help sick calves

bigmudder77 · #1 07/04/10, 10:20 PM

ok well i had one die and 2 others have been sick for 4 days now

one is 5 months other is 4 months (the one that dies was 4 months)

there both holsteins

they have like water poop and there bellys sound full of water

had to help the one up tonight

i think they have the C word i cant spell it but its where they crap them self to death but im not sure cant call the vet till tuesday or i have to pay $50 just for them to come out

there is 6 left 3 jersey mixes 3 holsteins the 3 jerseys seem to start getting the poops the only one thats doing good is the other holstein

any one know what it can be?

o ya there all steers and between 4-5 months old the sick 2 were stated above on the age of them and i have raised them sice 3-4 days old all have got a bag and a half of milk at least

need to know any thing else about them ask i just need to know what im dealing with

o ya there getting hay fresh water and 16% grower feed and pasture grass the hay is a 2nd cutting grass hay that has been stored in the barn since last year no rain on it

francismilker · #2 07/04/10, 10:33 PM

I am no vet so take this advice with a grain of salt, but if it were me with the symtoms you described I'd give each calf a shot of baytril sub-q and put them on corrid. Corrid is for the treatment of coccidiosis. (bloody scours).

Once again, I'm not a vet but have had pretty good luck with home treatment over the years. Just my two cents.

bigmudder77 · #3 07/04/10, 10:49 PM

its not bloody though its like brownish green color

but yes i got corrid from a friend that said to try that but wanted to see if any one else thought the same thing cause its not good to give it to them if they dont have it

Madsaw · #4 07/05/10, 06:12 AM

Well, knowing what the weather has been across the states the last few weeks. I would say treat them for pnuemonia. Its just something about the heat and humidity that brings it on too. If you have nuflur or draxxin and sulfer. Also if it is coccidioius the sulfer will treat that also . But being greenish brown sounds like pnuemonia. And with it spread through the bunch of calves so fast thats how I would treat them.
Bob

Ronney · #5 07/05/10, 06:15 AM

Bigmudder I'm going to be very blunt - if you can't/won't pay to get the vet out when you have animals in this condition, you shouldn't have them. You've already lost one, it sounds like you will be digging holes for another two and of the remaining 6, some of them don't sound too good. Have you worked out how much it's cost you in milk powder and feed so that you can put it all into a hole as compost. $50.00 call out fee sounds cheap to me by comparison.

Animals with sloshy guts are sick, very sick as well as being distressed. I would agree with Francis that they may have Coccidiosis but you need to get that confirmed asap. I've never had it in my stock but if I suspected it the vet would be out here quick smart. In the meantime, seperate those that you think are still ok away from the others.

Cheers,
Ronnie

wr · #6 07/05/10, 12:41 PM

How are the calves doing now?

bigmudder77 · #7 07/06/10, 04:05 PM

every time i call the vet its always over $100 in drugs and the service call and the calf dies EVERYTIME one time calf died just 30 mins after the vet left (bill was $146 calf was a month old and on milk $250 for the calf heifer calf by the way $50 for the milk and $146 for the vet bill you do the math and its in the ground) now the other ones i had over the years when i called the vet they have ALL died and im stuck with an even bigger bill and they die none have made it past 2 days after calling the vet and i have tried 4 different vets around here thinking it might be the vet and nope they just all die a pack of bullets a 50 count is $20 and all the stuff i pumped them with has been under $100 and i still have them

one isnt doing very good at all

and the other one is doing better his belly isnt all watery any more after giving him this one day responce it says its for calves on milk (it makes there poop solid like a plastic bag filled with poop) but any ways it seems to be working well for the one that drank the whole bottle of it the other one only had a 1/4 bottle before it didnt want any more so i think he might be too far gone to help him but i think he might be a twin he was small the farm i got him from said he wasnt but i always thought he might of been but he was only $25 so i got him any ways

Madsaw · #8 07/06/10, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Madsaw

Well, knowing what the weather has been across the states the last few weeks. I would say treat them for pnuemonia. Its just something about the heat and humidity that brings it on too. If you have nuflur or draxxin and sulfer. Also if it is coccidioius the sulfer will treat that also . But being greenish brown sounds like pnuemonia. And with it spread through the bunch of calves so fast thats how I would treat them.
Bob

I will say it again. Sulfer and draxxin or nuflur. Been down this road a few times over the yrs. Born and raised on a dairy farm you see it all in time. Corrid is not fast enough if its coccidious. You need the sulfa in them if it is. Alot fast response to it. Also treat for the pnuemonia as this usally is a low grade case and still will kill them.
Bob

bigmudder77 · #9 07/06/10, 08:23 PM

im gonna go get some that stuff tomorrow what does it come in a powder or a pill? and do you know the price of it?

farmergirl · #10 07/06/10, 08:39 PM

Respectfully, since it sounds as though you raise quite a few calves each year, and have had more than your fair share of the bottle calves die on you, it makes sense to stock up the medicine cabinet BEFORE you acquire the calves, not after.
I'm not trying to kick you while you're down, but raising livestock is plenty hard enough when you have everything you could possibly need onhand or nearby. Trying to put the cart before the horse like this will only lead to financial pain and frustration on your part, and suffering on the calves' part.

wr · #11 07/06/10, 09:59 PM

I seldom medicate but when I do, I prefer Nuflur. It's a little more expensive but in my opinion, worth every penny and more. I don't know much about US regulations but in Canada, because it's so effective but too costly for small producers to buy a bottle that will likely expire before it's used up, our vets can sell in single dose syringes.

travlnusa · #12 07/07/10, 06:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by farmergirl

Respectfully, since it sounds as though you raise quite a few calves each year, and have had more than your fair share of the bottle calves die on you, it makes sense to stock up the medicine cabinet BEFORE you acquire the calves, not after.
I'm not trying to kick you while you're down, but raising livestock is plenty hard enough when you have everything you could possibly need onhand or nearby. Trying to put the cart before the horse like this will only lead to financial pain and frustration on your part, and suffering on the calves' part.

I learned this very costly lesson about 5 yrs ago.

I is much cheaper to have to toss out some unused/leftover bottle as opposed to burying the cost of a started calf.

My calfs know what day and time all stores/vets would be closed, and then choose to get sick.

Madsaw · #13 07/07/10, 07:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigmudder77

im gonna go get some that stuff tomorrow what does it come in a powder or a pill? and do you know the price of it?

About $23 for a the Sustain II tablets from a farm store. The draxxin is about $4 a cc with the dose 1.1 ccper 100. Or Nuflur is about $1.50 per cc with a dose of 3 cc per 100 and needs repeated in 3 days.
Bob

bigmudder77 · #14 07/07/10, 07:46 AM

i have stuff laying around but not much i use to be pretty good at bringing calves back to health but that was back in 04 05 when i was buying sick auction calves for $5 to $20 and boosting them with medicine and they all pulled through

now after i stopped doing that and getting them from a couple farms for a little more it seems like more are dying on me as the years go

we had lots of rain here in the end of june and then its been in the 90s and muggy and no rain and there getting sick so maybe its the heat maybe its the cocicita coming out of the ground and getting them sick who knows

that 4month holstein died last night some time in the night now the other one that was sick got boosted with some crap a farmer down the road gave me and he is eatting like crazy and his poop seems to be clearing up so if tomorrow he is still good ill have him come back and give the rest that stuff

bigmudder77 · #15 07/07/10, 07:53 AM

i have this terramycin (oxytetracycline HCI) soluble powder that is brand new never opened dont expire till 5-11 so it should be good it says it treats pneumoia would that be good to give them rather than the pills

Madsaw · #16 07/07/10, 10:44 AM

Yeah this humid weather is hell on cattle. I am just a bit north of you in WI. We have the same weather pattern here right now too. Your best bet would be to get a container of the Sustain III tablets at your local farm store. Might seem like alot but if the cattle are a little loose or hacking just a bit it will help them clear right up. Or another option is Auroe(spelling) 700sg crumbles you can feed to them. Its not cheap but it will pay for itself in keeping your cattle healthy. It is labeled for beef cattle. It contains sulfamethazine.
Bob

hardrock · #17 07/07/10, 01:09 PM

Many years ago,I raised about 15 baby calves each quarter. When I started, I went to a sale barn and bought my first 15.Got them home and started losing them.

I called a mobile vet and he gave me a lession. I paid the price for the education,and it was well worth it. He sold me the drugs and showed me how
and when to use them.

One thing I haven't heard mentioned is microbes. The vet told me that when antibotics are given,this strips everything out...the good and the bad.When I started putting the good back in they improved faster.

He told me to get them at dairy farms and there is a shot,if given within 24 hrs. of birth helps. (give some to each farm you buy from)

He also said to remember they are babys.