Calves no sucking

domsmith · Post by **domsmith** » Fri Apr 04, 2008 8:25 pm

I have had 2 calves born last weekend,neither of them have sucked from the teat yet.
I have tried everything i can think of, but i am still tubing them 5 days after their birth.
we have had 6 other calves born in the last month which have taken the teat without any problems.
They were born in some rough weather and the mothers had very muddy teats, combined with thick mud underfoot i think they struggled to find the teats. By the time i realised they were not sucking it was several hours after their birth, and they just have not picked up what to do.

any ideas

dominic

Saffy · Post by **Saffy** » Fri Apr 04, 2008 8:57 pm

We once had twin Charolais x Fresian calves that showed no interest in suckling from the cow at all, wouldn't take milk from a bucket or bottle either. Worried me considerably! We tubed the one for a week and the other for 10 days and then both drank from a bucket which was how we reared the calves here then as we were a dairy farm. There couldn't have been anything physically preventing our calves drinking and they were born inside.

If it is a case like ours it is probably just a matter of time and perseverance.

No other ideas, except that it may be easier to move them from sucking a bottle to sucking the cows teat if they will take it from a bottle instead of tubing them.

Good luck! I don't envy you!!!

P.S. I forgot to say the twin charolais I mentioned wouldn't even swallow, which was why we tubed them for so long and didn't bottle or bucket feed them.

Are yours willing to suck - and/or swallow?

Edited By Saffy on 1207391632

Louisa Gidney · Post by **Louisa Gidney** » Sat Apr 05, 2008 7:45 am

Are you milking their dams? If the cow's udder is sore and distended, she is more likely to knock the calf off if it tries to suckle. I would milk the cow so the teats are soft & smell milky, bottle the calf next to the udder with its mother's milk, then when it's sucking strongly substitute fingers for teat then dam's teat for finger.
Will the calves suck strongly on your finger when they are hungry? I think you do need to get the calves to associate being fed with the udder region of mum. Also mum is more likely to stand for calf if it's bottom smells right, which it will once it's own mother's milk has passed through.

Broomcroft · Post by **Broomcroft** » Sat Apr 05, 2008 3:09 pm

I just had one that wouldn't suckle for nearly a week but the problem was the cow not allowing the calf to suckle. I penned the cow and calf together, and bottle fed the calf twice a day, but didn't give him enough to satisfy his hunger except initially to make sure he was fit. After every not-quite-enough bottle feed, he would start pestering his dam for the rest until she eventually gave in. She had not got sore teats though, she is just a difficult cow.

Sylvia · Post by **Sylvia** » Sat Apr 05, 2008 5:15 pm

I think tubing is a last resort action for a newborn which has no suck reflex and probably isn't strong enough to stand to reach the teat anyway. A weak newborn with suck reflex should be tried with a bottle rather than tubing. I know it is more messy and hit and miss but every effort should be made to encourage sucking. Once the babe is strongly on its feet and armed with an ability to suck it is likely to find a convenient udder for itself. Or will come for a bottle or bucket with a teat on it. Babes that have only been tubed aren't likely to realise what it is they are supposed to do and will have to be re-educated.