How often can u feed electrolytes?

[JCcattle]

I have a 1-2 week old bottle calf I bought last Wednesday. He looked real good the first few days and suddenly has come down with scours and pneumonia. Yesterday he still took a bottle, fed him milk in morn and eve and electrolytes in the aft, have given him resflor twice and scour pills once, so it seems like all I can do anymore is keep up with the electrolytes. He's in a warm place, tubefed him electrolytes twice today so far and will again this eve. He seems to have doesn't have the strength to suck or stand yet but he tries. How often is good to give electrolytes? He's definitely dehydrated so wanna maximize what I can do without taking him the half hour drive to the vet after hours and getting soaked when I can help him at home.

 

[Silver]

I'd give electrolytes as long as dehydration is an issue.

 

[gcreekrch]

I have a 1-2 week old bottle calf I bought last Wednesday. He looked real good the first few days and suddenly has come down with scours and pneumonia. Yesterday he still took a bottle, fed him milk in morn and eve and electrolytes in the aft, have given him resflor twice and scour pills once, so it seems like all I can do anymore is keep up with the electrolytes. He's in a warm place, tubefed him electrolytes twice today so far and will again this eve. He seems to have doesn't have the strength to suck or stand yet but he tries. How often is good to give electrolytes? He's definitely dehydrated so wanna maximize what I can do without taking him the half hour drive to the vet after hours and getting soaked when I can help him at home.

First off, why Resflor twice? Dosage and admin is 6cc per hundred pounds sub que and repeat if needed in six days.

Find some plain yogurt and put a cup of that in with his electrolytes. Not only good for nutrition but get the good bugs working again. He may need an IV yet.

Good luck.

 

[JCcattle]

I gave him resflor when I first got him that would be why the twice.. guess it was a little under 6 days tho.. I've got plain homemade yogurt in my frig

 

[gcreekrch]

I gave him resflor when I first got him that would be why the twice.. guess it was a little under 6 days tho.. I've got plain homemade yogurt in my frig

Good show, if he has not responded favourably in the next 48 hours or less you will have to weigh the cost of a vet IVing or letting it go. IV is the worst job for me to master although I have succeeded many times.

 

[JCcattle]

I've never done iv so I'd have to take him in. He drank about a pint of fresh cow milk for me tonight.. never got him up tho. As soon as he takes a bottle he starts breathing all gurgly and coughs a couple times.. ??

 

[JCcattle]

Can you over do feeding electrolytes? He was fed at 9 am, 6:30 pm and I'm wondering if I should get up tonight around 2 or 3 and give him more. It says twice a day but seems like he could use more than that far as hydration goes

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

I "thought" you were supposed to also get enough milk in him. They can starve with electrolites, but I know you are not supposed to feed them together. I'm not a lot of help, but I know the updated info says they need their milk also. Like feed electrolites, then few hours later feed milk.

 

[JCcattle]

I "thought" you were supposed to also get enough milk in him. They can starve with electrolites, but I know you are not supposed to feed them together. I'm not a lot of help, but I know the updated info says they need their milk also. Like feed electrolites, then few hours later feed milk.

yeah I've wondered how long they can go on just electrolytes. This guy is just not getting better

 

[JCcattle]

He died last night.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Sorry JC. That sucks.

 

[JCcattle]

Thanks Jeanne..sure does!! He looked so great at the start!! Of course the one thats left is ugly, narrow and hump backed but as lively as can be at least. I might look for another to take his place. I got the two calves to help with excess milk from my milk cow and the other calf cant do it himself.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

I was going to ask why you wanted/needed bottle calves. It seems I remember you have some SimAngus?

 

[JCcattle]

Yeah that's what our beef herd is.. my husband and I have about 30 head. We run them together with my Dads cows and do a lot of the work there. We're trying to grow our herd and get on our own someday! I'm partial to milk cows so I always have one around as well! My Grandpa was a dairy farmer and he loved Brown Swiss so they say I got my love for them from him

 

[regolith]

Four times a day feeding electrolytes is fine for a severely dehydrated calf - it can take that much to get them over it.
Sorry to hear about the calf.
Milk and electrolyte feeds are supposed to be at least four hours apart I think - the key is that additional water may interfere with milk clotting in the stomach, so you want to give time for the milk to be digested before giving electrolyte again.
As for feeding 'just' electrolytes, max out at 48 hrs. It's how we used to do it before vets started saying they needed the milk for energy (even though a scouring calf can't digest milk well). For mild scours I'd still alternate milk and electrolyte feeds, or add an electrolyte between milk feeds. For severe scours try electrolyte at 6 - 8 hr intervals and start back on milk only when the calf starts to recover and show hungry - provided it's no longer than two days without milk.

 

[JCcattle]

Four times a day feeding electrolytes is fine for a severely dehydrated calf - it can take that much to get them over it.
Sorry to hear about the calf.
Milk and electrolyte feeds are supposed to be at least four hours apart I think - the key is that additional water may interfere with milk clotting in the stomach, so you want to give time for the milk to be digested before giving electrolyte again.
As for feeding 'just' electrolytes, max out at 48 hrs. It's how we used to do it before vets started saying they needed the milk for energy (even though a scouring calf can't digest milk well). For mild scours I'd still alternate milk and electrolyte feeds, or add an electrolyte between milk feeds. For severe scours try electrolyte at 6 - 8 hr intervals and start back on milk only when the calf starts to recover and show hungry - provided it's no longer than two days without milk.

Thanks For this info I will definitely refer to it in the future. The other calf is showing signs of sickness too so I'll be going by this along with advice I've had from the vet. Thanks so much.

 

[farmerjan]

@Regolith has it down pat as far as the basic way I would also do it. One thing, if these are sale barn calves, I would put them on corid after 3 days , for 5 straight days. Use 2 cc. straight down their throat or in their milk if they will drink it. Some never notice it and some won't drink a bottle with it. Most all mine want the bottle bad enough they don't seem to notice it.
There is so much stuff at the sale barns, and really, I have gotten calves from farms that have "different bugs" than I have and have them get sick. The biggest thing I deal with is coccidiosis and it will put them down quick. Then they are more likely to get pnuemonia and everything else on top of it.
If you go the every 4 hour route, only give a 1/2 bottle of milk, but give a full bottle of the electrolytes. And if at all possible, get the calf up to drink. He could have gotten some in his lungs when giving a bottle laying down. Been there done that. I have gotten them "draped" over a hay bale to just get them more upright. If they drink while laying down, the airway doesn't seem to "close off" and when drinking the liquid will get by and some will wind up in the lungs.

I also am a big believer in some sort of pro-bios type stuff and yes, yogurt or some keifir , sometimes called drinkable yogurt, will be very beneficial. They will get more out of the fermented products and it will be less upsetting to their stomachs. Also thicker so doesn't go through them as fast.

 

[JCcattle]

Thanks Regolith and FarmerJan - this is the advice I've been hoping for! So this calf has had me scratching my head. Yesterday morning when I walked in the barn I saw my dad had been there before me and hauled out the dead calf. The remaining one wasn't so enthused about his bottle but drank it. After dinner when I went back the thing would NOT get up!! The straw around him was disturbed like he had been trying and struggling. He was not at all interested in my hand/fingers to suck on. I came back 15 min later and tried getting him up again, lifted up his back end, he stood on his back legs a bit and flopped right over. I got him a shot of penicillin and resflor immediately and went to call the vet. After that I went out with tube feeder of electrolytes and what do you know, he was up on his feet and in no way was I gonna even try tube that stuff into him, he rather drank it from a bottle no problem. Gave him milk in the eve and he's been eating ever since! This morning I finally saw scours in the pen, about like yogurt consistency. But he's been taking a bottle, even jumping around excitedly! Can anyone explain to me what he went thru? I gave him electrolytes in the afternoon just for precaution as I hardly trust him right now

 

[farmerjan]

Sounds to me like coccidia. They will go from enthusiastic, to lethargic, and them sometimes back to enthusiastic. Just MY experiences with mine. That is why I go the corid route and a retired vet friend said not to mess with the mixing and all that, just give 2 cc straight down the throat for 5 days. They will get a "tummy ache" sometimes from coccidia and thrash around like a horse with colic occasionally. A "bloom" of coccidia in the gut can cause them to almost get bloated it seems too. This is just my experience and my thoughts.
I wouldn't consider yogurt like manure, scours. I like the calves to be a little bit soft rather than hard. Formed but softer. Coccidiosis will not always show up with blood in the manure so don't let that fool you. Lackluster appetite is the first sign for me. Weak getting up and "wobbling" like they are drunk and even falling down is another sign it has hit them. Since I have had it here at this barn where I have my nurse cows and calves, I treat for it before it can get a foothold. It usually hits them at 1-2 weeks and they always seem to be the calves that were doing great.

 

[SDM]

... the key is that additional water may interfere with milk clotting in the stomach...

What if you just added the electrolyte powder to the milk replacer, no additional water?