weak newborn

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Farmgirl

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Calf born yesterday. Breech. Hard pull. Got colostrum in him last nite. Don't think he has gotten up. Trying to get up. What you give one like this?

Thanks,
Farmgirl
 
Just make sure he gets plenty to eat and a shot of BoSe or MuSe for vit E and selenium. Might want to give some probiotics in gel tube to help get the gut tract working. Help him stand for a few minutes at a time. Let the cow mother him and lick him as it is encouraging to them. Milk her if you have to to get her milk into him. If there is no noticeable damage or lack of use of the legs or spinal damage, it might just take a little time. Hard breech pull can just set them back for a bit.
 
How is the calf? We got one last year at 5 hours old that was a hard pull. 94 pound calf from a 1plus heifer. For 2 days we had to tube him with colostrum twice a day. We gave him a shot of baytril and dexamethasone right when we got him home. I was thinking we threw away a couple hundred dollars on a calf that couldn't stand or suck. On the morning of day 3, when he heard our voices as we came into the barn he sprung to his feet. He did great after that. He had some swelling to the side if his face and one ear was smashed down for awhile. A tough birth is hard on them but given support many will get over it.
 
He is nursing! I think we are over the hump.

One more question. How long does a cow produce colostrum. Milked the cow yesterday. The calf was just over 24 hours old. Would like to freeze it for future but didn't know if it still had the good stuff in it.

Thank you,
Farmgirl
 
The best antibodies in the colostrum are in the first 12-24 hours. Freezing colostrum at 24 hours will be fine. Not only are the antibodies important, but the thickness and richness is also necessary for the gut tract to help the calf pass the meconium. So many think that the first 12 hours are the ONLY colostrum...but there are reasons why most cows have the thicker richer milk for 1-3 days. Old rule of thumb was to hold a cows milk out of the tank for 6-8 milkings even if no antibiotics... now some farmers will put it in after 2 milkings if it "looks white". Try to educate them with results of the milk sample test we do on dairy cows...
If you freeze it, and then you have a calf born on a sat night, and nothing open or convenient, don't you think that it is better to give 24 hr colostrum than plain old milk replacer?
A hint: DO NOT THAW IN THE MICROWAVE. It destroys all the healthy stuff. It is irradiating the food, basically making it sterile. I freeze mine in 1 qt and 1/2 gallon containers. The qts are easier to thaw in hot water. They say to get 1/2 to 1 full gal in them within a few hours of birth. I try to feed colostrum for at least 2 feedings. I will feed colostrum to anything I buy unless I know where it comes from and the farmer does a good job of starting it. A 2-3 day old calf might not be able to absorb all the antibodies, but I have found that they just seem to do better if they get that in their system when I get them.
 
I did notice that the milk I got yesterday was more white than what I milked on Sunday right after the calf was born.

Thanks for your help.

Farmgirl
 

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