mixed farm
Member
We have hutches and I like them but pneumonia can still be an issue with them. Damp/misty weather and they're better off In sheds.
Calf pneumonia
- Thread starter William Mellor
- Start date
Princess Pooper
Member
- Location
- East Mids
do you know if the colostrum is any good and how much the suckling calves are taking though? Do you test colostrum? Sometimes we see a calf suckling but it will still take over 2l from a bottle within the first 3-4 hrs!
Princess Pooper
Member
- Location
- East Mids
you need to take vet advice on that as it will depend on what virus is causing the problem and if you are then getting bacterial involvement (antibiotics no good for virus alone)
William Mellor
Member
- Location
- Peak District
18 months ago I got my vet to test some calves infected with pneumonia and they came back as mycorplasma hence why he told me to use zupremo and draxxin as treatment. When I last discussed it with him he said they weren’t getting better as they were now getting ringworm as well but still thought it was mycroplasma
HasthorpeGrange
Member
- Location
- Lincolnshire
Tube each calf with 10% of body weight of colostrum twice within the first 24 hours of being born. Don't worry if they don't drink the next day they will the day after. We've adopted this the last few months and only jabbed two calves out of about 180 born. Along with keeping things cleaner that's the only change. Other than that a good deep bed of straw. Grandad always says a good bed is as good as another feed.
Best of luck with them, don't let it get you down we all have bed spells @William Mellor
Best of luck with them, don't let it get you down we all have bed spells @William Mellor
Sparkymark
Member
We vaccinate all calves with bovipast. But they were still coughing so vet took some bloods which showed theyd had exposure to Mycoplasma bacteria which will damage lung tissue.
We now mix Chlorimed antibiotic powder in with there milk and calves are happier again
We now mix Chlorimed antibiotic powder in with there milk and calves are happier again
1. do some more bloods from recovered calves for mycoplasma antibodies, it's a bugger to deal with.
2. if you can't move calves, order a forced ventilation tube tomorrow. They really do help.
3. vaccinate for ringworm, it really does knock them and make everything else worse.
4. I assume you know your BVD status?
5 once you know the cause then look at vaccination options. It sounds like mycoplasma and there are no commercial vaccines available. +
6. get some bloods to check colostrum management is adequate. What age do you dehorn?
7. Draxxin/Zuprevo/Zactran are so similar. Follow up with something different
This is very fixable.
2. if you can't move calves, order a forced ventilation tube tomorrow. They really do help.
3. vaccinate for ringworm, it really does knock them and make everything else worse.
4. I assume you know your BVD status?
5 once you know the cause then look at vaccination options. It sounds like mycoplasma and there are no commercial vaccines available. +
6. get some bloods to check colostrum management is adequate. What age do you dehorn?
7. Draxxin/Zuprevo/Zactran are so similar. Follow up with something different
This is very fixable.
I can feel your distress, got similar situation some years ago myself. You have a number of problems. Once the virus gets in,you have a host of infection which is extremely difficult to control.
Get your vets advice on treatment and vaccination.
Segregation of 1. infected, 2. calves not infected or treated from that batch that have not got sick.
All newly born calves will HAVE to have a completely different air space to prevent future problem .
On Ringworm I have seen a hollybush tied over calf pen .Don't know if it works but cost little and can't do much harm.
Headless chicken
Member
- Location
- West Wales
You’d have to seek advise from your vet but my vets current advise is an attempt to try not to use draxxin/zuprevo where possible. She recommended trying resflor as it is less close to what we use in humans. In your case I wouldn’t drop your draxxin/zuprevo but maybe does day1 draxxin +met then day 4/5 try resflor. With that said I really don’t know that could be terrible advise as I’m yet to be in the position when Zactran hasn’t worked first time for me fortunately and your vet would know the situation. Sometimes though a course of something dirt cheap like pen strep could help them over that hump
Pigken
Member
- Location
- Co. Durham
As suggested above use some outside pens can be done cheaply if need but hutches are worth their weight in gold, hutches can always have pens facing into building, options endless, we have been using a product to mist calves, not sure if can mention name of it here? But use it through a leaf blower to do air space, is vinegar smelling stuff seems to reduce coughing and need for injecting as many does not cure, but assists by helping air space, it also claims to help with ring worm, starts to dry it up! Sure is video on YouTube of it, needs regular use, vaccine for ring worm available through vet but they need to order from Spain,
William Mellor
Member
- Location
- Peak District
Tried vaccinating for ringworm and it didn’t work they still got it.
BVD is present in the herd so tag and test all calves.
I dehorn with hornex dehorning pasta at about a week old.
William Mellor
Member
- Location
- Peak District
a 2 week old calf this morning didn’t want I t’s milk, toke it’s temperature 41.1 degrees, treated metacam and draxxin, kept an eye on it all morning, no change, this afternoon toke it’s temperature again 39.9, still not moved or wanted it milk it left this morning, rang vet.
Vet came out, toke a dung sample as although he could tell there was fluid in its lungs he wasn’t certain it was pneumonia, told me off for using draxxin as is only meant for calves over 6 weeks old.
Anyway he saw another with a dropped ear and runny nose, said it was most probably microplasma and that I should treat that calf as soon as possible. As well as that I had 2 weaned 4 month old calves died last night which I got him to open up to what had killed them, they both had been treated for pneumonia a while ago and once he had opened them up it was clear to see what had happened, both calves lungs where white when they should be pink and both full of abscess and both had abscess blocking off the wind pipe so in basic terms suffocating the calves.
He toke blood samples of some of the others as well as the lungs out of the 2 dead ones for testing to see what was causing it but he is pretty certain the abscess where mycroplasma related but apart from what I am doing currently there is nothing else I can do until the test results come back as he said there was no vaccine for mycroplasma nor is there a real cure other than giving the calves draxxin or resflur
Vet came out, toke a dung sample as although he could tell there was fluid in its lungs he wasn’t certain it was pneumonia, told me off for using draxxin as is only meant for calves over 6 weeks old.
Anyway he saw another with a dropped ear and runny nose, said it was most probably microplasma and that I should treat that calf as soon as possible. As well as that I had 2 weaned 4 month old calves died last night which I got him to open up to what had killed them, they both had been treated for pneumonia a while ago and once he had opened them up it was clear to see what had happened, both calves lungs where white when they should be pink and both full of abscess and both had abscess blocking off the wind pipe so in basic terms suffocating the calves.
He toke blood samples of some of the others as well as the lungs out of the 2 dead ones for testing to see what was causing it but he is pretty certain the abscess where mycroplasma related but apart from what I am doing currently there is nothing else I can do until the test results come back as he said there was no vaccine for mycroplasma nor is there a real cure other than giving the calves draxxin or resflur
- Location
- Newcastle upon Tyne
Desperate. Really feel for you. Horrible when you feel so helpless.
Hope things improve soon.
Hope things improve soon.
Had enough.com
Member
There are some secondhand hutches for sale on 'British Farming Forum on Facebook'. They're in Staffs / Derbys border. Surely worth a try?
William Mellor
Member
- Location
- Peak District
Will take a look but I am told this pneumonia is a viral thing so spreads calf to calf, not saying they won’t work but need to wait on results from the vet first
William Mellor
Member
- Location
- Peak District
Chlorined antibiotic powder? Where do I get this from and does it really work?
- Location
- Northern Ireland
Fortunate in a way that they are taking so late as four weeks.
On this farm they usually have it before a week old, so even the local nasal vaccine is useless. It's heartbreaking.
On this farm they usually have it before a week old, so even the local nasal vaccine is useless. It's heartbreaking.
Friesianfan
Member
- Location
- Cornwall
Sorry to hear your struggling with the calves. You’ll get through it though. Not easy to deal with.
The Son
Member
- Location
- Herefordshire
Chlorosol 50 is the product, we use it through an automatic feeder with a dosing system on it, works well, used to use it every batch for 5 days when they first came on farm, but that sort of use is frowned upon now so we get vet out to look at batch if we feel there is a need.
Its a shame really as calves where certainly healthier when we were using it every batch, and our other antibiotic use was lower, and apparently the vet says the antibiotic in chlorosol is not one used in humans.
Our antibiotic of choice at the moment is Zeleris, any raised temps get a jab asap.
We have also suffered terribly this season, you certainly aren't on your own.
Not allowed to routinely administer antibiotic to calves through milk