Care of New Born Calf
Manita Dangi1*, Akant2, Swati Thakur3
College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, LUVAS, Hisar, Haryana, India
First hour after birth is very crucial for the new born animal. Proper care and management during this time can decrease incidence of many calf diseases and mortality. During intrauterine life, the fetus is nursed entirely by the dam. At birth, the maternal connections are severed due to rupture of umbilical cord resulting in cessation of nutrient and oxygen supply to fetus.
Various measures can be taken to reduce new-born mortality:
1.To initiate respiration:
- Remove mucus from the nostril and mouth with the help of fingers.
- Draw out the tongue to and fro.
- Blow air into the nostrils.
- Vigorously rub the chest with a gunny bag or towel. This tactile stimulus may stimulate respiration.
- Hold the hind legs of newborn and swing backward and forward resulting in discharge of copious quantity of fluid or mucus from the larger bronchi, throat and nose.
- Pinch the foetal nose.
- Tickling the nasal mucosa with straw.
- If all the above methods fail, respiration can be stimulated by quickly giving 40-100mg Doxapram hydrochloride to the calf by intravenous injection or sub -lingual injection.
- If respiration is not started even after administration of Doxapram hydrochloride but cardiac function is present, then artificial respiration should be attempted.
- The upper chest wall is raised and lowered, holding it by the humerus and the last rib. This may help to achieve the strong negative intrathoracic pressure required for the first breath. (Note: excessive pressure should not be applied externally to the ribs to avoid the possibility of fracture or damage of underlying organs such as lungs and liver.
- If spontaneous breathing still fails to occur, an attempt may be made if equipment is available to intubate the calf and provide positive pressure ventilation.
2.Prevention of umbilical infection: lf the umbilical cord is not ruptured, it should be ligated at about 2 inches from the umbilicus and severed with scissors, and the stump should be cleaned with antiseptic. The navel cord should not be tied but allowed to drain if bleeding is not so profused.
To this stump, tincture iodine should be applied. The ligation should be removed within 12 – 24 hours.
3. Thermo-regulation: Thermo-regulation in the newborn can be improved in a number of ways:
- Ensure that there is adequate milk intake
- Arrange the birth to occur in a thermally neutral environment as far as possible
- New born should be placed in an environmental temperature of 30-33oC for the first 24 hours, which can be reduced to 26-30oC by 3 days
- The new born’s coat should be adequately and quickly dried
- Suitable jacket should be provided in winter
Note: The new born has little subcutaneous fat and hence insulation is poor
4.Management of acidosis: The fetus at the time of a normal birth will usually have a mild metabolic and respiratory acidosis.
- Dystocia is likely to cause a severe respiratory and metabolic acidosis
- Severe acidosis has an adverse effect on both respiratory and cardiac function
- Signs of acidosis:
- Abdominal breathing
- Low heart rate
- Prolonged jugular filling time
- Poor body muscle tone
- Absence of pedal reflex
- Time to attain sternal recumbency (T-SR) is greater than 15 minutes
Note: A T-SR of >15 minutes is an ominous sign of severe acidosis
- If there is no sign of spontaneous improvement, give 250-500 ml of 4.2% sodium bicarbonate by slow intravenous injection
5.Colostrum feeding: The young one should get first colostrum within first two hours after birth.
- In case colostrum is not available, 200-500 ml of dam’s blood or serum should be injected subcutaneously to young one of large animal and in smaller animals 20-100 ml to their young one (s) animal.
6.Milk feeding: The rate of milk feeding should be about 10% of the calf’s weight per day up to a maximum of 5-6 lt/day.
7.Regular vaccination
8.Dehorn the calf at an early age, preferably within 15 days
9.Inspection of the natural orifices: The new-born should be examined carefully to ascertain that all the natural orifices are patent and if not, a timely surgical intervention is necessary.
10.Retained meconium: The meconium may be retained sometimes. In such cases, the newborn shows colic symptoms and lack of appetite.
11.The enema of saline, soap and water or glycerine or castor-oil should be given in this condition
12.Persistent urachus: It is characterized by continuous dribbling of urine through urachus.
13.Cauterize the affected part with tincture iodine
14. Diseases of the newborn:
- White scour: It is commonly known as calf diarrhoea, caused by bacteria present in the intestinal tract. It is very common in suckling calves during first weeks after birth. Calf diarrhoea is encouraged by late feeding of colostrumto the newborn calf, overcrowding of calves in pens, dirty environment and damp housing, poor hygiene in general and bad feeding practice particularly abrupt overfeeding with milk. Signs of Calf white scours includes, bad smelling diarrhoea (may be froathy), anorexia, fever, animal becomes dull and dehydrated. The most important treatment, irrespective of the cause of the diarrhoea, is immediate replacement of the fluid, minerals and energy loss. Mixture of 5 tablespoons of sugar or honey and 1 tablespoon of salt with 2 litres of clean water (boil water and let it cool down before mixing) can be given in small portions. Assist the calf to drink colostrumas early as possible after birth for prevention of calf scour. Taking care of good hygiene in calf pen is also a measure for preventing the disease.
- Navel ill or Joint ill: In newborn calves, navel ill infect the umbilical cord. Causative agents includes many different bacteria (Corynebacterium, Streptococcus, Staphylococcus, Actinomyces) and dirty environment is a predisposing cause. The umbilical cord comes into contact with bacteria that thrive in dirty barns as soon as the calf has been born. The infection starts from umbilical cord and then, spreads via the blood in the whole body. Within few days, bacteria multiply and cause disease after settling in different parts of the body. In most calves, the bacteria will settle in the joints, which leads to joint ill, usually affecting the large joints of the legs. Signs are swelling of joints with pus. Affected calves lose appetite and are reluctant to stand up or move. The navel is also swollen with pus. In some calves, the bacteria may settle in the liver or in the brain. In such cases, the calf will normally die. Navel ill / joint ill does not respond very well to antibiotic injection, because the drug does not penetrate effectively into the joints. Very early treatment, when the navel is hot but the joints are not yet swollen is more successful. It can be prevented by dipping the umbilical cord into iodine immediately after birth to prevent bacteria from entering it. Once the umbilical cord has dried up, bacteria can no longer use it as an entry into the body. Provide clean bedding for the cow to give birth to prevent navel ill.
- Calf diphtheria (Nacrobacilliosis): There are two forms of calf diphtheria. The most common is an acute oral (mouth) infection, usually seen in calves less than 3 months old. The second form is usually seen in older calves and affects the larynx (or voice-box). Both forms are caused by the bacteria Fusobacterium necrophorum, which also causes foul in the foot and liver abscesses in older cattle. Signs includes coughing; loss of appetite and depression; difficulty in breathing, chewing and swallowing; swollen pharyngeal region; deep ulcers on the tongue, palate and inside of cheeks. Early prompt treatment is important as early treatment is much more effective. Separate the infected animals and isolate them. Antibiotics and pain killers are effective treatment in most cases. Animals are closely confined and the spread of this infectious disease can be prevented by thoroughly cleaning and disinfecting of all calf feeders. Young calves must be examined daily to identify early stages of the disease.
- Calf pneumonia: Pneumonia is a common disease of weaned calves and is the main cause of mortality and reduced growth rates (stunting) in weaner calves. It is mostly associated with poor immunity,stress, overcrowding, poor feeding and bad housing. Different causative agents of respiratory infections in calves include viruses, bacteria and mycoplasma. Discharge from the nose with rapid breathing and cough are common signs of pneumonia. In very acute cases of pneumonia, there can be death within less than 3 days.
Therefore, first few hours after birth of young ones are very important for their survival and proper growth. Proper care and management during this time can decrease incidence of many diseases of the new born as well as their mortality.
