

We have had in mind of getting rid of her but things here on the farm have kinda of gotten out of hand this past yr. She has had 2 calves in the past but kept them so far away on the hill it was pathetic! She is defffinately leaving this time!!! Black Angus

How old is she? If you get rid of her it'll be less of a headache for you and your farm and things may get more in hand for you.

Definitely agree with the overfeeding part of this calf. I heard somewhere (probably here) the best thing to do for a calf is to feed it enough that it's still a little hungry. Or something to that effect.

 

[jhm47]

As I read the original post, I fully expected to soon be reading about scours. Feeding a calf that probably didn't receive colostrum in it's first feeding, and then giving it 2 quarts of milk replacer at it's first feeding is a sure recipe for disaster. I agree with RTG and WRB that you need to give ONLY electrolytes, and only ONE quart per feeding for a couple days. Hope you can save the little one, but if you don't, just learn from your past mistakes like the rest of us have done. I've certainly made my share of mistakes over the years.

 

[julierx1]

At last nights feeding the calf would not take anything but had a little snooty nose. My husband did give her a shot of La 300 and we left her for the night. As of this morning ( still not checking on here for updates) I went out w/ 1 pint milk thinking it was a lost cause. But she sucked it down w/ no hesitation. I mixed up a bit more and tried but didnt want it. She is still scouring and is a little shivery ( maybe chilling) her nose is warm though and w/ the first bottle this morning, she chased me out the barn door. Do i need to give her another shot? and my next attempt will be electroliytes!!