[caroline rayburn]

hi! im new to this website and bottle calves lol,
so me and my brother purchased 2 angus bottle bulls (that are about 12-16 days old) yesterday and i have some questions
how long should i be bottle feeding them before we start weaning?
and how fast should they be drinking the 2qt bottles?
and we didn't check the weather last night but we got crazy rainstorms and now the cows have crusty eyes is this okay?
and also since we got them they have both been grinding their teeth is this normal?
that's all my questions for now, have a good day everyone.

 

[Whoo]

Do you have experience with cattle? Bottle calves are a ton of work, and can be hard to keep alive. There is a great sticky on the cattle thread about raising bottle calves. READ IT!!!!

Weaning: I wean when they have a good size gut. Seems like it usually takes about two bags of milk replacer and getting them to eating quite a bit of starter feed to get them where I like to wean.

Time taking bottle: I've never timed them taking the bottle, but you don't want them sucking it down real fast. I like to see some foam around their mouths when they are taking it.

Crusty eyes: Bottle calves are fragile, and it's hard to tell what's going on. Bad weather won't help at all! I would contact a vet ASAP and get them to lay eyes on the calves. They will know what to look for (temperature, lungs, stool).

Grinding teeth: Same with the vet.

Good luck!!!

 

[caroline rayburn]

thank you! this helps a lot i'll find a vet asap. and yes I have experience with cows just not bottle calves, I have 6 longhorns but their wild haha.

 

[caroline rayburn]

does anyone know a good vet near dallas tx that i could take them to?

 

[Alice In TX/MO]

Which side of Dallas? It's kind of a big area.

 

[caroline rayburn]

I found a place but thank you

 

[caroline rayburn]

what's the average amount of months that you need to bottle feed ive head everything from 4-5 weeks to 4-5 months so i have no clue what i should do.
and their eating 2qts twice a day, when should i start feeding more?

 

[Alice In TX/MO]

"How often — and how much — should you feed your bottle calf? Some folks say to feed one quart twice a day at first. But I prefer to give our calves each one quart three times a day for their first two weeks ... then two quarts twice daily until the fourth month, by which time the young calf should be eating mainly solid food. (See the accompanying "Feeds and Feeding" section near the end of this article.) "

Instructions for Raising Bottle Calves - Sustainable Farming - MOTHER EARTH NEWS

So you want to raise a herd but don’t have the time, money, know-how or acreage? Then why not try to start small and raise bottle calves instead?

www.motherearthnews.com