not enough colostrum

[TB521]

Had a calf the was born at 4:00 this morning was fed 2 quarts of colostrum at 5:00 then tried again at 11:00 and it wouldn't suck so i tube it I noticed it's gums was red right at the base of its teeth I know that means its not got enough colostrum or not soon enough I would think 4 quarts in 7 hours would be fine but its gums are almost completely red now

 

[angus9259]

Calves can have red gums.

4 qts of colostrum in 7 hours is too much food - that might be why it's not sucking.

 

[Putangitangi]

...I noticed it's gums was red right at the base of its teeth I know that means its not got enough colostrum or not soon enough ...

Where did that interesting "fact" come from? I've never heard such a thing and don't believe a word of it.

 

[TB521]

I've only had to feed one other calf 4 quarts before I could get them back on the cow and it sucked it from a bottle 6-7 hours.is calf seems really cold and weak so i thought the second feeding would help and red gums my neighbor had me tube a calf for her that was almost 24 hours old and never sucked my father inlaw help me and he noticed the bright red gums didn't look normal to me so he found something on the internet I know not everything on the internet is true bit it said the red gums was from not getting colostrum

 

[prairietrail45]

Was the calf cold when you tried to feed it the second time? If they get too cold they will lose their suck reflex. If they are too cold when you give them milk they won't digest it and it will just sit in the stomach and curdle which will make them very sick. If the calf was warm and wouldn't suck it was likely still full, or perhaps could have been constipated. I had a goat kid one time that hadn't passed his meconium, he wasn't interested in eating, gave him an enema and a bunch of meconium came out and about an hour later he was hungry.

How is the calf today?

 

[angus9259]

The calf isn't sucking because it has 4 quarts of colostrum in its belly. Keep it warm and give it (the calf) a rest. Don't make it eat more because its gums are red. There's lots on these board about feeding and tubing problem calves take a read of those. Most colostrum and milk replacer feeds say only to give once every 12 hours. Many folks, including me, cut down the amount of dry as well (make it watery) to keep the calf hydrated, but also a tick hungry so it's motivated to eat.

 

[TB521]

I didn't feed anything until this morning I just fed it enough to get to start sucking and then got the cow in the chute put put it on her she sucked all she wanted but Still seems weak

 

[angus9259]

I didn't feed anything until this morning I just fed it enough to get to start sucking and then got the cow in the chute put put it on her she sucked all she wanted but Still seems weak

Victory!!! :banana: Now what I do (for what it's worth), is separate the cow and calf till this evening so the calf can't sneak any milk while I"m not looking. I then run the momma and baby together after 12 hours to see if it will get up and suck on it's own. Keeping them separated will help you know if it's figured it out on its own and you can make sure it's eating.

 

[TB521]

She's up and goin good now I brought in about 4:00 I thought she was gunna die layed out flat and shivering when I picked her up she was limp so got her warmed up and gave her some banamine and nuflor left her alone when out little bit ago and fed her after she ate she was up running around acting fine so she'll go back to the cow in the morning