Monday, May 21, 2012

Bottle feeding calves milk replacer



Two of the main concerns when bottle feeding calves milk replacer is  1) how often 2) how much. These are the most important factors because every aspect of calf’s health can depend on it. 

How often is bottle feeding calves milk replacer done? Should the calf be bottle fed twice a day or should the calf be bottle fed more than that like three to four times a day?



When bottle feeding calves milk replacer it should be done twice a day only. Once in the morning and then again in the evening. Ideally you would want it to be every 12 hours apart but this is not always possible. If you were bottle feeding calves milk replacer at 6 am and 6 pm great, but if do to available time it was 6 am and 7pm that would be Ok. You just want to get the feeding times as close to 12 hours apart as you can.

How much when bottle feeding calves milk replacer?

In general a 50 to 100 pound calf at birth to to week old can be fed 2 4 pint bottles a day. It has been my experience with bottle feeding calves milk replacer for numerous of years and almost every different breed type from milk stock to beef breeds that 1 four pint bottle twice a day is ideal for every calf.
Of the hundreds of calf that I have bottle fed, I have only came across two that required more milk than the 4 pint bottle at each feeding and less than 6% of required less. With bottle feeding calves milk replacer less than 4 pints at a time is easy to know, the calf will only suck what it needs to be full.

Calf starter feeds should always be fed along with milk replacer. It improves the heath by limiting bacteria growth that can fed off the milk replacer.

When bottle feeding calves milk replacer you do not increase the amount of milk replacer fed as the calf grows. The calf adjust it’s needs by eating more starter feed. As the calf grows you place more solid feed for the calf to eat.

25 comments:

  1. This was very helpful thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you going to try it

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you so much. Can I let it have hay. It likes the dry hay but not the Producers Pride calf starter and it needs roughage because it has the scours.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I have a 1 week old that is possibly blind, and has yet to find the starter feed. Should I introduce it by hand? I've also been told by one man that 4 pints is too much for him, and he is only getting 4 pints total per day. While another man says he needs more. Help!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I wouldn't get serious about the starter until 4 -6 weeks old. Is the eyes cloudy or milky looking? 4 pints a day is ok for now but do try to increase it little by little the next few weeks. The goal should be the 2 feeding a day of 4 pints. The eyes do concern me sign of sinus infection and needs antibiotics if they have a cloudy half like in the bottom.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I have a almost 2 week old calf she was a twin. The mom cleaned her and feed her for two days then left her. She is very spunky and doing very well as of today but i feed her 4 pints twice a day and she acts like she is still hungary. Do i let her eat what she wants. We started giving her a extra 2 pints about 3 hours after her evening feed is that wrong? Please help to help me fill her belly. When do we start starter feeds..... She is red angus...... Thank You

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The extra 2 pints 3 hours later is ok you can go ahead with the starter feed but it may be a few weeks before she really starts eating it and I always have hay out.

      Delete
    2. According to the OSU extension here on OK. A heifer that was a twin is almost always sterile. High 90% according to them

      Delete
  7. I bought 2 bottle calfs yesterday the guy at tbe dairy said one was 2 days old the other being 3 days old he has only been feeding once a day i went to feed this morning and one wouldnt drink at all and the other only tookabout a pint i dont know how to go about getting the one to take to feeding im open to all suggestions i would hate to loose them i have bottle fed befo re but have not ran across this before.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hello Mr. Loos,
    I have a week old calf that is blind,looking at him he looks crossed eyed, the black of the eye are in the corner of the socket, by corner I referring to bottom closest to nose, that's the best I can describe it so you can get an idea of what it looks like. His mother wont let him suckle so I put her in shoot and milk her, then feed it to him, or put him up to teets and place it in his mouth and watch his tail curl and twist, that way I know he is getting milk.
    Today (05/09/17) I wanna put him on replacer milk. Can you suggest one to get and also your thoughts on his eyes.

    thanks
    Sig.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sounds like a development problem with the eyes, it can improve some with time. As long as he has some sight even limited can still grow and get around and worth the time. With the eye sight problem going with bottle feeding is good ideal, just because you would be unsure of his ability in open pasture. I like Manna Pro Suckle for a milk replacer but Cargil Snowflake works great too.

      Delete
    2. My 2 week old heifer has the exact same eye issue! I think her 3rd eyelids are stuck open. My vet is coming Wed so will be curious to see what he says!

      Delete
  9. Interesting, I wonder if it is some breed related.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Would you give your calf a bottle of water in the afternoon in between feedings? Also pudding type poop is pretty normal correct??

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No I never feed water in a bottle, but always have water out to get when they want. The poo should be firmer than pudding.

      Delete
  11. I have two 5 day old calfs and they are refusing the bottle. We have tubed the biggest one to get something into his stomach. The smaller one knows how to suck but have stop sucking. Do you have any suggestions?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Probably coming down with something how's their poo looking?

      Delete
  12. I have a calf that is one wk old born at 120 lbs he gets 6 pints twice a day and still hungry can I feed him more milk replacer or how do I keep him full at at least get him full?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Go ahead put calf starter feed out. May take him a week or so to really eat it but don't increase the milk. It is getting the right amount for his size.

      Delete
  13. My calf is 4 weeks old and she has a clear liquids running from her eyes what does that mean and is there anything I can give her for that

    ReplyDelete
  14. I feed my calf twice a day and she has water in her stall but I haven't noticed her drinking out of it? Will she learn how she's a week and a half old I believe

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. She right now doesn't want the water,she is totally wanting milk.
      I've raised a few calf's on the milk replacer and most times after a month or so I would give a half bottle of water or what they would take. Sometimes I would have to force the nipple in their mouth and squeeze the water in, but once they got use to the bottle they would knock me down to get to the bottle..after about 6 weeks I would start easing them on to sweet feed..hope that helps

      Delete
  15. Reading your article was really helpful for my own business. Especially I was confused before reading this article how often is bottle feeding calves milk replacer done?. Now I am quite clear. Very well written and worth reading this article.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Reading your article was really helpful for my own business. Especially I was confused before reading this article bottle feeding calves milk replacer?. Now I am quite clear. Very well written and worth reading this article

    ReplyDelete