Picking up a baby holstein calf tomorrow...couple a questions

farmergirl · #1 02/21/09, 08:02 PM

Hi all,
I found a local dairy!!! Didn't even know there was one anywhere near by, and turns out it's only about 60 miles from our farm

I am picking up a week old bull calf tomorrow, that had three days worth of colostrum. What I'm wondering most about is how we should transport him home. I have a large welded metal "cage" that is quite heavy and strong, that fits into the back of a pickup. My concern is that he might get chilled by the wind as he rides the 60 miles home with us in the back of the open truck. Should I cover the cage with something like cardboard or a tarp? Would a nest of grass hay be sufficient warmth for him? It is forecast to be around 55-60 degrees tomorrow, with no rain.

lasergrl · #2 02/21/09, 08:53 PM

they are so sensitive I would be leary to do that. I just transport mine in the back of an suv

topside1 · #3 02/21/09, 09:11 PM

Pick him up during the warmest time of the day. Push the cage up to the cab of the truck and he will be fine. The trucks cab will block the high volicity winds. A calf that age will lay down within the first five miles, so just lay down some old blankets and head home....Topside

anniew · #4 02/21/09, 09:20 PM

Take a friend and have him/her carry him on her lap...BTDT

Ronney · #5 02/22/09, 05:48 AM

I often transport young stock in a stock crate that fits on the back of the ute (pick up to you). The crate has a custom made cover that fits over the sides and top of it and if you've ever ridden on the back of a vehicle, you will understand why! If I'm going any distance there is a separate cover that can be attached to the back of the crate so that all four sides are enclosed. You obviously don't have one of them so buy one of those cheap and nasty blue tarp things with eyelets around the edges and tie that on - but make sure you tie it on securely with tie-downs over the top of it as well. I also have a rubber mat to put on the deck to stop the animals slipping and falling over and injuring themselves. Then I put a huge amount of hay on top of it.

Remember that the transportation is one of the biggest killers of young stock so you need to make it as comfortable and stress free as possible.

Cheers,
Ronnie

travlnusa · #6 02/22/09, 07:27 AM

I agree with using what you have wrapped in a tarp. You will want enough bedding in there so he can nest to Level #3, meaning when he lays down you can not see his legs. 6" or so.

Before you get him home, make sure you have all you need. GOOD milk replacer. Spend around $50 for the good stuff. I suggest non medicated, but others will debate me on that point. You will also want one bag of a sweet grain feed. Do not use a pellet form. After each bottle feeding, shove a small handful into his mouth and leave a bucket with about 1" in it. The key is to get him off of replacer as soon as you can. That would be when he is eating 2-3 lbs of grain for three days in a row.

Buy a rectal termometer (sorry spelling). They are about $12, and will be the best money spent. Take his temp the same time of day for the next week. Best way to see if he is getting sick before he is showing illness, at which point it becomes a fight.

When you pick him up and he had manure on his hind end, back legs, or tail, go home empty handed.

Once home, DRY AND DRAFT FREE is key. I raise calves here in WI at temps well below 0, but as long as dry and draft free, no problems.

Just as a side note. If the farmer told you he had colostrum for three days, he does not know calves. A calf can only absorb it for 24 hrs after birth. After 12 hrs of life, they will only absorb 1/2 of what they could at 1 hr of life.
He may have fed it, which is KEY, but it only helped the calf for that first day. Also a cow will only produce it for 24 hr give or take.

JKB07 · #7 02/22/09, 03:51 PM

All good advise here....

but, the side note about the colostrum is wrong.... at a good operation calves are fed colostrum for 3 days... mostley depending on the quality of the colostrum and when the calf first got colostrum...

Good luck with him!

Justin

milkinpigs · #8 02/22/09, 05:04 PM

No, Travlnusa is correct.At the most,dairies will give colostrum twice, 12 hours apart,a gallon per feeding usually.Longer than twelve hours and the calf won't absorb much if any.The first milking is the only milk that is considered colostrum.

As to Farmergirl's question, yes keep the wind off with a tarp if you are going that far.

PA Katahdins · #9 02/22/09, 05:30 PM

When we still milked cows, we would feed them colostrum for the first 3 days so i have to agree with JKB07.

Calfkeeper · #10 02/22/09, 05:36 PM

We usually feed colostrum for as long as we are separating it from the bulk tank; 2-3 days. But according to all that I have read on what the "experts" say (Hoard's-for instance) the critical absorbtion period for the calf is the first 12-24 hours or so. It doesn't hurt to continue it, but like someone said, the cow only produces it for so long.

tyusclan · #11 02/22/09, 06:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JKB07

All good advise here....

but, the side note about the colostrum is wrong.... at a good operation calves are fed colostrum for 3 days... mostley depending on the quality of the colostrum and when the calf first got colostrum...

Good luck with him!

Justin

Quote:

Originally Posted by PA Katahdins

When we still milked cows, we would feed them colostrum for the first 3 days so i have to agree with JKB07.

It's fine to feed it for 3 days, but the calf is only going to absorb the benefits of the colostrum for the first 24 hours.

It's actually only critical that the calf receive it once.

JKB07 · #12 02/22/09, 06:22 PM

No, Im right. Colostrum management has a larger impact on calf health than any other management factor. Heifer calves leaving the dairy to be raised by a custom calf raiser should receive the same attention at birth as the heifers to be grown at home.

Many dairymen mistakenly believe that the calf should be left on the cow for 12-24 hours. Instead, the calf should be removed from the dam at birth and hand-fed colostrum within the first 4 hours (this is practiced by dairys, no so much by the family cow owner). Many cows have udders that are too saggy and low-down for the calf to be able to nurse. Other cows may leak colostrum prior to calving, resulting in lesser quality (or no) colostrum available to the calf. Also, first and second calf heifers have lower quality colostrum than older cows. If left to nurse on their own, up to 2/3 of calves will not have adequate colostrum antibodies in their blood when tested.

The newborn calf is born with almost no antibodies in the blood. Immediately after birth, the calf's intestine is able to absorb antibodies well. As soon as anything goes into the digestive tract (mucous, manure, dirt, straw, colostrum, etc.), the cells lining the calf's intestine start to change from rectangular to square cells. The square cells are unable to absorb the antibodies . This decrease in absorptive capacity occurs rapidly. By 9 hours after stimulation, only about 50% of the available antibody is absorbed. By 12 hours, only 30% is absorbed.

The "4-4-4 RULE": Milk the cow within the first 4 hours after calving. Feed 4 quarts of "green" colostrum within the first 4 hours after birth. (In very small calves & Jerseys, it may be possible to get only 3 quarts in the calf). A second feeding of "green" colostrum should occur at 6-12 hours after birth. If possible, colostrum feeding should continue on days 2 and 3 of the calf’s life (using transition milk). Colostrum of lesser quality (yellow or red colostrometer reading) can be used for these days.

Also, it will take most dairy breeds 4 days to return to producing pure milk. Some people will refer to days 2 and 3 milking as "transition milk".

Hope this helps!

Justin

milkinpigs · #13 02/22/09, 06:47 PM

..........

farmergirl · #14 02/22/09, 08:46 PM

I got him home

We used a shipping blanket like they use for moving furniture to cover the cage, and that seemed to worked well. I also gave him several horse turnout blankets to nestle down on. He stood up for about the first 10 miles or so and then layed down for the rest of the trip. He is very gentle and is used to interacting with humans, as he has been drinking milk from a bucket for the past couple of days. He was bottled fed with colostrum for the first 3 days. He seems strong and healthy and I am so happy to have made a new connection with a farmer in this area.

I have him in a small pen in the horse barn with my jersey cow and her calf. The holstein calf knows how to nurse and is pretty good about nudging the cow's bag to get her to let down her milk. The only problem is that the cow seems irritated by him and will push him away from her unless I have her tied. She is a first freshener. Is this behavior normal? I'm thinking she will settle in to letting both calves nurse freely within a few days. Until that happens, I am leaving the three of them penned in the barn and plan to tie her up 4 times a day so that the calf can nurse without being bullied.

Thanks for all the good advice!