Central Fl Cracker":tyhsy3i7 said:
As some of you know some of Forida is still in a drought. I was at an auction the other day and bought a cow calf pair which the cow is real thin. I bought the pair real cheap(out of pity) and would like to get some weight back on the cow. We dewormed the cow and the the calf is about 4 weeks old. The cow appears to be around 3 to 4 years old and I would like to no what feed to supplement her with in addition to good grass which I do have. I do think she needs some kind of commercial feed to get her jump started and then let her out to our pasture. Any suggestions on a commercial feed and how much per day to feed her?
If she is sick - then you will likely have to doctor a bit. That may be a veterinarian call.
If she is starved you will have to feed.
Throw the rich stuff at her and she may drop - so just pile up some decent hay and mineral in front of her - plus a light feeding of grain - plain old corn probably best for energy. Remember - a light feed of grain. No more than a couple of pounds at the start.
Could not disagree more with the above folks about complete feeds and rich stuff. Do not over do the fancy feed. You could make her worse over the short term.
Let her keep the calf - as long as she has free choice she will gain weight.
Ivomec or something similar will not hurt her.
Give her a vitamin shot - cheap and often effective.
You might throw a magnet down her throat while you are at it.
Good luck,
Bez>