Bottle Babies
f you've been in the cattle business for very long, you're going to have them. Crusty old ranchers will tell you that it's better in the long run to get rid of them. Maybe that's so, but I find that one more calf in my little crop is a welcome bonus; even if it does take a little more time and energy on my part. For those of you new to the business, here is a detailed tutorial for bottle raising those precious red and white bundles of fuzzy joy:
A new little calf must receive colostrum within 6 hours of birth. This is because a calf is born without any natural antibodies. The colostrum produced by the cow is loaded with everything the calf needs to build his own little immune system; tailored exactly to the variety of "bugs" his momma has encountered throughout her life. Considering that in nature, cows don't usually travel hundreds of miles cross-country; this is an extremely intelligent way of passing the necessary ingredients from generation to generation. The baby's digestive system is receptive to the antibodies in the colostrum for only 6 hours; after that, colostrum is of little use to the baby because he can no longer absorb the necessary nutrients and antibodies to "jump start" his immune system.
If
a calf is to be bottle-raised, it is good to give him several
feedings of colostrum over the first couple days. Even though
the baby is receptive to the immune system building blocks in
colostrum for only 6 hours, he will still greatly benefit from the
extra dose of vitamins within the nutrient-rich colostrum for the
first two days of life. If you're lucky, you'll have a gentle
cow in your herd from whom you can swipe a little colostrum and save
in the freezer for that inevitable bottle baby. Those of you
in large cities can probably locate colostrum in powder form at your
local feed store or vet. I cannot stress the importance of
colostrum enough; if the calf does not receive any, or receives it
too late, it will either be sickly all its little life, or it will
die. I have actually raised a calf or two without the aid of
colostrum, but they do tend to catch every "bug" that comes their
way; and I most certainly do not recommend trying to raise calves
this way on purpose.
A Miniature Hereford baby has an
added twist in that it is so tiny. Regular calf nipples are too large, and
do not trigger the natural suckling instinct. Those of you fortunate
enough to have had braces probably have a clear recollection of those molds
taken of your teeth. Not very nice, is it? You've got your mouth
wide open and some weird-o has crammed it full of some nasty stuff - not to
mention it 's
dribbling down your throat - and what the heck are you supposed to
do? It is much simpler for you, and easier on your calf, to buy a
goat-sized rubber nipple to begin feeding. The calf will grow, and in
about a month the nipple will be too small; but you will have saved yourself -
and the baby - a lot of headache.
Once you have fed your baby that life-saving colostrum, it is time to switch to regular milk. Most of you will be using the powdered milk available at your local feed store. This milk is extremely convenient, in that you can mix it with warm milk and have an instant meal for the baby calf.
Here is the feeding program that has worked well for me for nearly 20 years (and at least that many calves):
Days 1 and 2: Feed
colostrum at frequent intervals. How frequently you feed the calf depends
on how weak he is, and how much milk he readily consumes at any one
feeding. Warm a pint of colostrum (preferably on the stove, not in a
microwave) to regular bottle temperature then pour into a pint jar; and offer it
to the calf through a goat-sized rubber nipple. If you purchased a
brand-new nipple, then it would be wise to enlarge the hole in the end of the
nipple slightly. Nipples come with a tiny hole that newborns cannot
manage, and it is very easy to correct the problem by snipping carefully each
slit about 1/8 inch longer with scissors. See the picture for the size
hole I prefer in both goat and calf nipples. Don't cut them too large, or
you will all but drown the poor baby when next you feed him.
The calf will not readily take to the rubber (it sure as heck ain't his momma, he does know that much!). To insert the nipple initially into the calf's mouth, gently slide your finger into his mouth from the side where there aren't any teeth to worry about. In response, he should open his mouth wide and you can sneak the rubber nipple in. For stubborn calves who refuse to begin nursing, you can try different things such as: gently squeezing around his little nose and jaw for him so that he will in turn squeeze the nipple and a tiny bit of milk runs into his mouth; or you can gently push and pull the nipple in and out of his mouth about 1/4 inch. Most calves will respond to one or the other of these encouragements.
At this point, feed the calf as much as he wants; preferably a pint three or four times per day. Especially weak calves will require several tries over the course of a half hour to swallow a full pint of milk. If they become frustrated or tired, walk away and let them rest for a few minutes before resuming the eating lesson. If the calf is able to stand, then be sure that he does while nursing. It is far better for his digestive system. However, some babies have come my way who were far to weak to stand, let alone standing and nursing simultaneously. In that event, be sure they are comfortably situated upright on their chest with even weight on both front legs, the front legs preferably folded back underneath them.
Rub the calf frequently to encourage
blood flow. The more vigorously you rub the calf, the better.
Especially weak calves will respond amazingly well to being rubbed
like you might scrub a barn floor.
If the baby doesn't drink the whole quart of milk, save it and
re-warm for the next feeding. The goat nipple is still much
appreciated from the baby's point of view. About one month of
age, the calf will be drinking the entire quart of milk each
feeding. Shortly after, you'll notice he will start "moo-ing"
or crying in the afternoons (several hours before the normal evening
meal-time); that is your cue to up the milk allowance. If the baby
is standing by the gate you always come through, and crying
repeatedly, he's hungry. Now, if it's only an hour or less to normal
feeding time, that's okay. But don't let him cry for hours, that
means he's too hungry and he won't grow properly.
Also, be sure to encourage the proper suckling stance when you
feed your calf. I usually rest my hand gently on the baby's
poll, and this helps in two ways: Firstly, because the baby
instinctively looks under something for his meals, and your
hand resting on his head encourages him. Secondly, he will tip
his nose up and drop his chin; thus assuming the proper stance.
This is an important point, because it aids proper digestion of the
milk and helps the baby create more suction while nursing.
When the calf has his head in this position, it actually causes the
milk to bypass the rumen and go directly into the digestive system
beyond. Considering that the baby's rumen is not yet
functioning, any milk that finds its way into the rumen is just
going to sit there until it does begin to function; not to mention
the rumen is designed to process forage, not milk. And lastly, watch the baby while he nurses. For his first
week, he will not create enough suction to build a little froth
mustache, but by the third week of age he should look like this
little heifer:
The more frothy mustache the baby creates, the
better. The froth indicates an adequate mixture of saliva with
the milk, and thus aids the digestion process. Continue
rubbing the calf for a few minutes after each feeding, this
increases blood flow and really helps overall health. If you
feel like being silly, you can even encourage the calf to romp and
frolic by darting around a little yourself (it's actually really
fun!). Days 31 through weaning (at least 4 months): When the baby is ready for more than 3 quarts per day, I drop
back to two feedings of 2 quarts each (morning, evening). Also, I
switch to a regular calf bottle (2 quart size) and calf nipple;
which will be available at your local feed store. By this time,
the baby's tummy is large enough to handle that much milk at one go
(though the first meal or two he might look a little stuffed!) and
it's far more convenient for me. Personally, I mix one full scoop
per full calf bottle (2 quarts liquid). That is a little thicker of
a solution than the bag recommends, but I feel the extra nutrients
will offset the lack of REAL milk. There is a vast difference
between fresh milk from the mother versus dried, treated, flavored,
antibiotic-ed, aged, stale, mixed milk from a bag. In my
opinion, having to buy just one more bag of milk supplement because
you mixed it a little thicker is cheap insurance that you'll have a
healthy calf in 6 months. You can wean the calf off milk between 4 to 6 months, and I
usually wean mine when I get sick and tired of bottle feeding them
day after day. The first step is to begin offering a small
amount of high-nutrient calf manna. Usually in tiny pellet
form, and often pink colored, this feed helps the transition from
milk to a forage-based diet. When the calf is eating the manna
well, begin offering about 1 milk replacer cup-full in the evenings
instead of milk. A week or two of that, and stop feeding milk
altogether; offering only the calf manna mornings and evenings.
Do not offer the calf manna free choice, as the birds will eat it
up! Along about 6 or 8 months of age, you can stop feeding the
manna, and begin a normal diet for bovines of that age.
However, if you really wish to ensure a healthy baby, and the cost
of that stuff doesn't deter you, continue feeding the manna for
another month or two.
Throughout
the little calf's life, you should always offer fresh, clean water.
They won't be interested in if for the first few months, but it is
good practice to have it ready. Also, salt and a mineral block
should always be offered free choice. The calf should have plenty of
fresh pasture, or grass hay available; as they will begin
taste-testing greens as young as 2 weeks of age. For those of you who are new to the world of cows, and are
raising a bottle baby for the first time; I recommend taking a
side-view picture of your baby once per week. This will give
you an excellent record of the calf's growth and health, and will
help you determine any changes that might need to be made to your
feeding program. Your calf should be sleek and glossy,
frolicking daily and taking long naps between meals. By
frolicking, I mean: tail pointed straight in the air, galloping
around at top speed, bucking, kicking, tossing his head. The long
naps are important for growth and strength. If the calf is
standing around mooing most of the day, you can bet he's not getting
enough to eat. If a calf is consistently hungry, it will be
stressed and will grow thin. The hair will become long, rough
and lighter colored. Continuing down this path too long, the
calf will have a much shortened lifespan. Raising bottle calves can be a lot of fun, and the rewards are
well worth the extra effort. A properly and well-fed calf will
be equal in every way to his pasture mates in the care of their
birth mommas. When the baby is weaned and returned to the
pastures with his peers, those same crusty old ranchers who told you
to get rid of "that good fer nuthin' dogie" will be unable to pick
your baby out of the crowd. Believe me, I've done it. Of
course, when it comes time to work the calves, yours will stand out
as the only one not belly-aching in the chute!
Days
3 through 30: It is time to switch to regular milk.
Feed one quart of milk three times per day (morning, noon, evening);
mixed with one half scoop of milk replacer powder (using the scoop
they provide in the feed sack). And for those of you who like
things to be easy....forget the whisk! The simplest method for
mixing milk is to fill the bottle with slightly over-warm water to
half the desired amount of milk, then pour the powder on top.
Cover the open end of the bottle with your palm and shake
vigorously. Pressure builds up inside for some reason (I still
haven't figured out the mechanics of that one) and you'll have to
let it off after the first and second shakes (otherwise it gets too
strong to maintain a seal with your palm, and you'll end up with
milk all over your kitchen). I usually shake vigorously for
about 30 seconds, and that does the trick. Add the
remainder of the water, at the temperature necessary to come out
with a properly warm bottle. 
