We are now at that stage of the calving season when fewer cows are calving down and calf pens are filling, with the threat of calf scour growing as the bacterial load mutliplies.
It is understandable at this time of year that farmers take their foot slightly off the pedal and are less keen to clean out calving houses and calf pens as there is only a few more cows to calve down.
However, with milder conditions in store for the next number of days, farmers can’t afford to allow old bedding to get out of control as bacteria will thrive in damp bedding and especially in warmer conditions.
Farmers must also ensure that pens are cleaned out and well ventilated with fresh air getting in and out of pens in these milder conditions as pneumonia is also a huge risk in such conditions.
The presence of scour-causing bacteria, wet bedding, and the number of calves in sheds will all be contributors of sickness.
Even though the end of the calving season is near, maintenance and hygiene of calf sheds needs to be a priority especially as the weather is set to be damper and milder.
Calf scour
Scour is the biggest killer of young calves on dairy farms, and although completely eliminating cases on farms will be difficult, the number and severity of cases can be reduced.
Scour refers to watery faeces and results from a badly damaged gut, which leads to a loss in function and an intestine that is not functioning properly which causes the calf to lose salts and water in the form of diarrhoea.
The initial damage to the gut is caused by bugs, and once the damage is done, the calf will be scouring until the intestine is repaired.
Calf scour is most commonly caused by parasites such as cryptodporidia and coccidia, or viruses like rotavirus and coronavirus. It is less commonly caused by bacteria such as salmonella and Escherichia coli (E.coli).
Calves that present with a case of calf scour should be separated from the group straight away to stop the spread of the infection to the rest of the calves.
Hydration is needed straightaway and the calf should be fed their 4L of fluid and fed another 4L to replace the fluids already lost.
The calf with scour should be given one or two extra feeds of about 2L each of electrolytes or some sort of good quality rehydration solution as soon as the calf starts scouring.
If the calf is too weak to suck or drink the electrolytes, the calf should be stomach tubed to get something into the system.
Electrolytes should not replace milk feeds and the calf should continue to receive her milk throughout the day which will help with recovery and help with the healing of the intestine.
Limiting the cause
It’s very rare to get through the whole calving season without a calf or two getting a bit of calf scour as sometimes the parasites and bacteria can be very hard to keep out.
However, good hygiene is the key when it comes to preventing calf scour cases, making sure the calf is in a pen that’s dry and comfortable.
The knee test should be carried out every now and then and if your knee comes back up damp from kneeling in the bedding, there is not enough straw being allocated to the calves.
Individual calf pens should be cleared out between calves, and when calves are grouped together, they should be put into clean pens, as clean, dry bedding is essential wherever the calf is housed.
The cleanliness of the feeding equipment is also crucial and may get overlooked at this stage as many calves may only be receiving a once-a-day feed – make sure that all teats and buckets are thoroughly washed after every use.
Your feeding equipment should be thoroughly washed after each feeding with hot water, and should be cleaned with a detergent and descaler after every few feeds.
For the few cows still to calve, make sure the newborn calf receives 22-23% quality colostrum so the calves receive adequate amounts of immunoglobulins to fight off disease and infection.
Whether a calf stays healthy or gets scour is determined by the balance between the resistance of the calf and the level of infection it is exposed to.
