O/T force feeding calves

Help,
Tim

Tim

In the larger picture, I think you have good advice here. For electrolytes I normally use powdered Gatoraide. I'd forget the LA200 and use a sulfamethiozine bolus, preferably one with kaolin in it. Norden makes a good blue one I get at the vets. If they need a shot something along the lines of Nuflor would probably be called for.

As weak as you describe, I'd be thinking vet, and soon. So far I've had about 70% survival of semi conscious calves that I got to the clinic. It isnt cheap but IV fluids may be called for.

If these calves did not get colostrums from their mom you can forget about trying that now. It is to late.
If they did get their colostrums they can still come down sick very easy coming from a sale barn.

If they are scouring GET THEM OFF THE MILK NOW!!!!! !!!!! !!
Replace the milk with this
20 teaspoons of dextrose (white corn syrup)
4 teaspoons of table salt
3 teaspoons of baking soda
1 gallon of water
You can substitute glucose for the dextrose but under no circumstances can you use sucrose (table sugar). Calves can not digest sucrose.
You can try the tube if you want to or you can slowly squeeze the bottle and let them drink it down like that.
My wife has success using children’s pedilite when I have all but give up.

Now you need to figure out what went wrong. Are you feeding them to much at one time. 8 to 10% of body weight per day broke into two feedings is enough. While a big calf like a holstein can take two full bottles a day a smaller jersey size calf only needs 3/4 a bottle twice a day.
In fact if you give them more you can give them scours. A baby calf only uses 1 of its 4 stomachs when on milk. If you give it more than this 1 stomach can hold it will spill over into the others and sit there till it goes sour.

Calves that get sick 2 days after coming from a sale barn more than likely got pneumonia or other respiratory diseases. I have found it cost affective and a good practice to get some one time nose spray for the calves. Give it to them as soon as they get home. I can not think of the name right now but a vet will know it well.

For this group I would get them on the electrolytes right away and get a vet to look at them ASAP. LA is good but your vet can treat the real problem and not just hit and miss with a all-round drug.

If they are still alive, would call a vet in ASAP since you haven't had much experience with baby calves. Think baby calves are about the hardest thing to keep alive if separated from mom. When I still lived at home, we usually had 15-20 bucket calves. Was a never ending cycle of shots, scour pills, pink eye meds, etc... You had to be on your toes in order to spot anything that might be going wrong. One day they are fine, the next scours or a cough, dead the next. If you didn't spot a problem eary, you were usually too late. Think I would rather have milked 15-20 head rather than this.

What breed, How much you feeding them, How many times a days, Where you keepin them, barn, etc..., How does it progress and such.

Generally speaking a calf/cow is about the dumbest thing to walk the planet. Will stand there and stare at ya with that I am hungry look and not eat the food laid before them. Without seeing and going on my own experances, I'd say dehydration is you worst emeny. They get the slighest ill filling and they stop eating/drinking. That starts one big snow ball. They get up one day and are slow/finicking to food, the next morning they won't eat, by the third the won't even get up. Day four and they are dead. Between scours and no drinking they die of dehydration. Tubing isn't that hard. When you get their neck between your legs, lift up on the chin, the tube will just about guide itself in. Mine came from TSC. Just hang on to them until the bottle is empty. They won't like it and may try to pull away and/or drop their a$$ on the ground. General rule around here is 6 quarts liquid a day, split up between 3-6 feedings, equal (close to) times apart. I try and make two of them electrolites. Beyond that you need to find out what is making them feel ill. Do they have a cough and/or snot nosed? If so, maybe a couple liquamycin (general antibodic) shots are in order. Are they getting over heated? Shade and fan will help. Are bottles and such clean? I have had trouble with contamination before and didn't even known it. Watch milk replacer storage (d@mn mice). If they are scouring (runs) you may have to go an extra step to cure/stop it. In my case it was more manage (nasty winter bug) until soild food more than anything.

As for colustrum, its to late and don't waste you money. If they didn't get it in the first 24 hours it won't do any good now. Put them on a good Replacer (not soy milk) and provide electrolites. Manage the dehydration, tube if necessary, I tubed one three times a day for a week before he got back up on his feet. Try to fix/adress the underlying cause. I would avoid the raw egg thing, salamnila(sp) is a bad thing.

milk fed calves have a hard time after being moved. They scour very easy.Worse if bought out of a stock yard, many bad bugs in one place. Basicly no food for the first 24hrs. maybe some water.

Watch carefully for dehyration. If they are scoured they will dehydrate fast. Do a pinch test. Pinch some skin if it stays tented they are getting dehydrated. If the calf won't eat/drink and is getting dehydrated then it is time for the feeding tube, electrolites and water. maybe add an egg for the protein

Will they still take a bottle? If not you are going to have to tube all the good stuff back into them.

I would get a vet involved today.

I would cut out the milk or replacer for now. They will dehydrate long before they starve.

I would get some NutriDrench in them ASAP. This stuff is great for sparking an energy spirt. It has propylene glycol in it witch is a form of sugar. It also has other supportive vitamins and minerals. I have seen this stuff do wonders in holding animals over until the vet can get there. Any good feed store or COOP should have it.

I would keep up the electrolytes.

I would give probios to jump start the gut. If the good bacteria in the gut dies so will the animal.

It will be important to find out what is causing the scours. They are loosing much needed water and nutrients. Here again the vet will be able to point you in the right direction.

Personally I think they are a bit young to have a Cocci problem just yet, but?

If they did not get some colostrum from mom you are going to have a long battle on your hands to keep them alive and get them to recover, but it can be done.

Let us know how you come out.

Here is some info on Coccida.Link

Hope>Link you get this figured out.

If they were mine I would have a vet do a fecal to eliminate parasites and keep the electrolytes going so they don’t dehydrate.

Good luck with this.