Calf scour
Calves
may develop scours due to bacterial or virus infections. Scours is known as
"calf scours" or neonatal calf diarrhea. The primary causes of scours
include: Rota virus, Corona virus, Cryptosporidium parvum,
Salmonella and Escherichia coli.
·
Determine if treatment is required. Calves that are
moving around in the pasture, with their tails up, probably do not need
treatment. Check to see if the diarrhea is yellow or white. If this is the
case, treatment is probably not needed.
·
Determine if the calf is looking listless. Calves that are
lethargic or not participating much in the playful activities with other calves
are a red flag to pay attention to. Calves that are also losing condition are
also cause for alarm.
·
Check to see if the calf is dehydrated. You can check for
dehydration by pulling on the calf's neck skin. If the skin "tents"
this is a sign of dehydration.
·
Determine the calf's body temperature. A normal body temperature
ranges from 100.5 °f (38.1 °c) to 102.5 °f (39.2 °c). Anything outside of this
range is a sign for treatment.
·
Separate the sick calf or calves from the healthy
herd. You'll
want to do this to avoid spreading the disease further.
·
Administer fluids using your veterinarian-approved
electrolyte solution. You may need to inject the fluids via iv or orally.
·
Follow
appropriate nursing care protocol using your vet's guidelines. This may include
providing shelter, feed and a warm place to sleep.
·
A
drawback from providing shelter is maintaining infectious control. You will
have to work extra to get rid of soiled bedding and disinfect everything that a
calf will touch, from the floor to the fence panels and even the feed bucket.
·
Enthnovet practice: Ingredients needed: vasambu (Acorus
calamus) leaves 2 numbers, dried ginger (Zingiber officinale) 50 gm,
guava (Psidium guajava) tender leaves 200 gm. The above materials
are ground and made into a bolus and administered orally one or two times.
No comments:
Post a Comment