First calf heifer going down

[coachg]

I have a first calf heifer with a month old calf. She is doing a great job on her calf but losing weight and probably not going to breed back. I have used pour on wormer, Cnydectin, twice and a wormer added to her feed once. I know the calf is a lot of her problem, but is there anything I can do to help her ? Giving her 2-3 lbs of sweet feed a day but looks rough and acts like she doesn't feel good. Not one I can run through the catch pen easily. Is there anything I can feed her to get her to turn around ?coachg

 

[Jessica06]

What kind of forage is she on? 2-3 lbs of feed isn't really enough to do anything for her at this point. Adequate nutrition and time are about the only two things that she should need. Our heifers look rough from about 1-3 months post-calving, then start coming around after their milk peaks and the grass gets better.

 

[wbvs58]

Fill her feed bin up and don't let her get to see the bottom. 2-3lb of feed is a bit like peeing in the ocean.
Ken

 

[dun]

If my math is correct (no gaurantees) for a 1000 lb heifer that is about 1.2 of 1 percent of her weight. That sure won;t patch he77 a mile!

 

[JSCATTLE]

Some people don't agree with this but before I would let a first calf cow get pulled down I'd sell the calf. Most of the time I sell the calves off of my first timers at about 3 months old . She has enough going on trying to grow herself lose her teeth etc. In the long run in my opinion they turn out better. But I also don't feed my cows .

 

[Rafter S]

Some people don't agree with this but before I would let a first calf cow get pulled down I'd sell the calf. Most of the time I sell the calves off of my first timers at about 3 months old . She has enough going on trying to grow herself lose her teeth etc. In the long run in my opinion they turn out better. But I also don't feed my cows .

Same here.

 

[Nesikep]

I'd wean the calf early, but not that early!

I'd check her temperature.. perhaps there's an infection, perhaps check her mouth and make sure something isn't bothering her there. If she isn't feeling good more feed alone probably isn't going to help her

 

[Fire Sweep Ranch]

If we have a cow that needs supplement (raising twins, or a two year old getting pulled down), we like using DDGs (dried distillers grain). It is really cheap, and we just put it in an old mineral tub, about 5 pounds dry, then get it wet to make it easier for them to eat. We usually only need to do it for 30 days or so to get them back on track. That means you either have to isolate them, or train them to come when you call them and keep the others away while she gobbles it down real quick.
But I agree with Dun, you are not giving her enough of anything to do any good.

 

[coachg]

Thanks , I can take care of that with no problem! She is a super slow eater so I will have to get her away from the other first calf heifers. They are on our best pasture of clover, fescue, and orchard grass. Well fertilized and lots of rain. Been out of cattle for awhile so the learning curve has been steep for me ! The other 4 first calf heifers are doing great, but this gal just acts like she doesn't feel good and looks it. Thanks for the suggestions !

 

[Nesikep]

Especially since she's eating slow, I'd take a look at her mouth.. there's something up somewhere with her that just isn't right.. but without being able to look her over myself, I can't make too much of a guess...

 

[branguscowgirl]

Nesi is right. Better check her out well. Something else might be brewing.
Good luck.

 

[Supa Dexta]

If you're feeding well, she's not equipped for the job. There's plenty of animals out there that can raise a heck of a calf the first go round, some even pull off a great set of twins, breed back and carry on year after year. Sucks to put a couple of years into a heifer to find this out though. I may pull the calf a month early and feed her a bit better going into winter - then she has one more round to show me what she's got, on time and up to par.

I've only got some many positions available (mouths to feed) it better be a mouth worth feeding.

 

[branguscowgirl]

I do not see a mention of how old she is.........That sure makes a difference if she is trying to grow herself.
Plus I would most certainly be looking for some type of infection before I started "selling the calf" or "culling" the heifer.

 

[bmoore87]

Thanks , I can take care of that with no problem! She is a super slow eater so I will have to get her away from the other first calf heifers. They are on our best pasture of clover, fescue, and orchard grass. Well fertilized and lots of rain. Been out of cattle for awhile so the learning curve has been steep for me ! The other 4 first calf heifers are doing great, but this gal just acts like she doesn't feel good and looks it. Thanks for the suggestions !

Id agree with checking her temp. it sounds like if she is moving acting slow there is something making her not want to eat. I doubt it would be because shes a hard keeper since it sounds like she has good pasture and 30 days is a pretty quick timeframe to tank conditions wise.

Check if she has cleaned all the way I have had some that get most of it out but not all and develop a delayed fever, get lethargic and loose condition a few weeks after calving.

 

[coachg]

I found her afterbirth soon after I found her and her calf, it looked to be intact and she didn't have any other bleeding or discharge. She is a two year old according to the breeder I bought my five commercial black angus from. I have increased her feed and added some calf mamma to it. I did give her a dose of antibiotic last week when we did the pour on wormer on the other four who recently calved and hit her again with wormer. I have noticed she is on the bottom of the pecking order and gets pushed around by the other four. She seems to graze ok and eat her sweet feed ok except for raising her head a lot and being a slow eater.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Some people don't agree with this but before I would let a first calf cow get pulled down I'd sell the calf. Most of the time I sell the calves off of my first timers at about 3 months old . She has enough going on trying to grow herself lose her teeth etc. In the long run in my opinion they turn out better. But I also don't feed my cows .

+1 especially this time of the year our grass is nothing but water
along with tooth loss. Be hard to hold BCS I would let her rebred if she pulls down
again I would cull her as a hard keeper.