2 week old calf loosing her hair, walks funny.

[knowknews]

I got a 2-day old calf at an auction 2 weeks ago. I mixed the milk replacer incorrectly and gave her 2x the powder for a day or two, found out how to mix it, but it gave her scours. Over these two weeks she started drinking so much milk (because I didn't know to give her calf starter) it got to be over a gallon 3x/day. She is back to one 4-pint bottle 2x/day. She doesn't like the calf starter. She was drinking water from the bucket. I didn't know about checking for fever so I didn't. Now her hair is falling out. I read an old post here saying how she can lose her hair from scours, (or ringworm, or lice) however, there are a few crusty spots on the inside of the front leg. I thought at first that she skinned it with her back hoof because she walks funny. But the all the hair around it started falling out too. I also noticed today that there is crusty stuff on the back of her hind leg. After reading the old post, I checked her under her chin and she is losing hair there too. Other than that, the skin is pink and soft. If I do this right, the first pic will be of how she holds her font legs...she walks on her toes and the first joint seems weak. She will "kneel" to rest when she walks then get back up and walk a little more.

Guess they saw us coming at the auction. :dunce:

I bought lice powder, ringworm spray and her poo seems to be thickening with a little bloody mucus at the very end of a BM. Thanks for any help.

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[randiliana]

Well, the hair loss, especially on her hind end is from the scours. It will grow back. The other hair loss is probably just from the fever she had.

Were her legs like that when you bought her? If so, her legs are because of contracted tendons. Not much you can or usually need to do for them. As long as she is walking on her toes at least part of the time, she will stretch them out, and within a couple weeks she should be normal, or almost normal

I would probably up her milk to 1 4 pint bottle 3 times a day. That works well for me anyways. What kind of calf starter are you using? Most calves don't care for the pellets, they like the textured stuff better. Put a handful in her mouth after every bottle, it won't take her too long to get onto it.

Good luck with her, you've gotten her over the biggest hump, she should be OK for you now.

 

[randiliana]

Have you given her any medicine for the scours? Or electrolytes? If she still has runny manure both would be a good idea. There are a number of scour boluses that will work for you, the best are Sustain III or Calf Span. Any electrolytes for calves will work.

 

[knowknews]

Were her legs like that when you bought her? If so, her legs are because of contracted tendons. Not much you can or usually need to do for them. As long as she is walking on her toes at least part of the time, she will stretch them out, and within a couple weeks she should be normal, or almost normal
Yes they were like that. I thought because she was in womb too tight, but, like i said, it's been 2weeks. We are discussing a splint or wrapping them but if you say they will stretch out, we will wait. The vet was gone yesterday when I tried to call him, I want to get some Bo-Se, someone suggested that but has not seen her legs yet, it wont hurt to give it to her anyway just in case, will it?

What kind of calf starter are you using? Most calves don't care for the pellets, they like the textured stuff better. Put a handful in her mouth after every bottle, it won't take her too long to get onto it.
The calf starter is ground at the feed store where I bought it. Not pellets. It has meds in it, they told me not to let the baby goats (We also bought at same time :dunce: ) eat it.

Good luck with her, you've gotten her over the biggest hump, she should be OK for you now.

Thank you SO much. I'm sure there are many more problems to come. Glad you all are here.

 

[knowknews]

Randiliana: I will give her something if it isn't too late, I found a formula to mix at home on a post here from awhile ago. It said to use a box of jelly pectin in the recipe. I hope to get that stuff today when I go into town to the store. Do I get the Sustain III or Calf Span from the feed store or vet? Thank you.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

You can usually find Sustain III or Calf Span at any Tractor Supply or feed stores that carry "supplies".
So is the calf actually still scouring? If not, don't "treat". If it is scouring, also pick up some Probias (or any generic brand) - it's "good bugs" to replace the bad bugs you are trying to get rid of. If you ever treat with any kind of antibiotic, you should always give the animal some form of Probias - even plain yogart will help.

 

[randiliana]

Randiliana: I will give her something if it isn't too late, I found a formula to mix at home on a post here from awhile ago. It said to use a box of jelly pectin in the recipe. I hope to get that stuff today when I go into town to the store. Do I get the Sustain III or Calf Span from the feed store or vet? Thank you.

Check your feed store. If they don't have them, then go to the vet. The feed store should have electrolytes for sure. Go with the commercial stuff, homemade works in a pinch but the stuff you buy is made to the needs of a calf.

 

[larryshoat]

The hair loss is caused by cryptosporidia and is a big cause of scours, the hair will come back. At this point he will probably suck some warm water out of a bottle between meals. Make sure he has free choice water and calf starter and as Randi says put some starter in his mouth. Sounds like your headed out of the woods.

Larry

 

[knowknews]

You can usually find Sustain III or Calf Span at any Tractor Supply or feed stores that carry "supplies".
So is the calf actually still scouring? If not, don't "treat". If it is scouring, also pick up some Probias (or any generic brand) - it's "good bugs" to replace the bad bugs you are trying to get rid of. If you ever treat with any kind of antibiotic, you should always give the animal some form of Probias - even plain yogart will help.

Ok, well, scours is when the poo runs like pee or water, right? It did that first day after I mixed her milk too strong. After correcting it (after 1 maybe 2 days) her poo was runny, but thicker than before with a little bloody mucus at the end. Today it was a bit thicker..."plopping," if you will, however, not as thick as I believe a cow's should be. No bloody mucus today!! She drinks water from the bucket when I take her over there. And when she went into the stall tonight, she drank from that bucket. I gave her 3 4-pint bottles today and stuck a small handful of calf starter into her mouth after each one (she spits some of it out). I still haven't taken her temp. Honestly, I don't know if she is still scouring.

I have to say, I noticed she got up a lot faster twice today than she normally does. She gets mad at me when I put a halter on her to walk her out of the barn so she walks faster, tries to get away from me and seems a little stronger to me. I've been able to let her out in the yard because she didn't used to get up, now she moves over to lay by the goats when I move them. They share a stall so she likes them (i think).

 

[knowknews]

The hair loss is caused by cryptosporidia and is a big cause of scours, the hair will come back. At this point he will probably suck some warm water out of a bottle between meals. Make sure he has free choice water and calf starter and as Randi says put some starter in his mouth. Sounds like your headed out of the woods.

Larry

So cryptosporidia, how do I get rid of that? I thought the extra strength milk replacer gave her the scours.

Also, she shares the stall with the the two baby goats, and the feed store owner told me not to let the goats eat her food because it's medicated. I leave theirs down, but not hers. I give it to her when she is away from them and they are tied up. She ignores it. You say free choice of calf starter. Hubby was going to empty out the larger stall that became a place to store the chicken cages, extra rabbit cages, our two rabbits, old bikes, and an old riding mower. He isn't moving very urgently...should I tell him she needs her own stall in order to give her free choice of starter?

 

[knowknews]

I'm so excited. I have to go to work this morning and no one is up yet, i fed the goats and cow their bottles. cow drained her bottle as usual and i stuffed another sm handful of grain in her mouth which she fought me as usual and spit some out. but when I put the goat feed in the feeder, (here's where it gets good) SHE PUSHED THE GOATS OUT OF THE WAY AND ATE THEIR FOOD! I know now i have to come home from work and get her stall cleaned out so i can leave food down for her but isn't it great she ate food on her own. I think she is going to be alright! Well, gotta go get ready for work. bye.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Yippee!!! :banana: :banana:
Isn't it a great feeling? That's what it's really about.
We get the same feeling when we assist a malpresented calf & save it!

 

[knowknews]

Yippee!!! :banana: :banana:
Isn't it a great feeling? That's what it's really about.
We get the same feeling when we assist a malpresented calf & save it!

AND Sunday when I got home from work, she got up and walked (ok, walk-stumbled) over to me!

I do have another question/questions: she was bleeding from her leg area above the hoof. I posted the pic but it is blurry, there was like a scab/crusty area there right before she started losing her hair. There is another bloody area on her back leg, where there was no hair loss until then. I gobbed Bag Balm on them, but they seem to have come from nowhere. What's the chances of ringworm? Is there something stronger I should be putting on the sores?

How long does she need the Bo-Se? Do I give it until her legs straighten out?

 

[randiliana]

Yippee!!! :banana: :banana:
Isn't it a great feeling? That's what it's really about.
We get the same feeling when we assist a malpresented calf & save it!

AND Sunday when I got home from work, she got up and walked (ok, walk-stumbled) over to me!

I do have another question/questions: she was bleeding from her leg area above the hoof. I posted the pic but it is blurry, there was like a scab/crusty area there right before she started losing her hair. There is another bloody area on her back leg, where there was no hair loss until then. I gobbed Bag Balm on them, but they seem to have come from nowhere. What's the chances of ringworm? Is there something stronger I should be putting on the sores?

How long does she need the Bo-Se? Do I give it until her legs straighten out?

OK, the sores are likely just scrapes. If she is unsteady on her feet, that could be what caused them. Ringworm is kind of greyish and crusty. It isn't likely in a newborn calf either.

Bo-Se is a one shot deal. And it while it sure won't hurt to give it to her, it won't likely do anything for her contracted tendons. They are generally cause by a big calf that doesn't have enough room in the cow, and also by genetics. Time will heal them. She has a fairly bad case, but I have seen worse ones come around.

 

[knowknews]

Bo-Se is a one shot deal. And it while it sure won't hurt to give it to her, it won't likely do anything for her contracted tendons. They are generally cause by a big calf that doesn't have enough room in the cow, and also by genetics. Time will heal them. She has a fairly bad case, but I have seen worse ones come around.

The vet wants $45 for first-time visit, 35 for exam, and 25 for Bo-Se. If it doesn't help with CT I will call off visit. We didn't know how bad the tendons were with nothing to compare to; however, it didn't look as bad as some of the pics posted on the web. I may be thinking of the pics of rickets too. I've really been trying to research before asking you all a bunch of questions you've answered 50 times before. Since she started walking more, she "rests" on her knees when she gets tired which looks odd with her back-end sticking up in the air especially when she pees and poos. Not to mention that she's starting to get sores on them too. Thanks, I really didn't want to throw away $105 bucks on something that will right itself.

So you think just keep putting Bag Balm on the sores?

Edit to say: Or do you want better pics of sores?

 

[randiliana]

About all that the vet could do for contracted tendons would be to splint them. If she is walking tippy toe at least part of the time, I wouldn't do that. The splints can cause their own problems. She will be fine I think.

As for the sores, you could post better pictures, it might help if it really isn't just scrapes. If it's ringworm, which would be unusual because that usually shows up on the face or around the tail area, it really isn't something to worry about anyways. You could put a antifungal on the spots if they are ringworm and it might help clear it up faster. The only thing is with ringworm it is contagious to humans and most other animals. If they are scrapes, you can put bag balm on them or just leave them alone. Unless they are showing signs of infection, they are no different than a scrape that you might get.

Here is a really good topic that was started a while ago. Lots of pictures of different problems and tells what they are.

http://cattletoday.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=38923

 

[knowknews]

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I would need a video to show how she walks, but she does walk on her tippy hoof. Do you really think she can grow out of this???

 

[knowknews]

Here is a really good topic that was started a while ago. Lots of pictures of different problems and tells what they are.

http://cattletoday.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=38923

Thanks, I did look at it once, but it was good to look again!! She doesn't have scours anymore. And I see the CT is as bad as the calf pictured. Will quit fretting and biting my nails over this and just wait and see. Will take a few pics of the sores, but seem to have trouble uploading them. Again, you've calmed my fears about this and will wait to see what you think of the sores. Thanks, Les

 

[knowknews]

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OK, these are the two spots.

 

[randiliana]

I would just call those scrapes or abrasions. Nothing too serious, they will probably heal on their own. Bag Balm won't hurt them, but won't really do too much for them either. I think if she is over the scours, then your biggest problems are over with. She should come around now.