im sick o these cows already. colostrum question

[dieselbeef]

had a hiefer calf die after 3 weeks....found her under a tree alying down real weak and raspy breathin. seemed to havebeen fine about 2 days before..momma kept her well hid so i didnt see her everyday and never in tha same place

so the next one i got to calf anyday now is gettin sucked down by another calf thats about 2 mo old . his mommas got plenty but hes hits any bag he can..so i put the one comin into the past out front with a creep feeder and a roll of hay. lotta shade..twice she busted down the fence to get back to the herd.... tore up the gate and the fence along the drive to get out... working all wek. wont get back to fixin it til sat..gonna be puttin some elec wire cross the top all around the past this time....hope i get to it before she calfs.

the question tho is

if the steer keeps suckin her bag will she have colostrum for her own calf...is it a birthing function per say or is it a function of being new milk. meaning will the milk thief have used up all the good stuff

some days i swear..that fence didnt last 12 hrs after 5 hrs of werk. and i used some high dollar retop 9 gauge cattle fence w/barbed wire behind it so she couldnt push it..but she lifted it up and loosesend the posts....eerrrrrrrrr :cry2:

 

[dun]

Colostorum is a short time deal only, it's generated in the weeks before calving. If she's more then a month from calving there may be some, if less then that you need to have some on hand to feed her calf when it's born.

 

[dieselbeef]

shes the only one to calf..there wont be any...thanks dun..thats more good news

 

[dun]

Pen her up with another cow and she will be less likely to try to get back to the herd. Or better yet, pen the stealer separate from her.

 

[dieselbeef]

i was thinkin i might do that. easier to sep the one momma and the steer but then the one thats calfin would be out in the woods and thats why i was trying to pen her up..so i wouldnt lose another calf like that hiefer...one day a week off is bad enuff when things are easy..why do cows gotta be so stupid

 

[BARNSCOOP]

I feel your pain. This has been a unsettling calving season for me also. I hear you on not wanting the calves in the woods. I spend about three hours Saturday looking for a calf just born that morning. Mamma was balling for him all afternoon, we thought she lost him....no.. just hid him in the woods real deep. Didn't find him until Sunday at 3:00pm, moved him and her with another cow that calved on Monday into a field to themselves and all is well. The rest of the herd is in another field and they can see each other. I would try putting the cow in the field with someone other than the milk thief and his mom. After she calves and it is old enough for your comfort I would switch and put the milk thief and momma where he can't steal. He may do this to anyone that will let him until he is weaned. If that's the case your other calves will suffer. The one due to calf may be a cull because she allows it and seems to tear up fences. I hope it gets better for you.

 

[hillsdown]

DB I would try to separate them like Dun said and in your case choose the calmest of the two to pen.

If your bred cow has colostrum already she should be very close to calving as it turns from a clear thick syrupy texture to actual colostrum two to three days (on average) before they calve. However some breeds especially dairy will have colostrum a week or more before calving.

The more colostrum that has been taken from the bred cow before calving the lower the IgG's and antibodies the colostrum will become. I would have some powder colostrum on hand that by some strange coincidence you are around you can give the calf it's first feeding as soon as it is born to ensure that it gets the proper IgG's in it and then it can drink from mom and should be fine.Good luck.

Sorry about your other calf, I hate when moms hide their calves when they are sick .

 

[dieselbeef]

sometimes i think i do too! spent sat fixin the fence so the soon to calf couldnt git over it and she walks down the fence a few hrs later and gets another spot to smash down and starts gittin over. i caught her and just turned her loose

gonna string some elec wire round the top now. wanting to use this for our weaning pen also when not for calfing....sometime i wonder who the smarter one is

my one day off all week and i spend it fencin so i can watch it got down like i did nothin all day....

 

[dun]

Better to find the weak spots now rather then waiting till you have a jail break at weaning time.

 

[dieselbeef]

mornin dun..i was kinda thinkin that too...hence the shocker

 

[dun]

Electric will only work if they're already trained to it. The first time or 2 that they get lit up there's no telling what they may do.

 

[idylglade1]

DB I have the same problem with one of my cows. She never has let any other calves steal from her. I seperated her and a heifer that are left to calve and stuck them in with the yearling bull and 2 steers. They have been in this pen before with them so I didn't think it was a big deal for a couple of weeks. This bull I had just sold 3 days prior. She went crazy and took him down to kill him. She had him completely down his feet were off the ground and she was ramming him in the chest it was knocking the wind out of him! She threw him into the water tank and it exploded! Tore out all of my fencing by pushing him thru it, 2 strands 4pt barbed and 3 strands electric! I had to get the BIG stick and beat heck out of her to get her to stop. Sent her back to the herd, had no choice! Took all night to clean up her mess and refence! When hubby comes home Wednesday hoping he has some different idea. Good luck to you!

 

[dieselbeef]

That sure gets old dont it..im tired of messin with her. im gonna elec the fence but man o man...what a pita

 

[dun]

That sure gets old dont it..im tired of messin with her. im gonna elec the fence but man o man...what a pita

It builds character.

 

[idylglade1]

I agree! When I go to work evertone talks about what they watched on TV last nite. I don't have time for TV, I would rather be out with the cows fixing and watching, just makes a person more relaxed and easy going in the long run, feel like you have accomplished something. Some days I wonder tho! haha!

 

[dieselbeef]

hehe..funny i have them conversations at werk like that too