Grafting tricks

[ClinchValley86]

Looking for advice/suggestions for grafting a calf to a cow.

Had a heifer refust to tend to her calf and she bat**** crazy. Just so happened a cow lost her newborn this week, so trying to make some lemonade over here.

She kicks at the calf in the open when he nurses. But when in the chute she tolerates it very well.
He nursed her this morning and again this evening for a good 10 to 15 minutes. Picture is from juat after the 2nd nursing.

What should I do in the morning to help them bond? I do not have the calf from earlier in the weak to skin. This cow is super gentle.

 

[Lucky]

O nomore works great.

https://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.html?pgguid=30e07967-7b6a-11d5-a192-00b0d0204ae5

Guess it's Orphan-no- more now.

If you get a fresh bottle DO NOT take a big wiff while doing anything important. In fact make the wife, kids, or someone you don't like take a wiff

 

[Double R Ranch]

Our old time vet used to have us give a sedative to the cow and put them together in a small pen. By the time the sedative wore off they were usually bonded. It did work very well however most folks don't have sedatives on hand and most vets around here at least won't provide them for this use anymore.
Without the hide I feed the calf with the cow in the chute at least 2 times a day until a few days have passed. This helps the calf get stronger to be more aggressive with nursing attempts when in a pen together. By then the calf starts smelling like "moms milk"also and the cow is used to the way the calf nurses. If she is fairly calm I'll leave them together in a small pen and be sure mom isn't beating up on the calf even if she's not letting it nurse yet out of the chute. As long as mom isn't trying to chase the calf down and smash it or anything I leave them together. Often times I find the calf gets persistent enough to nurse as it gets stronger that mom ultimately gives in. I also find it helpful to spray some vanilla on the calf and the cows face so they smell the same. Some people use perfume or something similar. Basically so mom smells the calf and it smells the same as she's smelling not the smell of a calf that isn't hers. Sometimes pouring molasses on the calfs back and wiping some on it's bum helps mom want to clean the calf because it's tasty.
Orphan no more powder

has worked very well for us too in the past if you can get your hands on some of that. The key is it needs to be relatively fresh to really be effective I've found. I keep that on hand now for grafting new calves on our jersey who doesn't care much for new calves.
Keep at it and they will eventually bond most likely. Sometimes I've had beef cows pair up very quickly and sometimes it takes a good week or so.
@MurraysMutts and @farmerjan are my go to for help on this. Hopefully they will chime in soon.
Keep us posted on how it's going!

 

[Warren Allison]

Looking for advice/suggestions for grafting a calf to a cow.

Had a heifer refust to tend to her calf and she bat**** crazy. Just so happened a cow lost her newborn this week, so trying to make some lemonade over here.

She kicks at the calf in the open when he nurses. But when in the chute she tolerates it very well.
He nursed her this morning and again this evening for a good 10 to 15 minutes. Picture is from juat after the 2nd nursing.

What should I do in the morning to help them bond? I do not have the calf from earlier in the weak to skin. This cow is super gentle.

Cheap perfume or cologne. Cover the calf with it, and the cow's nose.

 

[bird dog]

Keeping them in a small pen is critical. I had good luck on a stubborn cow and a aggressive calf by locking them in the cattle trailer.

 

[MurraysMutts]

I've tried all the "mechanic in a bottle" stuff.
Stuffanonsense.
Best way I've found is chute twice a day. If the cow is hateful to the calf I'll pen em seperate a while. At least until she doesn't shove the calf all over the place with her head. Usually by the 3rd or 4th day, they cow starts giving in. The calf starts smelling right. And all comes together.
When ya come out one morning and the calf is nursing without your help, ya got her whooped.
It just don't happen overnight with most cows unless ya have placenta. If you've got that (I know ya don't) it's a cake walk!
I've probly had the best luck letting the cow pee on the calf. But that was probly just coincidence.

I always always feed the cow while working with her and the calf. (Once chute milking/nursing has moved on) Perhaps after a while, the cow thinks ok! I get feed, my udder feels better. Perhaps this ain't so bad...

You can also tie a rope around the cow in front of her udder so she can't kick, like a bucking bull rope.

All that being said, hobble the ol cow and it'll really make her shine!

 

[farmerjan]

I just got home from testing and came on here... What @Double R Ranch says is what I would tell you. Understand, that it is going to take 24-48 hours for the milk from the cow to go through the calf's digestive tract, so that the manure smells like the cow. If she allows it to eat in the chute without kicking, then just put her in the chute for a couple days. Again, like he said, if she is not trying to "kill it" in the pen, the calf will associate her with meals, and will get aggressive enough to go on her if she is not trying to run it through a fence with her head or anything. It might take a week, but she will get it once she starts producing more milk as her udder gets stimulated.
I will use cheap perfume or vanilla extract on her nose and the calf's back and such so it smells the same to her since her nose is just smelling the vanilla...
If you use the ferappease for weaning calves, using a little on her might calm her hormones a bit also.... I have never used it so cannot say that with any knowledge... just what I have read and heard on here...

 

[Travlr]

Vicks Vapo-rub on the cow's nose.

 

[wbvs58]

Persistence.

Ken

 

[Lucky]

With people talking about perfume and vanilla on the calfs back I'm wondering if that's what the O no more does. The cow can't help but smell that stuff then it's stuck on her nose. It's just a powder you sprinkle on the calf. Everytime I've used it the cow can't help but smell the calf then she takes it after a day or two.

 

[Ebenezer]

Put a dog on the outside of the pen where the cow and calf are. Maternal instincts will improve.

 

[ClinchValley86]

Cheap perfume or cologne. Cover the calf with it, and the cow's nose.

Yeah? Had someone say the same thing about hair spray. Just something to confuse them?

What scent ya think a cow likes?

 

[ClinchValley86]

Appreciate all yall. Based on what yall said and how she did yesterday, I hope she gives in this weekend.

 

[SBMF 2015]

Normally just get them in the chute a couple times a day for a few days.
Sometimes we rub wet gluten or kayro syrup on the calf to kick start the cow licking the calf.

 

[Dave]

Of course the hide is #1 but you don't have that. I use the orphan no more. I don't just sprinkle it on dry. A little bit of water on the calf's back and work the powder in moist. After a few days in the chute I have had success giving the cow a pan of grain in a small pen and pushing the calf to her while she is eating.

 

[Warren Allison]

Yeah? Had someone say the same thing about hair spray. Just something to confuse them?

What scent ya think a cow likes?

It really doesn't matter. The few times I have been involved with an orphan foal and a nurse mare, we used Brut on the foal and the mare's nose. My friend that is the breeding manager at the Charolais ranch near here uses Old Spice. Whenever he had to graft one on a nurse cow that had her own calf too, he soaked both calves in it, as well as her nose.

 

[ClinchValley86]

Did some vanilla spray cause I had it on hand. Also put a little pancake syrup on its back and sprayed both for flies.

She let him nurse both in the chute, and afterwards outside the chute as she cleaned up the ground.

Pretty sure she had cleaned him up a bit overnight, cause he was pretty dirty yesterday.

She isnt making a lot of milk by the looks of it, hoping g thatll ramp up over the next couple days. Got some hay in w her and clean water. I offered him some in a bottle and he drank a pint. So he got some this morning evidently.

See how theyre doing come this evening.

 

[farmerjan]

How long did she go from when her calf was born dead and putting this one on her??? It may take a bit for her to come back into some milk... stimulation by the calf will help... If worse comes to worse... give her a shot of oxytocin right when you put her in the chute... helps with let down and stimulation of milk a bit... 2-3 cc is good right in the muscle
The calf keeping after her will help get the milk production going as well as anything else you can do... Don't forget, he does not need a gallon of milk a feeding .... getting a pint several times a day will keep him going and get her production going if he is going on her several times...

 

[ClinchValley86]

@farmerjan I found the dead calf wednesday. Pretty sure it came on Tuesday. She had not calved Tuesday morning.

Is oxytocin a vet only type of medicine?

 

[wbvs58]

@farmerjan I found the dead calf wednesday. Pretty sure it came on Tuesday. She had not calved Tuesday morning.

Is oxytocin a vet only type of medicine?

That is not a long period of time, she should come onto her milk OK.

Ken