Milk Replacer

[LibertyWool]

Ok, I can't remember if I used medicated milk replacer or plain milk replacer last year. I always get the all milk (no soy, etc). With my lambs, I've never used medicated, but with calves do I need to?

[TSYORK]

I use non-medicated because I don't want the antibiotics in the milk, as my family will be ingesting the meat from our bovines, but to each his/her own. Some say that medicated is better, as it helps prevent illness. My opinion is that if a calf is that easy to get sick, then it wouldn't thrive well anyway and isn't worth the finances and energy one would expend on it. Granted, I do administer antibiotics if one of my does get sick, but I earmark that calf and it goes to the sale and not my table. Some folks don't mind the non-natural practices, but I prefer to eat my beef as natural as possible.

Hope this helps.

[LibertyWool]

Thanks! I ask my sister in law and she said use medicated with dairy bottle calves. I understand your position...

[topside1]

Little do I know, but isn't any antibiotic eventually expelled from any animals body? Just because you fed medicated MR doesn't mean that trace amounts of chemicals still remain in it's body two years later....Does it? Most injectables always have a withhold from slaughter periods, wormers do to....Just trying to learn....Topside

[tammy8701]

l have 6 bottle feeders and l give them goats milk replacer and we have notice a big different in the calfs they seem to have more energy and doing a lot better, we found that there is 6% more fat in the goats replacer then the calf replacer and the goat replacer for us is $10.00 a bag cheaper,dont forget we are from ontario,canada

[topside1]

Welcome aboard Tammy, lots of ??? pop up here about bottle calves...Topside

[tammy8701]

thanks topside we have read alot of your posts and have help us alot with all the information,there is alot to learn about bottle feeders, and boy do we ever know that lol. thanks again

[sammyd]

Wow, even the most expensive cow milk replace I've found is cheaper than the goat stuff around here.
We feed the medicated type since we pick up our animals at the dreaded sales barns.
By the time we butcher them they have been off the milk replacer for well over a year, any antibiotics should be long gone by then.

[thequeensblessing]

We too use the medicated calf milk replacer. We lose far fewer calves with the medicated than we did with the nonmedicated. Yes, the withdrawal time is on the bag, and it's between 30 and 60 days, depending on the brand. (I think 30 days is average)

[TSYORK]

It's just a personal preference of mine that I use no antibiotics on the meat I eat. As previously stated I have had to use antibiotics on sick calves, but those go to the sale, not my freezer. One benefit I have that some others might not is I don't purchase my calves from a sale barn. I have a direct link to a local large dairy and I can purchase all the calves I want at very reasonable prices. I usually get Angus/Holstein or Hereford/Holstein crosses for 15 bucks per calf and pure holstein is 5-10 bucks per calf. I would mind paying more even. When I call and ask if I can get a few calves from them, they say they'll pick out the healthiest, largest ones that are born that week for me. The last two I bought, which was about six weeks ago were pure holsteins. Both calves weighed 100 pounds at birth. I'm very blessed to have the contact I do at the dairy.

[Up North]

Originally Posted by LibertyWool

Ok, I can't remember if I used medicated milk replacer or plain milk replacer last year. I always get the all milk (no soy, etc). With my lambs, I've never used medicated, but with calves do I need to?

It's your choice. Do you need to feed medicated MR? No.
Before switching to whole cow's milk we fed non-medicated for ten years with good results.
A good high quality MR , colostrum at birth, refraining from overfeeding, dry bed, fresh air, clean environment, and a little TLC are what matters.