54. The most important elements of calf care in the perinatal period Flashcards
Ethiology of calves?
Etiology of calves
- Calf ≠ miniature adult cattle
- Different behaviour
- Completely different housing
- Specific needs
- Spends most of the day resting
- Main instinct: suckling ->assessment of overall health
- Very social, curious animals -> housing
- Prey animal, when cornered, tries to run/back away -> fixation
Perinatal period?
Perinatal period
• Very important time period!
o Neonate animal: until 2 weeks old
o Perinatal period: from around birth to 48-72 h
o Postnatal period: until weaning
• Mortality:
o Perinatal: 5-10%
§ Most perinatal deaths happen in the first 1 hour
o Postnatal: 4-5%
Examination of newborn calf?
Examination of a new-born calf
• Is it stillborn? If so, assess the age of the fetus
• Any congenital defects?
• Trauma: usually happens if too much force was used for extraction
o Fractured ribs, vertebrae
o Intractranial haemorrhage
o Liver rupture
o Edema
o Indirect: impairment of fetal circulation
§ In case of prolonged parturition, the pressure on the umbilical cord reduces blood flow ->
severe acidosis, possibly death results
Hypoxia?
Hypoxia
• Prolonged parturition, impairment of fetal circulation -> decreased blood flow ->acidosis, hypoxaemia,
hypercapnia
• Indicating signs
o Meconium staining on fur X
o Low vitality
• Assesment: Modified Apgar score
o The original Apgar score is used in human newborns
Calf scoring system?
Neonatal care? Resuscitation?
Neonatal care/Resuscitation
• Stimulation of breathing is the most important step
o Cleaning nose/mouth
o Rubbing chest
§ Imitates the mothers licking
o Spilling cold water on their heads
o Putting a straw in their nose
o Hanging them upside down
• Assisted breathing
o If spontane breathing doesn’t commence, assisted breathing can help
o Extending and flexing the front legs will expand and deflate the chest
• No heartbeat: CPR
o 120 beats/min
Thermoregulation?
Thermoregulation
- Relatively good thermoregulation even as newborns (vs lambs, piglets)
- Can resist/overcome the results of severe cold temperatures
- BUT: in the case of dystocia/premature calves, the thermoregulation can be compromised
o Doxapram: in case of neonatal asphyxia (40-100 mg/animal)
• They need protection against:
o Wet surroundings (weather, contaminated straw)
o Wind
Navel?
Navel
• Severe bleeding can occur->tying off
o Newborns can bleed out from the navel, or the blood loss can weaken them and increase the risk of
disease later
• Disinfection!
o Iodine solution
o Antibiotic spray
• Sepsis originating from from the navel
o Often deadly, if untreated
o Can cause long-term complications
• Check for hernia
o Hereditary in cattle
o May need surgical correction
o Some animals live with a small hernia their whole life
Colostrum?
Colostrum
• FTPI= failure of passive transfer of immunity
o The calf will be at an increased risk of disease in the first few weeks of its life, until their own
immune system starts developing
• ‘Gut Closure’ : 8—24 h
o In the first few hours after birth, immunglobulins can be absorbed from the gastrointestinal system
of the calf
o From hour 8, the GI system gradually loses this function, and starts to digest the immunglobulins as
proteins
o Around hour 24, this phenomenon completely stops; from this time, colostrum only has a local
effect (can improve gut health)
• ~4 l (10% BW) colostrum in should be given in the first 24 hours
o As soon as possible; a general rule of thumb is giving 2 liters in the first 2 hours of life (esy to
remembers, so farmers can impliment it easily
Ways of feeding colostrum?
Control of colostrum feeding?
Control of colostrum feeding
• Quality of colostrum (>50 g/l IgG): can be measured with many devices
o Colostrometer
o Refractometer
o Brix refractometer (>22%)
• Calf blood serum IgG/total protein
o Laboratory tests
o Measuring TP with refractometer
