Preventing Scours (Diarrhea) in Beef Calves

[topside1]

http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/A/ANR-0998/index2.tmpl

It's always best to utilize more than one opinion. Link posted for folks new to raising bottle calves. Education & experience are the keys to successfully raising bottle calves....Topside

[topside1]

The recipe contained in the link is a standard. Many variations do exist, for example I also add raw free range eggs, crushed vitamin C, capsules of pro-biotic powder, karo syrup, just to name a few. I'm not advocating this blend, I'm just mentioning what works for me. Read the ingredients listed on a "Resorb" package for example, and take it from there....Topside

[Tango]

Good article. It mentions feeding a high quality milk replacer and I wanted to note that calves can't digest vegetable proteins well until they start ruminating. Many less expensive milk replacers use soy as protein. Look at the ingredients and pay a little more for those with milk as protein source. Also from what I remember:
Keep an electrolyte formula on hand as well as these ingredients given in the article.
Don;t resort to antibiotics right away.
Keep a tube feeder and learn read how to use it- they appear scarier than they are.
Isolate sale barn calves.
And never give immodium to stop scours.
Never switch milk replacer once the calf is established on one. If necessary and you are able to, buy the amount you will need to weaning at the smae time, form the same lot.
I used to wean the calves when their nipple would no longer fit their mouths around 16 weeks.

[goodhors]

Good article. Thanks to you and Tango for putting out the information, hope some of the new-to-cattle folks read it BEFORE they start having problems with their animals.

I would add that keeping things as CLEAN as possible helps a lot. True washing of bottles and nipples, using HOT water, SOAP, BRUSHES to reach every nook or cranny after EVERY use, hang to dry, will do a great deal towards reducing some problems.

Clean stalling of bottle calves, with DAILY stall cleaning, also is a big help in keeping them healthy. Yeah, it IS WORK, more time, but LOTS cheaper than Vet bills or total loss of the stressed calves. You have the calves to turn a profit on them by eating or reselling most of them, so you have to put some effort into their survival beyond the daily bottles. I do not consider adding more and more bedding to a stall, as it "being clean" for the animal. You still have all the previous poop and urine down below, with the germs it contains and breeding more of the same. Dirty bedding needs REMOVAL so you can truly clean effectively to reduce sources of contamination. Again, it is WORK to keep animals healthy, thriving, not a passive way to make money. Cleanliness is one of the cheapest and MOST EFFECTIVE methods of keeping animals healthy, surviving well.

[nosqrls]

our vet recommends supra sulfa 3. 1 for every 50lbs. and you can cut them in half for 25 lbs.. they work but the calf will poop blueish green I have never had to dose twice and they say dose once every 72 hrs. and don't dose more than twice and don't over dose. It is better to under estimate weight. keep stalls and animal clean if calf starts looking dirty(covered in poo) clean it. A hot soapy rag does wonders and then a warm wet clean rag. Keep bottles clean keep water buckets clean. Use clean dry feed a calves immune system needs to build up.