colustrum

[victorfirst]

Hi Folks

What is the opinion of manually giving colostrum at birth. and how much would you give

[Louisa Gidney]

Jolly good idea if the calf is slow in finding the teats or you haven't got time to wait around and see it does. As to how much, as much as the cow will let you draw off and as much as the calf will take. Or, how long is a piece of string!

[Tim Watson]

The Dam's colostrum is definitely best but sometimes they don't seem to suckle very quickly. As has been said before on here the calf's gut wall at birth is quite porous so the colostrum is important as some of the goodness from it passes through the gut wall. After 12 hrs (I think) the porosity lessens and the effectiveness of the colostrum diminishes which is why it's important that they get it early as it gives them a real boost.
We try to get them on but if they don't we will make up some colostrum and bottle feed the calf. We use a lambing bottle and aim to get a full bottle into the calf but they don't always take it. We always make sure they have had colostrum within 6hrs of birth either from the dam or manually.
How much is right varies on the size of the calf. Keep going and they will stop when they have had enough. A rounded stomach is enough.
Don't stomach tube a calf unless you absolutely have to and have been taught how to do it. It doesn't teach them the suck reflex and it can cause internal damage if you've not done it before. We did it once out of ignorance and won't be doing it again unless it is required for vet reasons.

[Duncan MacIntyre]

For standard size cattle the rule of thumb is 6 pints within 6 hours of birth. Obviously dexter size calves need proportionately less, but the times remain the same. By 12 hours after birth the absorption of antibodies is shutting down rapidly. If the calf is lively and the udder is normal it is extremely likely it will find its own way. If in doubt feel the abdomen, if you are new to cattle feel a few calves' tummies anyway at different stages so you get to know. If there is doubt you can draw colostrum off the mum. If you can't get any, it is handy to have some from one of your own cows in the fridge or freezer. Beware of introducing disease with colostrum from another farm. Using a teat to get it into calf gets better absorption, but if the calf is poorly and will not suck a tube is helpful but as others have said get some training before you try it yourself.

Beware of so called artificial colostrum - some is just whisked eggs etc and not worth anything in immunological terms although it will supply some energy.

Duncan

[victorfirst]

I am used to giving artificial colostrum to lambs via either a bottle or a tube, but this is my first step into keeping cattle. As i work out i thought it might be better to have some just in case, I just have no idea how much i should give them if necessary

[ann]

I find if you can get at least a pint into a new born calf it usually gives them that boost to find the teat and get sucking. Most cows will let you take some milk of them if you do it straight after they have calved.