Sick Stocker Calf

[dbr25]

I have a sick 350 lb heifer calf I recieved about 3 weeks ago from local sale barn, along with 10 others. I worked them 2 days after recieving, with ml respitory, blackleg, wormed, given Excede, Ralgro implant and eartag. The rest are doing well on pasture and hand fed grain, but she has been slowly declining for about a week. It started with just being last one to come up and first to leave, then not even coming up at all. So after observing her up close I noticed that when she tried to poop, she had a hard time going, and when anything at all come out, it was all liquid,(dark colored, not light) nothing solid at all. Called the vet and he said give her another shot of excede, banamine, and 2 sulfa bolus pills which we did Tuesday. Now 2 days later, still no improvement. What really concerns me is she really isn't eating much at all. The watering hole where they drink has gotten pretty low(and nasty) because of drought, so I've been giving them fresh water. What should I do next?

 

[cross_7]

those fly weight calves are always looking for a place to lay down and die.
chances are she wasn't weaned and probably not eating.
the number one thing with those light cattle is to get them eating.
i would pen her by herself and offer her the best hay i could get or if if available(front yard if you have to) is get her on green grass to get her to eating.
i'd offer calf mana and i'd drench her with resorb and if no improvement i'd hit her with draxxin.
good luck
and watch the others they go down quick

 

[dbr25]

She is currently in a pen by herself, offering her good quality bermuda hay and very palatable feed. She was the worst baller when we got her, probably weaned on the way to the sale barn. She ate good for the first week or so then gradually started to not come up.

 

[cow pollinater]

One of the greatest tricks I've learned from working on daries is that an IV bottle of dextrose can pick up anything that's got the will to live.
Then do something to get her on feed. I personally don't do it but I know of a few operations that dump molasses on oat or wheat hay to get them to get their bellies full until they get the hang of eating. The dry stuff with alot of stem sticks to them and they don't have the runny $hits that you get from diet changes.

 

[salebarn junkie]

those fly weight calves are always looking for a place to lay down and die.
chances are she wasn't weaned and probably not eating.
the number one thing with those light cattle is to get them eating.
i would pen her by herself and offer her the best hay i could get or if if available(front yard if you have to) is get her on green grass to get her to eating.
i'd offer calf mana and i'd drench her with resorb and if no improvement i'd hit her with draxxin.
good luck
and watch the others they go down quick

I wouldent wait id hit it with draxxin right away. When i buy light weights i hit them with draxxin as soon as they get off the trailer its expensive but it works better than anything else ive used

 

[milkmaid]

Tried treating for coccidiosis?

Agreed w/cp that dextrose will do wonders, probably half a bottle IV for a calf that size. It'll pick her up for about 24hrs; during that time you'd better get her problems fixed though. Probiotics, rumen-aid boluses, sodium bicarb (baking soda) and good quality stemmy hay will help her digestive system- load her up. Is she running a fever (would consider 102 normal in this heat)? Wouldn't bother with the antibiotics if she doesn't have a temp (keeping in mind banamine will bring it down for 24hrs), as they won't be necessary and they'll upset her normal GI flora.

 

[Bigfoot]

I have been trounced on twice before for saying this, but I must have thick skin. When we wean a clalf on the way to the sale barn, we don't do the cattle industry a favor. We all pay the price because it's padded in the price. If this calf had been lined out, and was eating and drinking. We wouldn't be having this discussion.

 

[dbr25]

I keep getting advice about getting her to eat as if she doesn't know how, so I am posting this to stress that SHE WAS EATING before I put her on pasture, grazing and eating while on pasture, just slowly stopped. I don't turn them out if they aren't eating. I am no expert, but I don't think she forgot how to eat, she has stopped because she is sick. I need to know how to get her to feel better so she will start back eating,and also treat the sickness. I have gotten some advice on getting her to feel better, thanks, keep em coming.

 

[dbr25]

*Update* She started eating more today, drizzled some molasses on hay and grain suggested in step above and it worked. She ate for about 10 mins, which is more than she has in days. Saw her eating grass growing thru the fence so I may turn her out tommorow and see what happens. She also has been grooming with another calf thru the fence. Don't know if this is a good thing?

 

[dun]

If you haven;t already tried it you might want to dose her with probiotics to help get her guts lined up again.

 

[calfbuyer]

I wouldent wait id hit it with draxxin right away. When i buy light weights i hit them with draxxin as soon as they get off the trailer its expensive but it works better than anything else ive used[/quote]


Amen to that, I buy alot of light calves even babies to put on my nurse cows. They all get a shot of either draxin or exeede as soon as they get off the trailer, and it is expensive, but ive also learned the hard way and had them dead the next day. If youve got em, you can loose em but since i started doing this i have lost very few.

 

[Farmer Ben]

no l would'nt hit it with draxxin yet...