Producers can combat calf scours by following prevention and management procedures that have been proven to substantially reduce it.
Certain management procedures should be avoided because they increase the possibility of a scours outbreak.
Fostering calves is common with twins, but buying calves for this purpose can be a recipe for disaster. If you absolutely must buy a calf, do so from a beef herd that has a good management system and vaccinates for scours. Keep the calf and foster mother isolated from the herd for two weeks.
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Generally, it’s not worth the risk to buy calves for fostering. These calves may bring in a strain of scours to which your herd is susceptible. Hopefully, twins from your own herd can be used for fostering.
The same thing applies to buying cow-calf pairs or heavily pregnant cows just before calving season.
Two scenarios can result: their calves may start scouring because the cows haven’t been exposed to the organisms on your farm, or your calves start scouring because they haven’t been exposed to the organisms that the new cows bring in.
This is why it is a good idea to maintain a closed herd, at least when calving season nears. The key is preventing the first case. Once it happens, the organism quickly seeds out in the environment and if the herd is crowded, all calves in contact become at risk.
Herds in which more than 20 percent are first-calf heifers run a greater risk of scours for several reasons.
Compared to a cow, heifer colostrum is not as concentrated with as many immunoglobulins against the scours organisms. Mothering with heifers is harder and with more difficult births, heifer calves are generally more stressed.
Select good bulls to breed to heifers to minimize calving problems and always have several litres of good frozen colostrum on hand.
Some producers will drench the offspring of first-calf heifers with colostrum to supplement the heifer’s own colostrum. Give at least one to 1.5 litres of colostrum to any stressed, slow-to-rise calf. Drenching with colostrum may take time, but it could have large benefits later in the calf’s life.
If possible, calve heifers separate from cows. It makes them easier to watch and if scouring starts, it can be addressed. Heifers mother up a lot better in a smaller group.
Scours vaccination should be mandatory in most circumstances, especially in first-calf heifers if there is history of scours or in herds where crowding is an issue.
We find that once herds reach 150 cows, vaccination can greatly reduce scours problems.
Two scours shots are given the first year. The initial vaccine can be given at pregnancy examination with the follow-up shot given two weeks before the first one calves. But the vaccine is not a panacea for sloppy management. Any calf, no matter how well protected, can succumb to scours if exposure is great.
Clean calving areas of manure before calving and if possible, keep the areas free of cows at least 30 days before calving. Manure causes a buildup of undesirable organisms, which is exacerbated in the spring when melting snow washes through the manure packs, concentrating the organisms in the water pools. Make sure calving areas are well drained.
An isolation area must be set up so that sick calves and their mothers can be immediately removed and kept there until no diarrhea is evident.
Always treat sick calves last, after the calving herd has been checked. It is imperative to change coveralls and dip boots before going back to the main herd.
Virkon is an excellent disinfectant against bacteria and viruses and can be mixed in a boot dip.
Farmers can be the biggest spreaders of scours on their farms.
Esophageal feeders have also been incriminated. I suggest that large producers have a separate feeder for administering colostrum and electrolytes. The feeder should be disinfected between uses.
Nutritionally, producers must keep their cows in a condition score of 2.5 to 3.5 at calving. This insures good colostrum and strong cows for quick deliveries. With exercise in the winter, cows will be in better shape to calve quickly.
Most scours outbreaks are the result of a management breakdown and from allowing the first case to spread.
By following most of these management procedures, calf scours can be kept to a minimum.
Roy Lewis is a veterinarian practising in Westlock, Alta.
