1st time calf, cow not producing enough milk

[all4ahorse]

I have a beef cow who calved for the 1st time 2 weeks ago. She does not have a very large udder and I am concerned that her milk production is low because the calf doesn't seem to be gaining the weight/growing at the rate previous calves have. This time of year in our area (Pacific Northwest, Oregon) our pastures are dry but there is plenty to graze on, we are also providing grass hay twice a day to her and some grain. Is there anything else can we do to boost her milk production? We do provide alfalfa a few times a week. Also, the teats are getting raw (scabbing up) due to the calf's constant sucking and I was hoping someone could give me advice on what to put on them to ease her discomfort but not cause the calf to not want to suck. Is it advisable to try & feed the calf a couple times a day with milk replacer, if we can get her to take to a bottle?

We are new to raising beef, learning alot by reading, asking our vet and talking to old-time farmers around the area but "little" things like this are hard to get advice on sometimes! We don't know if 1st time calvers tend to have small udders and then gradually get better with each calf or is this the way she is going to be for every one. Not sure if we should breed her back this Fall or send her to auction??? She is a cow that we shouldn't have bought last year but needed some cows on the pastures when we bought our 20 acre farm. She is a Simmental x Hereford, calf is out of a very nice Hereford bull. Any suggestions/advice would be greatly appreciated. I don't know for sure how to post images here so the links to the photos are below.

Thank you,
Connie

http://www.allforahorse.com/teats9-6-08.jpg
http://www.allforahorse.com/daisy&mom9-6-08.jpg

 

[Workinonit Farm]

It certainly wouldn't hurt to try to supplement the calf with a bottle. At 2 weeks old, it may be a little difficult, but it can be done.

Katherine

 

[dun]

The things that come to mind are: 1) Genetics - Nothing you can do about it, what you have is what you get, 2)Nutrition - What kind of condition is the cow in, showing ribs a little, a lot none at all, 3)Health - Does the cow have anything wrong with her udder, edema, mastitis.
There may be other things but those are the first things that come to mind

 

[angie1]

Katherine is right ~ is not easy to get that calf to take a bottle but it is a good idea. You will only have to work with it a couple of times and that calf will learn you are one of the good guys! I would for sure give 4 pints in the morning and 4 at night for starters ~ you may have to increase, but it is supplimenting mom, not taking the place of for now. My vet has said, and I believe its true, that if the cow is in good condition, supplimenting her with grain will not increase milk production. I don;t know that I would put anything on the cows udder for the raw, cracked skin. Ointment such a bag balm can be counter productive as it is greasy and can trap bacteria in. Lotion is better. Maybe your feed store or your vet can recommend something. As I said, I would be inclined to leave it alone. Simm X Herf is my favorite cross, but I would really consider selling her and her calf.

 

[cowpunk'd]

It's normal for a heifers first calf to be a little smaller and gain a little slower then the calves she'll have later. I would try to bottle feed the calf but I wouldn't be surprised if the calf refused the bottle (so don't go out and buy an expensive bag of milk replacer till you know). The scratches on her teets look just like the scratches on my first calf heifer's teets. I didn't worry about them, they didn't bother her enough to kick at the calf or anything. I have seen heifers with udders that small raise a fine calf, and if the calf is healthy now (no joint ill, navel ill etc.) and you didn't supplement colostrum when the calf was born, then she supplied enough colostrum herself, which is a point in her favour.

 

[angie1]

I would try to bottle feed the calf but I wouldn't be surprised if the calf refused the bottle (so don't go out and buy an expensive bag of milk replacer till you know). .

Go cheap on milk replacer and you will spend more than the difference on fixing scours. It'll keep and should be on hand anyhow. Its not that the udder is small, it is that the calf continues to be unsatisfied that causes concern ("calf's constant sucking").

 

[dun]

Its not that the udder is small, it is that the calf continues to be unsatisfied that causes concern ("calf's constant sucking").

Yup, that's the concern

 

[cowpunk'd]

Angie I didn't suggest buying cheap milk replacer (in my experience there's no such thing), I would check how hungry that calf is using milk which the OP has on hand. I would warm it up some.
Connie, did the calf take to the bottle?

 

[all4ahorse]

Nope, she wasn't interested at all in sucking on a bottle! She is actually doing pretty well at this point and she seems to be growing at a fairly normal rate so I'm not as alarmed as I was last week! Sure do appreciate everyone's input. One other thing that is different on this calf than on others we've raised over the past year is that she has these little wart-like things on her nose, around her nostrils. I thought they might have been fly bites that got infected but they look too 'uniform' , circular. Any thoughts on those?? I would try to get a photo but she is harder than the dickens to catch! I will make attempts to do that because more of them seem to be popping up. She has 5-6 of them now, about the size of a pea.

http://www.allforahorse.com/our_farm.htm "Our Farm"
Thank you!
Connie

 

[Bez+]

Nope, she wasn't interested at all in sucking on a bottle! She is actually doing pretty well at this point and she seems to be growing at a fairly normal rate so I'm not as alarmed as I was last week! Sure do appreciate everyone's input. One other thing that is different on this calf than on others we've raised over the past year is that she has these little wart-like things on her nose, around her nostrils. I thought they might have been fly bites that got infected but they look too 'uniform' , circular. Any thoughts on those?? I would try to get a photo but she is harder than the dickens to catch! I will make attempts to do that because more of them seem to be popping up. She has 5-6 of them now, about the size of a pea.

http://www.allforahorse.com/our_farm.htm "Our Farm"
Thank you!
Connie

Connie

Udder size does not indicate milk production volume.

If the calf is sucking the cows tits and milk is dribbling out of the side of the calf's mouth you are probably doing OK.

Small bag does not always mean small milk production.

Sounds like the heifer may have the milk flowing now.

If the calf is a failure you can do what my wife and I do.

Argue.

She always gives a heifer a second chance.

Me, I kick their worthless - money costing @sses down the road to the sale barn - second chances mean I am spending money. I do not love my cows - I tend to eat them or sell them. They are not cute once they hit 300 pounds - they are a target to be sold to the highest bidder - and any cow that causes me grief can be burgered within a day.

So my wife wins about 50% of the time - the rest - well I wait until she goes to town and then any heifer that is a failure - goes to town - and then I get taken to task when wife comes home.

Calves can get warts and ring worm - let them run their course - if that is what they are - they will be fine.

Build a catch pen - ASAP - I never want to hear about how tough your animals are to catch. Put the only water available - in the pen. You will need this some day if only to protect yourself from an emergency. Solid walls - minimum 2x6 - rough cut - full dimension - not that sisy stuff used in house building - with spacing narrow enough that a calf cannot get its head stuck - or cannot escape out. Needs to be a minimum of 5 feet hogh - higher better - someday you will thank me - all mine are 6 feet or better - topped with a minimum 8 inch diametre rail - they do not break as easy as a board when a 2200 pound bull attempts to go over the top.

You cannot do this fast enough - and I can assure you that you will need it and regret it if you do not do this.

Do not waste a lot of time here looking for diagnosis on things though - better to have a veterinarian available. Lots of smart folks here - but what works in Florida may cause you serious grief in northern Alberta, California or Alaska - if you get my drift.

So always watch for the location of the advice.

Cheers

Bez+

 

[dun]

As the calf gets older, watch for a haybelly. Calves that aren;t getting enough milk on pasture usually develop a gut and it's pretty obvious.

 

[all4ahorse]

Thank you kindly for the advice. I am fairly confident now about the udder & milk production and that she is fine, was just a worried 'new-calf-step-mom'! You sound like a clone to my husband...he doesn't 'love' the cows either, they are steaks & hamburger to him and yes, he says they are not cute after a few hundred pounds as well! In any event, we do have a small pen and a squeeze chute set up and have used the pen for containing the calves for vaccinations and/or castration. This new one just wants to run at first. Once we get her to the pen with Mom, we are able to get our hands on her and she settles right down. I agree with you, NO fun having a calf that is difficult to catch. We have a small herd, just 12, and all are trained to come when the food arrives, most allow me to touch/pet at least while they eat.

OK, I did get a photo of her nose, just wanted to share in case it appears to be something more than warts, in which case our vet will be called. I shall try to post it within the message, if it doesn't work, the link is here

http://www.allforahorse.com/daisynose-9-16-08.jpg

Thank you again! I really enjoy this board!
Connie

Connie

Udder size does not indicate milk production volume.

If the calf is sucking the cows tits and milk is dribbling out of the side of the calf's mouth you are probably doing OK.

Small bag does not always mean small milk production.

Sounds like the heifer may have the milk flowing now.

If the calf is a failure you can do what my wife and I do.

Argue.

She always gives a heifer a second chance.

Me, I kick their worthless - money costing @sses down the road to the sale barn - second chances mean I am spending money. I do not love my cows - I tend to eat them or sell them. They are not cute once they hit 300 pounds - they are a target to be sold to the highest bidder - and any cow that causes me grief can be burgered within a day.

So my wife wins about 50% of the time - the rest - well I wait until she goes to town and then any heifer that is a failure - goes to town - and then I get taken to task when wife comes home.

Calves can get warts and ring worm - let them run their course - if that is what they are - they will be fine.

Build a catch pen - ASAP - I never want to hear about how tough your animals are to catch. Put the only water available - in the pen. You will need this some day if only to protect yourself from an emergency. Solid walls - minimum 2x6 - rough cut - full dimension - not that sisy stuff used in house building - with spacing narrow enough that a calf cannot get its head stuck - or cannot escape out. Needs to be a minimum of 5 feet hogh - higher better - someday you will thank me - all mine are 6 feet or better - topped with a minimum 8 inch diametre rail - they do not break as easy as a board when a 2200 pound bull attempts to go over the top.

You cannot do this fast enough - and I can assure you that you will need it and regret it if you do not do this.

Do not waste a lot of time here looking for diagnosis on things though - better to have a veterinarian available. Lots of smart folks here - but what works in Florida may cause you serious grief in northern Alberta, California or Alaska - if you get my drift.

So always watch for the location of the advice.

Cheers

Bez+

 

[msscamp]

I have a beef cow who calved for the 1st time 2 weeks ago. She does not have a very large udder and I am concerned that her milk production is low because the calf doesn't seem to be gaining the weight/growing at the rate previous calves have.
Thank you,
Connie

You cannot compare the growth rate of this calf with previous calves - that is like comparing apples to oranges because of the difference between the cows, and their stages. I didn't phrase that very well, but hopefully it makes sense. This is a first time calver, she has not reached full maturity yet, and I would be a lot more concerned with how the calf looks and acts rather that what Mom's udder looks like. Is the calf full? Is he/she sunk in in front of the hips? Is he/she running around, playing, and doing calf stuff, or he the calf laying around and sleeping a lot? If the calf is full, is running around and playing, and is growing I would not worry about Mom's milk production.

 

[Limomike]

Sounds to me like you are doing everything good to help the calf. Bez is right on the size of udder does not necessarily mean low milk production. Just keep an eye on the calf, and make sure it is getting plenty of milk. As someone said, a milk replacer might help, but could do harm in the way of scours if given too much.