bottle feeding 2 or 3 week old calf

[twig379]

I got a calf at the sale barn yesterday have no experence with bottle calf i know a lot abought goats and i thought it could not be any hard than a bottle kid BUT i think i am wrong the calf has ate nothing wont take a bottle she drinks water out of a trough but thats it she had nothing in 24 hrscan any one help me .

 

[regolith]

Check that the milk is running easily out of the teat when squeezed.
After 24 hours she should be hungry and less stressed, so she should drink now. A search of some of the sticky threads will find plenty of descriptions, but the basic procedure is like this - catch the calf, wrap your legs round its neck so you have full control of the head and squirt a little milk from the teat into her mouth. Insert teat, clamp her mouth shut round it with the hand not holding the bottle and squeeze her mouth a couple of times to mimick sucking.
She may start sucking on her own immediately, she may not. Take a breather while still holding the calf if she doesn't, then repeat the procedure. If you do this three times and she's still not sucking willingly then she's not hungry, or she's weak/sick or she's very stubborn. Or the milk's too hot or too different. Leave her alone and try again in a few hours. She'll survive a while on the water.
Memories of a loving cow with an udder of warm sweet milk can interfere rather with a calf's desire to suck on a rubber-teated bottle full of milk replacer.

 

[Suzie Q]

I would say try replacing the water in the trough with the milk. I would also say take her off the water for a while beforehand. If her tummy is full of water she won't drink the milk.

 

[twig379]

i tried whAT the first poster suggested it really didnt work well at this time i tried to tube her but she fought me to much so i used a funnel and got maybe a quart in her going to try the bottle again in the morning i put mollassase on the nipple that seem to work for a second but that was it

 

[ozarkbulls]

Take the water away. If it did come off a cow, it'll be a couple days to get used to the bottle. If its healthy it WILL get hungry. It also helps if you have more than one calf, I usually put the problem one like that in with a bit older calf, they learn quickly what the bottle is for.
IMO, if she's not getting enough milk, she'll get weak quick, tube if necessary by all means.

 

[twig379]

i would be scared to take away the water its is a 112 deg during the day I dont wont her to get a heat stroke i am leaving to go see if i can get her to eat again probaly going to use that funnel if she wont take a bottle .


she took the bottle just fine ate about 1 qt that all she wanted and i didnt try to push more on her i am going to try more this evening

 

[ozarkbulls]

Not sure where you're at, I give mine mid-day electrolyte bottle (1Qt). Honestly, I would tube feed as much as it takes. I just fed a little bugger I got in on Fri., was on a cow, and he finally realized the whole bottle "thing". Do 2 full qts. if she's a big calf, break it up 1qt at a time if she's little, gonna take a bit of time, but you can't afford to lose anthing in todays day and age!
As an aside, I don't claim to be any kind of expert at all. BUT, I have raised 700 bottle calves (almost all Holstein Bull Calves) in the last 3 years, and I've lost 5 total.
It can be the most frustrating thing on the planet, believe me! Hang in there!

 

[snickers]

try the milk in the trough it has worked b4 for me. i dont really like that but if thats how she is used to getting her milk then thats what she is used too. is she a dairy calf or off of a beef cow?

 

[twig379]

she is off a beef cow brangus

 

[Suzie Q]

I am in Australia and we have to deal with the heat here. As long as they are in the shade, they get put on the cow twice a day. I tried 3 times a day and it didn't work as they weren't hungry enough to try. The calves are locked away from the cow in between being put on her.

They are not like foals who need to drink over 100 times a day.

 

[piedmontese]

Not sure where you're at, I give mine mid-day electrolyte bottle (1Qt). Honestly, I would tube feed as much as it takes. I just fed a little bugger I got in on Fri., was on a cow, and he finally realized the whole bottle "thing". Do 2 full qts. if she's a big calf, break it up 1qt at a time if she's little, gonna take a bit of time, but you can't afford to lose anthing in todays day and age!
As an aside, I don't claim to be any kind of expert at all. BUT, I have raised 700 bottle calves (almost all Holstein Bull Calves) in the last 3 years, and I've lost 5 total.
It can be the most frustrating thing on the planet, believe me! Hang in there!

i would call you an expert if you have raised 700 holsteins and only lost 5.

 

[twig379]

i have got her to take a bottle and she eats a little creep feed put a little hay out she has been eating alfa leaves .. ?? how much milk do i give her per feeding ?

 

[ozarkbulls]

Let her decide how much to eat. Some calves, especially smaller ones can't quite handle a full 2 qts at a time. You may have to spend a little extra time feeding in "cycles" with her, but if she remains vibrant, healthy, etc., she'll let you know. The grain/alfalfa isn't doing her much good as far as nutrition, since she's lacking full rumen development, but if she nibbles it's ok. Sounds like your doing what you need to, just keep at it, believe me it's an ADVENTURE!!!

 

[ozarkbulls]

Not sure where you're at, I give mine mid-day electrolyte bottle (1Qt). Honestly, I would tube feed as much as it takes. I just fed a little bugger I got in on Fri., was on a cow, and he finally realized the whole bottle "thing". Do 2 full qts. if she's a big calf, break it up 1qt at a time if she's little, gonna take a bit of time, but you can't afford to lose anthing in todays day and age!
As an aside, I don't claim to be any kind of expert at all. BUT, I have raised 700 bottle calves (almost all Holstein Bull Calves) in the last 3 years, and I've lost 5 total.
It can be the most frustrating thing on the planet, believe me! Hang in there!

i would call you an expert if you have raised 700 holsteins and only lost 5.

As far as I'm concerned, I'll never be an "expert", because everyday you learn something new when dealing with cattle. Without sounding "woo-woo", I spend a lot of time "learning" my animals. Time well spent as far as I'm concerned.

 

[vclavin]

We learned if they won't take a calf nipple, try a lamb nipple.
Valerie