Scours treatment for dairy calves

How do I treat scours in dairy calves. What kinds of medicines can I give them. Any advice is greatly appreciated thanks.

Where you from? Mild scours when calves are drinking milk yet I give probiotics and Bluelight (electrolyte) with their milk.

If they won't drink milk I give them with a tuber 1.5-2 bottles 3 times a day of probiotics and Bluelight. Very rarely do I use an antibiotic. Usually probiotics and bluelight work wonders.

Make sure you are using a good all milk milk replacer and using the correct amount of powder to water. We weigh all our powder. Correct temperature and clean bottles/pails will prevent 99% of it.

Thank you Till-Hill for your comment Iam from Idaho Iam going to start raising Holstein heifers on nurse cows. What I am really trying to understand is what kinds of antibiotics can I use if the electrolytes are not working. You are absolutely right about giving them electrolytes cause it keeps them hydrated,and that's the most important thing because dehydration is the primary cause of death with calves with scours. But just in case the electrolytes aren't enough what kind of antibiotic could I use.

Till-Hill":iv21l44a said:

Mild scours when calves are drinking milk... I give...Bluelight (electrolyte) with their milk.
Bluelight work wonders.
Correct temperature and clean bottles/pails will prevent 99% of it.

Click to expand...

+++ on Bluelight-C
Clean, clean, clean when dealing with babies clean can't be over emphasized.... but 94%

Since Sustain III Calf Boluses are on indefinite back order I've been using Terramycin Scour Tablets but in a pinch I've cut up a Sustain III Cattle Bolus. I also recommend the Trusti Tuber Oral Calf Feeder - makes tubing (electrolytes, colostrum replacer, etc) virtually foul proof.
https://www.jefferspet.com/products/ter ... ur-tablets
https://www.jefferspet.com/products/tru ... feeder-kit

Thank you TC Ranch that's exactly what I was going to get was sustain III calf boluses. Or teramycin scour tablets. I will check out the trusti tuber oral calf feeder. Thank you for your comment.

Thank you TC Ranch that's exactly what I was going to get was sustain III calf boluses. Or teramycin scour tablets. I will check out the trusti tuber oral calf feeder. Thank you for your comment.

For vaccinations for the calves can you guys tell me what you use to vaccinate them, and when they need vaccinated. Iam going to start raising dairy heifers on nurse cows. I used to raise dairy heifers on nurse cows back when I was in high school, what I remember is when they are one day old I need to give them inforce 3 Intranasal and a shot of Mu-se for white muscle disease. Then at 2 weeks old I need to give them cattle master gold FP5L5, and then a clostridium 7 way which I think is Ultrabac 7/ somubac. Then at 6 weeks old I need to give them the same vaccines that I gave them at 2 weeks old. Then a week before weaning give them Inforce 3. Then at 5 months old give them cattle master gold FP5L5 and Ultrabac 7/ somubac and take them to the vet to get there bangs vaccination. Then at 6 months old give them Lepto shield 5 and Ultrabac 7/ somubac. I don't know if that's the right vaccinations to give and any advice would be greatly appreciated thanks.

Harris2346":2mkuqvnu said:

For vaccinations for the calves can you guys tell me what you use to vaccinate them, and when they need vaccinated. Iam going to start raising dairy heifers on nurse cows. I used to raise dairy heifers on nurse cows back when I was in high school, what I remember is when they are one day old I need to give them inforce 3 Intranasal and a shot of Mu-se for white muscle disease. Then at 2 weeks old I need to give them cattle master gold FP5L5, and then a clostridium 7 way which I think is Ultrabac 7/ somubac. Then at 6 weeks old I need to give them the same vaccines that I gave them at 2 weeks old. Then a week before weaning give them Inforce 3. Then at 5 months old give them cattle master gold FP5L5 and Ultrabac 7/ somubac and take them to the vet to get there bangs vaccination. Then at 6 months old give them Lepto shield 5 and Ultrabac 7/ somubac. I don't know if that's the right vaccinations to give and any advice would be greatly appreciated thanks.

Click to expand...

I just replied to your other post.

Thanks

If calves have scours- what kind of scours. If just too much milk- no fever, feeling perky, no bad smell- I just wait and see. This can happen easily if nursing from a cow. If lethargic or fever or both plus scours- banamine, baytril, tablespoon baking soda put in some milk, a bottle of electrolytes, either sustain 3 crushed into milk or albon tablet, probias gel. If they won't drink, I tube them. Get a supply of medicine before you get the calves. If getting dairy culls as nurse cows, test them for Mycoplasma and staph and Hobbes and blv before bringing them home.

Ok thank you for your comment that is a really good idea about testing the nurse cows.

I have replied to you other posts, but here I will put in my 2 cents. You need to know what is causing the scours. The biggest problem I have with my calves on the nurse cows is coccidiosis. That is easily treated with corid. But brought in calves can easily have a multitude of stuff from their home farm, or could be "clean" and something on your farm doesn't "click". I have a couple of dairies that I get calves from that do amazing. Got 2 farms I wouldn't take another calf if they gave it to me because what "bugs" I have just do not work with what their environment had. Anything brought in needs to have at LEAST 2 feedings of colostrum. Staph and strep are a problem, e-coli, and rota and corona viruses are a big problem on some farms. Plus the ones like Darcelina4 listed.

Thank you farmer Jan I have never heard of corid I just looked it up that looks like good stuff. Iam glad you brought up the topic about coccidoisis I have a question about that say for instance instead of using nurse cows to raise the calves and I was going going to feed milk replacer to the calves that was medicated. When I started them on calf starter, I wouldn't need to buy calf starter that had a coccidiosis in it because the medicated milk replacer would have coccidiosis in it and think it would either be to much for the calf if both the milk replacer and calf starter had the cocccidiosis in it or if it doesn't hurt the calf I think it would be a waste of money to buy both with coccidiosis in it, I don't know what do you think.

You will need a VFD to feed medicated milk replacer. Another reason you need to work closely with your vet.
https://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/De ... 071807.htm

I NEVER regularly fed a medicated feed or milk replacer even when it did not need the VFD . To me, you feed good nutritional feed and/or milk replacer or real milk. (35 years ago it was hard to get NON-medicated things as the universities/land grant colleges were touting the "wonders" of having medication in feed for healthier animals and more weight gain, etc.) Then, IF the animal gets sick, they respond quicker and faster to the treatment because they have not had a "theraputic" amount of anti-biotics in their system. I know that there are many who do not necessarily agree, and medicated milk replacer was the norm forever and ever.... but I didn't use it except when I was having problems with sick calves. And that was always with bought calves that brought the "bugs" with them or were without resistance to the "bugs" I had on my place. Yes, I kept a bag of it but my normal day to day was just plain GOOD, ALL MILK, milk replacer. Some of the problems you could vaccinate for and I do think that a good dose is the best thing for "brought in calves".
Since I now have a farm that seems to have the same "bugs" as I have, and they do a very good job of making sure the calves get 2-3 feedings of colostrum I haven't had any problems. But, if you are talking raising heifers, you may not be able to be as picky as to where and when you get yours.

The way I look at it, you do not give your kids antibiotics to keep them from getting sick. You give them good healthy food and try to keep their immune system operating. If they get sick, then you try a few things but you can give them antibiotics to treat the problem. I follow the same basic philosophy with my cattle.

Thanks I didn't know that.

You don't need an Rx for medicated milk replacer. Or maybe all the places I've bought it are not following the law, which could be the case, but I don't think so. In the past year I've bought it from 2 different coops and also a larger box type store.

You might be getting a milk replacer that has a coccidiostat in it which is "medicated" but does not fall under the VFD because it is not considered to be an antibiotic that is related to human use. If it contains Neomycin, Teramycin, or anything like that then they are not following the law.