Feeding a calf

[darbyfamily]

Okay, we have this angusx heifer we're feeding... she wont nurse, hasnt even tried to, and wont drink from a bottle. I tried three times today, held her and forced her mouth open and put the bottle in and tried to squeeze milk into her mouth and she wont drink.

I've seen her drinking water from the buckets and she ate some calf creep pellets from my hand when I put it right up to her mouth.

So will that be enough? Water, calf creep pellets and hay free choice?

Right now shes in a pen that doesnt have much grass, but if she needs the grass then I can take her for a walk to the regular pasture for a little bit each afternoon or something ??

She's 5 wks old, so I think technically she will be okay without the milk, though I still plan to offer her some in a bucket if she'll drink it.

what do you think? will she grow okay on this?

[travlnusa]

Your calf was bucket fed replacer, rather than bottle fed.

When you say nurse, is she with with her dam?

Mix your milk replacer in a bucket and give it to her. Feed her starter grain after each feeding, even if you have to shove it into her mouth.

[darbyfamily]

no, she was on her mom cow before we got her yesterday but the cow was an old one and not producing much. We have a jersey thats giving us 3+ gallons a day so we can give her milk not milk replacer.

[Allen W]

The calf probably wasn't getting much if any milk from the cow, besides any calf at that age is hard to get on a bottle. Go ahead and try for a few days she might take it, if she does I wouldn't let her have very much at a time to start with. Your best bet would be to find some good calf starter for her. Grass this time of year is too mature for a small calf to get much good out off it. A little wheat pasture would be good for it though.