Routine after calving

Milked out

For scours get a dung sample before treating and vet will tell u in 2 mins.

Milked out

If outside in autumn check calf spray navel, feed biestings, put in shed bar this year where i have a shot of em outside weather been good and all. Calves fed in groups on milk bar once able to suckle. If I have time I'd give them there first feed thru it so they can be trained up faster. Make sure cow is stable and has cleaned, milk her and if she is ok put her with rest of herd, well marked. If inside same story bar I leave cow with calf until they have cleaned or in pen on her own if worried about milk fever

whelan2

Dickie10 wrote: »

and is rotavirus the main scour threat? mine got a milky white scour last year nd took a lot of labour hours up. i calve down in a straw beded shed , plenty of straw and the calves have their own lie back area behind an electric fence where they go under but cows cant, this is given copius amounts of bedding , i do the knee test, u know where u kneel doen on the straw and if ure knees are wet it needs better bedding. so i think im fairly good for hygeyne, power wash out the shed ever spring with water then another go of water and disenfectant and let two doors open for drying all summer. a vet told me that an airy shed with loads of wind throough it will kill all disease in a shed

I do cows with rotavec, do calves with halocur when born clean out powerwash and disenfect regularly during calving and still got crypto this year. If you are calving over a period of time they need to be cleaned out a few times. The best time of all is to calve outside

patsy_mccabe

AHI is a good source for info on scouring calves;
http://animalhealthireland.ie/ckfinder/userfiles/files/3_5_4%20Management%20of%20the%20Scouring%20Calf%20-%20low%20res.pdf

How to make your own rehydration fluid
http://animalhealthireland.ie/ckfinder/userfiles/files/20130130%20CAC%20Electrolyte%20Solution.pdf

Limestone Cowboy

Milked out wrote: »

For scours get a dung sample before treating and vet will tell u in 2 mins.

+1, I got a few samples tested in the spring and it was rotavirus that was the problem.

Dickie10

id love the idea of outdoor calving but what if they need assisitance late at night, seems 80% of ours calve at night here.

Kovu

Dickie10 wrote: »

id love the idea of outdoor calving but what if they need assisitance late at night, seems 80% of ours calve at night here.

Small field near the shed where possible. Or a good halter, a tree and a head torch!

whelan2

Dickie10 wrote: »

id love the idea of outdoor calving but what if they need assisitance late at night, seems 80% of ours calve at night here.

have a paddock fenced with sheep wire/electric fence in front of the house, I leave the window open if anything might be going to calve at night, can also shine torch into the paddock from the house

greysides

Kovu wrote: »

Small field near the shed where possible. Or a good halter, a tree and a head torch!

For some, that would be a lasso not a halter.

patsy_mccabe

I calve cows with a head halter tied up in a shed. I put the halter on in the chute first. It gives the cow great room to stretch out. The only fear is with a mad cow that might slip out of the halter. You're in serious trouble if she does, but I suppose that could be said of a calving gate.

Genghis Cant

Mad4simmental wrote: »

It's Good stuff LC, it's really worth it. Calvs really get a good chance with it.

I think it's one of the best decisions we ever made, to vaccinate with RC. You'd fairly quickly spend the price of the vaccine on scour remedies.
Just be aware that it requires a small bit of forward planning to vaccinate the cows in the correct timescale.

Kovu

greysides wrote: »

For some, that would be a lasso not a halter.

Tranquiliser gun, or a hog tie