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Anonymous

We have a four week old holstein bull calf who first had scours. They went away, now he's beginning to get very weak-won't stand unless assisted but eats calf starter and alfalfa like its going out of style ONLY when he's up so this is roughly twice a day for about two hours at a time. Then he either lays down or falls down and stays there until someone can help him up again. Any ideas on what could be causing his demise? The vet won't be able to come out until Sunday afternoon so I'd appreciate any opinions in the mean time!

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Until the vet can give you a diagnosis, I would go on the assumption the calf is dehydrated & weak. I would tube or bottle feed him electrolytes. If he's still taking a bottle, make sure there is a couple of hours between feeding the milk and the electrolytes. The electrolytes, if given at the same time as the milk, interfere with the creation of a cud, which the calf needs for digestion.

I would consider "can't" stand rather than "won't" stand. He may have enough strength to stand for a while if you help him up, but is too weak to try on his own.

Have you taken his temperature? Does he have a fever? Does he have fresh water available to him at all times? Can he reach it & is he drinking water?
 

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