3 day bottle heifer - hernia ??? HELP!

[jBlaze]

What is this thing that has developed at the top of the umbilical cord of my 3 day old bottle heifer? The cord was wet when we got her on Saturday, it was dry this am and now there is this soft tissue, larger than my thumb.
Very worried!
Bottle baby, and change in milk, she is pitiful, and has ups and downs moments. We are feeding her goats milk and giving kaolin-pectin for the runs. She will get up if I rub her a lot, but poops laying down. Feeding about 1 quart at a time 4 times a day. A challenge to get in in her, but she does suck.
The steer in teh background is smaller, getting medicated replacer and is pitiful, but better. Got him at the same time.

[topside1]

I'd take both of them off milk products immediately and start a rehydrating them with a product called "ReSorb". Follow the package directions to the letter and I think both calves will make it. Act soon while they still want to suck. The cord business is out of my league.
Topside

[Ronney]

Agree with Topside as to the feeding of electrolytes for the next 24 hours and when you start them back on milk, do it in small amounts building it up in small increments per feed over several days. When I get new calves I don't feed them for the first 12 hours and then give them 1 litre (about a quart) twice a day, increasing that by 250mls (1 cup) until they are drinking 2.50 litres twice a day. It works for me in that I never have scouring or sickly calves.

As to the fluid in the umbilical cord, that's beyond me too. It isn't a hernia in the true sense of the word but there is fluid escaping from somewhere so I would be inclined to talk to your vet on that one.

Cheers,
Ronnie

[randiliana]

I agree with the other posters, except I don't believe in completely cutting off the milk. I would reduce the milk you are feeding and add electrolytes to their diets. And probably would get them on some sort of scour medication as well. Calf span or Sustain III boluses work really well.

As for the umbilical thing, I have never seen that before. As suggested before, talk to your vet!

[francismilker]

I've seen this with the cord before. In my case, the vet slipped a castration band over it and it dried up and fell off just like testicles. The one I seen was basically an "exterior blister" or "water sack" that resulted from improper detachment of the umbilical cord.

[agmantoo]

Ditto what francismilker said. Use one of the "cheerio" bands. Get the band as high as possible and give a tetanus shot.

[jBlaze]

I feel so relieved to hear the banding suggestion, that would be my instinct as well. but not having ANY experience with any situation remotely similar, I was too chicken to try on a heifer. DH has her at the vet's now. I will post after he calls.

Thanks!

[jBlaze]

The vet did not seem terribly concerned. He said that it may have been some urine leaked into there, that there was an operation for that, but her being a $50 calf, might not be worth it. (and I was told that she was not a twin.)
Said she was not terribly infected or de-hydrated but sent us home with pennecillin G and electrolites as well as an additional anti-diarrheal (sp?) medication.
We'll hope she makes it, the meds should help with the normal bottle calf hassle.
Thank you for your responses!

[ozark_jewels]

Here is a hernia on a heifer we bought for butcher.

[Trisha in WA]

I would love to hear what your vet comes up with. I just lost a calf with an identical umbilical. I tied it up higher with dental floss and cut the very bottom off so the fluid could come out. It was a muddy colored blood....not good at all.

[copperhead46]

I think a quart three times a day is too much milk, she should have one quart twice a day for now, then slowly bring her up to more. It's much better to underfeed than over feed.
P.J.

[Madsaw]

With umbilical problems like this a few things you need to check. Is the area where the cord attachs and above swollen and hard? When the calf is born there will be a little bit of fluid left in the cord thats in the body. This usally gets absorbed in to the calf. But, there is times bacteria and other germs get in there before it seals up. This will cause a infection and swelling. This is why some dip the naval in iodine to dry/burn the cord off. Used to beable to get 7% to really do a good job. But now we have to settle for 3 %.Alot of times you never notice this. Then again you will have a few cases that show up from time to time. Also if your vet said its urine in there, where the heck did he go to school.

I usally treat calves with a swollen and hard navals with penecillin for any where 3 to 6 days. Depending on how bad it is and how sick the calf gets. How many cc's did the vet have you give it? I normal us 10 cc for a decent size holstein. I have more then once tied a umbilical off with the twine of of them easy open feed bags in the past. The infection in the naval region will get into the blood stream real easy and travel to the brain and kill them. So be presitant and keep a eye on if it swells more.

Later
Bob

[jBlaze]

The meds he sent home are
Biosol - 1 ml twice a day till stool firms. (and continue KaolinPectin)
Pennicillen G 5 cc once a day for 7 days.
Vedco Calf Quencher. electrolite forumla, use 1/3 cup for 1 quart water, can mix 1/2 quench, 1/2 milk replacer.
The quench bottle says feed 1 quart per 60 pounds 3 to 4 times a day.

About the umbilical thing, says it could be 1-a urine leak which would mean a surgery (not likely here) 2-blood or 3 pus. From the way it looked this AM, I think urine. it did not look pussy or bloody at all to me. It may or may not resolve itself. The antibiotics should clear any infection.

oh, and by the way, she looks to be a hermie. Not definite, but there is a little bump at the vulva opening.

But, hey, at $78 for the both of them, it's still less that we paid for the last bummer steer. And the vet was #78 as well, and we learned some new meds.

The heifer got back from the vet around noon today, and DH fed. I fed again when I got home aound 6. The steer was doing good at that time, the heifer was still pitiful, She ate, but took several breaks, I rubbed to stimulate her, and was able to get her up by the end of her 1 quart. We went out (dd school thing), and came back and fed at 10pm, and they were both up bouncing around looking for dinner, and wanted more after the quart. Amazing the difference.
I will try to update about the umbilical thing when we notice a difference. When my DH took her to the vet this AM, it was not full, and I see that when I got home, the whole cord was wet again. I will watch it. Maybe it was just a bit of fluid as mentioned above, maybe a urine leak, I don't know. When she peed after I fed tonight, there was not much, just a few dribbles.
Thanks all.