Scours or Not?

It's calving season and that means a lot of babies adjusting to being earth side. Today I'd like to go over one of the more common reasons we get calls about calves in the spring.

Does My Calf Have Scours?

Diarrhea is no fun for anyone, including new calves. When you have a new calf with loose stool it's easy to panic and jump straight to scours as the answer.

A calf under 5 days of age will very rarely have scours. If they do it is most likely E. coli and that is extremely rare. It is more likely that the calf is having colostrum diarrhea. The best way to tell if it is colostrum to blame is if the feces are golden yellow and the calf is bright, alert, running around and drinking well. They will adjust with time and the feces will turn normal.

When to Worry?

So if a calf under 5 days is generally just adjusting to their new life, when should you worry? If they start getting droopy ears and start acting lethargic and loosing the will to eat, you should consult your veterinarian for treatment and advice.

If you notice a really sour smell, or any blood in the stool, especially if the calf is over 5 days old, let your vet know and they can get the calf in for fluids and treatment.

How to Prevent Diarrhea in Calves?

The best way to prevent diarrhea in your new babies is to vaccinate their mothers in the fall and sometimes again before they give birth.

Rotavirus is a common cause of actual scours and the best way to prevent that is to vaccinate the mothers in the fall spring at pre-breeding, in the fall at time of pregnancy checking and again at least 30 days before they calve with a scour prevention vaccination. Heifers will need vaccination boosters.

To prevent clostridium diarrhea it is recommended to vaccinate the mothers with a 7 way or CD (clostridium) vaccination pre-breeding in the spring and again at time of pregnancy testing in the fall. Heifers will need vaccination boosters.

You can vaccinate the calves with a CD vaccination within the first 24 hours of life, after that point the maternal antibodies kick in and it won't be helpful. Another option for calves is to give them a probiotic paste like Convert Day One Calf Gel at birth to help their tummies adjust.

Your veterinarian can advise you on the best vaccination and treatment for your herd and your area, as location can play a part in the best protocol for your herd. I'll go over an example vaccination protocol in a future post.

In Conclusion

Diarrhea can be scary, but it's not always a reason to panic. Keep a working relationship with your veterinarian so you have access to treatment and vaccinations and keep an eye on your new babies, their pooping habits and demeanor and calving can be smooth sailing!

Until next time,

Milo