Weak Newborn-Help!!

[smoky]

I have a day and a half old calf that was up following the cow around within a few hours of being born.

Now it is very weak, like it never nursed. One of the cows quarters appeared to be nursed down, but we never saw it actually nurse.

So now I am giving it a feeding tube with milk from the cow in the next few minutes. My question is, should I give it something in addition to the milk to help its chance of survival, such as electrolytes, a shot of something, etc.

Any suggestions would be great.

Smoky

 

[jkwilson]

My question is, should I give it something in addition to the milk to help its chance of survival, such as electrolytes, a shot of something, etc.

Any suggestions would be great.

Smoky

Depending on where you live, you might consider some selenium. MuSe or BoSe. Talk to your vet.

 

[SimmAngus]

I would give it a shot of AD&E, right away. We call it turbo juice really helps the calf get strength. Good luck!

 

[smoky]

Thanks for the replies so far.

I am having trouble finding the A,D & E in a combo shot.

One place had A & D3 and my vet has E, so maybe I will try dosing it in two separate shots.

Smoky

 

[jt]

does the calf look hollowed out? if so, it may not be nursing enough.. hopefully it did nurse and get some colostrum within a few hours of birth.

hopefully the feeding you give it will pick it up. maybe then it will go to nursing better on its own.

they make a product called nutri-drench or something similar.. it is an oral vitamin that you can give newborns to give them a boost.

good luck

jt

 

[Susie David]

Have you actually tried plugging the calf into a teat and seeing what it is doing? Usually a nice wet plug in is all that is necessary, seems that the taste of the milk gets them sucking.
My two bits worth...DMC

 

[norriscathy]

If there's a chance it didn't get any colostrum within the first 24 hrs it has little or no imune system. I'd get it some Spectam orally and a shot of LA-200. Might help.

 

[Beefy]

my guess is it hasnt got the wax plugs out yet.

 

[CattleAnnie]

It's possible that the calf never nursed and that the quarter's simply blind (had that happened once).

If he's acting weak, I'd fill his belly with cholostrum (either bottle or tube) and once he's acting perkier run the cow in and see if he nurses about three or four hours after feeding him. If he tries nursing her elbow or just bunts the bag but doesn't get on a teat, then you can be fairly sure that he hasnt' figured out where his groceries should be coming from.

This is of course if he isn't scouring (diareaha).

Hey, have you seen him have a bowel movement yet? If he's nursed, it should be yellow/creamish coloured and at least tooth paste consistency.

If he hasn't nursed, it's likely that his stool will be quite black (meconium) and tar like in consistency.

Take care and best of luck with your calf.

 

[ollie']

Im wondering but what it may even have scours from either ecoli or coronavirus might even be salmonella. Could even be navel ill. Does it have diahrrea and look dehydrated? It should definately be bucking, jumping, and butting other calves if it feels good. I would go the antibiotic route and maybe some probios to establish the good bugs in the event it has not nursed.

Obviously from an expert!

 

[cypressfarms]

Im wondering but what it may even have scours from either ecoli or coronavirus might even be salmonella. Could even be navel ill. Does it have diahrrea and look dehydrated? It should definately be bucking, jumping, and butting other calves if it feels good. I would go the antibiotic route and maybe some probios to establish the good bugs in the event it has not nursed.

Obviously from an expert!

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[buckaroo_bif]

Im wondering but what it may even have scours from either ecoli or coronavirus might even be salmonella. Could even be navel ill. Does it have diahrrea and look dehydrated? It should definately be bucking, jumping, and butting other calves if it feels good. I would go the antibiotic route and maybe some probios to establish the good bugs in the event it has not nursed.

Obviously from an expert!

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

aw jeesh! :lol2:

 

[ROCKSPRINGS]

:lol:

 

[ollie']

He missed the obvious... the ebola virus . Has this calf been exposed to monkeys?

 

[msscamp]

He missed the obvious... the ebola virus . Has this calf been exposed to monkeys?

Mice perhaps? :lol:

 

[Arnold Ziffle]

Coronavirus ??? Dang, I thought I was the only one that got that, never thought calves could get it too. But I sure as hades am not switching to nasty stuff like Miller Lite, Bud Lite, etc. Guess I'll just add a few more slices of lime to see if that has any preventative effect. Much more research to do. :lol:

 

[msscamp]

Coronavirus ??? Dang, I thought I was the only one that got that, never thought calves could get it too. But I sure as hades am not switching to nasty stuff like Miller Lite, Bud Lite, etc. Guess I'll just add a few more slices of lime to see if that has any preventative effect. Much more research to do. :lol:

Hmmmm, I thought that was the brown bottle flu! :???: Happy researching, AZ! ;-)

 

[Texan]

Maybe you need to try chasing it with a shot of Cuervo, AZ. Just for immunizing purposes.

AZ, when that boy finally gets tired of ollie and gets on him, me and you both won't be able to pull him off with 4wd tractors. I bet old ollie will be squealing like a little girl.

 

[ollie']

Squeeling and men getting on you I think is reserved for Texans my dear friend.

 

[Texan]

Squeeling and men getting on you I think is reserved for Texans my dear friend.

:lol2: Wait a minute..... Dear? :shock: