Post by farmerswife on Jun 22, 2011 21:00:56 GMT -5
I know we have had big long in depth threads on this subject before but...... here goes.....
PLEASE understand---- this is a specific issue reguarding babies that never had any MOMMA time! I can usually conquer scours (not always) on calves that got to spend the first week on their momma's or were bottlefed the first few weeks on someone else's premises. If this is a disease then I need some input on WHAT kind of disease? and HOW to beat it?!!
I raise baby calves on nurse cows -- in the year I have done this I have bought around 170 baby calves and have lost around 10-12% of them...... but most of the ones that die are the newborns. Out of 10 fresh babies that we can recall only ONE has survived! (and it never thrived well) and fresh meaning within 48 hours old. Most of them I got within the first 12 hours and gave colostrum too myself (powder replacement) or the owner gave it to them themselves. I'm feeling very discouraged! I have tried all the remedies that we have talked about (still can't hit the vein for IV fluids tho so I do that subQ) nothing has worked!!
The calves will be doing great- thriving- sucking - butting drinking their full amounts....... and suddenly day 6 hits and everything goes to POO (literally!) its more like a virus the way it hits so fast. They will just suddenly refuse the next meal and will have the scours.... not a slowly turning to runs but just WATER! Their little tummies will gurgle and slosh-- and sometimes their mouths will be slimy (sometimes). The last calf that died (today) was 48 hours old when I got him- he had colostrum within 12 hours and then milk replacer until I got him..... I gave him the next 2 meals of colostrum again. He was vigourous the night before and the next morning (6 hours later) he wouldn't get up on his own and refused to eat the entire day....... and the poo had went from normal to yellow water in a matter of hours. I didn't force him that day (been here before and aggressive action didn't work either!) I did work with him the entire day giving him shots of 20cc's at a time of normasolR and got a whole bottle of electolites in him a little at a time........ day 2--- he met me bawling wanting his bottle - (the last calf did all these exact same things!) he drank 1/2 of it then refused the rest of the day- I forced electrolites and later milk into him later in the day...... this morning- same ol same ol- no eat no improvement- forced milk and he was dead by lunch.
I have tried hitting them quickly with antibiotics...... I have tried NOT giving them antibiotics at all.
I had convinced myself that it was the rich milk cows or it was exposure too soon to my premises and they were getting a disease? soooo the last one I kept separate never took her to the barn--- same thing happened to her. BUT I had swapped her to Jersey milk on day 6 so I blamed it on that-- this one- I had disinfected (with a spray on the ground) every inch of the place..... no cow time--- only milk replacer after the replacement colostrum.
what do you think? what could they be getting exposed to? what can I do different? I'm loosing money- my patience and I'm getting extrememly discouraged! I raised baby calves years ago.... one at a time here and there and they did fine-- but now.......... what can I do different?
OH- and I tried the immunoboost with several of them too (not this one tho) and it didn't help-- it only made my expenses in the animal go up before it died.
I'm afraid I'm going to have to decline on any calf less than 7 days old until I can come up with a theory or solution........
even bottle calves that are older than a week old do fine- but if they get here before then--- I'm doomed as well as them it seems!
Read more: www.familycow.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=pmview&view=2&id=99473#ixzz1Q3mcSIV1
PLEASE understand---- this is a specific issue reguarding babies that never had any MOMMA time! I can usually conquer scours (not always) on calves that got to spend the first week on their momma's or were bottlefed the first few weeks on someone else's premises. If this is a disease then I need some input on WHAT kind of disease? and HOW to beat it?!!
I raise baby calves on nurse cows -- in the year I have done this I have bought around 170 baby calves and have lost around 10-12% of them...... but most of the ones that die are the newborns. Out of 10 fresh babies that we can recall only ONE has survived! (and it never thrived well) and fresh meaning within 48 hours old. Most of them I got within the first 12 hours and gave colostrum too myself (powder replacement) or the owner gave it to them themselves. I'm feeling very discouraged! I have tried all the remedies that we have talked about (still can't hit the vein for IV fluids tho so I do that subQ) nothing has worked!!
The calves will be doing great- thriving- sucking - butting drinking their full amounts....... and suddenly day 6 hits and everything goes to POO (literally!) its more like a virus the way it hits so fast. They will just suddenly refuse the next meal and will have the scours.... not a slowly turning to runs but just WATER! Their little tummies will gurgle and slosh-- and sometimes their mouths will be slimy (sometimes). The last calf that died (today) was 48 hours old when I got him- he had colostrum within 12 hours and then milk replacer until I got him..... I gave him the next 2 meals of colostrum again. He was vigourous the night before and the next morning (6 hours later) he wouldn't get up on his own and refused to eat the entire day....... and the poo had went from normal to yellow water in a matter of hours. I didn't force him that day (been here before and aggressive action didn't work either!) I did work with him the entire day giving him shots of 20cc's at a time of normasolR and got a whole bottle of electolites in him a little at a time........ day 2--- he met me bawling wanting his bottle - (the last calf did all these exact same things!) he drank 1/2 of it then refused the rest of the day- I forced electrolites and later milk into him later in the day...... this morning- same ol same ol- no eat no improvement- forced milk and he was dead by lunch.
I have tried hitting them quickly with antibiotics...... I have tried NOT giving them antibiotics at all.
I had convinced myself that it was the rich milk cows or it was exposure too soon to my premises and they were getting a disease? soooo the last one I kept separate never took her to the barn--- same thing happened to her. BUT I had swapped her to Jersey milk on day 6 so I blamed it on that-- this one- I had disinfected (with a spray on the ground) every inch of the place..... no cow time--- only milk replacer after the replacement colostrum.
what do you think? what could they be getting exposed to? what can I do different? I'm loosing money- my patience and I'm getting extrememly discouraged! I raised baby calves years ago.... one at a time here and there and they did fine-- but now.......... what can I do different?
OH- and I tried the immunoboost with several of them too (not this one tho) and it didn't help-- it only made my expenses in the animal go up before it died.
I'm afraid I'm going to have to decline on any calf less than 7 days old until I can come up with a theory or solution........
even bottle calves that are older than a week old do fine- but if they get here before then--- I'm doomed as well as them it seems!
Read more: www.familycow.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=pmview&view=2&id=99473#ixzz1Q3mcSIV1