Little late with this, but just put a nose flap on them and forget about moving them, fences tore down, bawling, going off feed, sick, and just leave them with the mothers. And yes about 1 of 50 will figure out to turn his head sideways to suck, but it's a dang sight easier dealing with 1 than chasing 50. Put 'em in when working them and take 'em out when boostering. No extra work. I've left them in as long as 3 mos. and hav'nt had a single problem. Stress free.
WEANING CALVES
- Thread starter Fred Belknap
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I have a 3ish month old heifer that is a bottle baby. She went through a rough time with navel and joint ill put perserved. She is eating fresh grass and water all day and I have been busy working so she was cut down gradually to one bottle a night. Now she gets nothing until I come home at night and she hears me and starts to moo. Apparently this bottle if for me and not for her, I put one tablespoon of the milk into a full bottle. She aggressively drinks it and then is quiet for the rest of the night. Is she the right age to wean? Am running out of milk replacer and at 75 bucks a bag hate to get another one if she is old enough.
newbie
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Glad you mentioned 8 weeks for a bottle baby Dun as I just looked at another board that said they waited until 6 months and I was feeling very guilty. She is still not eating grain. I will buy some new calfstarter and try again. Kinda hard when I have last years 2 bottle babies who are now 15 months in the same field. Can they eat the starter and maybe the young one will catch on? Should I just stop with the bottle of watery milk altogether and live through a couple of nights of mooing or will it not mater. I am about to run out of milk anyway. Cheers
newbie":31011fdm said:
Stop the bottle. If you can set up a creep area where she can get to it and the other claves can't, put out a small amopunt for all of them and some in the creep area just for her. She'll catch on when she sees the big kids eating it and will discover her special cache of the stuff. After she's eating it well, stop the grain to the others. I have no idea what the difference is between "calfstarter" grain and regular grain other then cost. Our calves just get the same grain as everyone else. Even the bottle calves when we raised them.
