Stocking the Welcome Wagon for Pre-weaned Calves

Today’s dedicated calf-raising facilities regularly receive pre-weaned calves that may have traveled from a few miles to a few thousand miles.  Having a plan in place for each load can help ensure that those calves settle in and take off to a healthy start in their new homes.

Receiving questions

How long have the calves been in transit? – Calves that have traveled greater distances are more likely to be dehydrated. For loads that have been on the road for more than 12 hours, expect many of the calves to need hydration, so electrolyte feeding of every calf could be warranted. If the time since their last meal has been close to 24 hours, the first few feedings of milk or milk replacer may need to be limited to allow the digestive system to re-adapt. For example, a 90-pound calf could be started on 2 meals a day of 6 ounces each, using a 12.5-13.5% solution of milk or milk replacer.

How many farms or sources are the calves coming from? – Calves coming from one or two farms probably won’t have a high degree of disease exposure. But if they are commingled from many sources – especially if they have been sourced through sale barns or calf brokers – pathogenic infections post-arrival can be high. Identifying problem pathogens and working with your veterinarian to develop pre-planned preventive treatments are highly warranted.

What time of the day are the calves arriving? – Calves arriving between normal mealtimes (for example, 11:00 a.m. after only a couple of hours in transit) may only need oral electrolytes for dehydrated calves at the time of arrival. Calves that do not appear dehydrated can be settled in without electrolytes, and the entire group can receive its first feeding of milk or milk replacer at the next normal mealtime.

How’s the weather? -- Consider weather and temperature conditions at the birth farm, in-transit, and at the receiving facility. If calves were subjected to heat stress, feeding oral electrolytes to every calf is advised. Severely dehydrated calves may need intravenous or subcutaneous electrolyte therapy. In hot-versus-cool weather, overfeeding milk or milk replacer can lead to more digestive sickness. So again, be sure to ease all heat-stressed calves into their rations gradually.

What’s the trucking schedule? -- It’s important to have plenty of help on hand when a truck arrives, so someone on your team needs to stay in touch with the trucker to confirm the arrival time. If trucks break down or have other delays, workers should be rescheduled so there are enough hands on deck to process the incoming calves.

Arrival tips

Regardless of the distance traveled, here’s a to-do list of the foundational tasks that should be followed when receiving every load of calves: 

• Identify and record the calf’s identity, time of arrival, and source.

• Examine for dehydration and administer electrolytes accordingly.

• Inspect the navel for swelling and hardness (infection).

• Inspect the nose and eyes for discharges (respiratory infections) and ears and head for tilt (ear infection).

• Inspect feet, legs, and body for abnormalities such as knuckled-over hooves, injuries, and bulging hernias.

• Perform additional tasks as defined in facility protocols, such as ear tagging and injections.

• Move calves using gentle handling practices to clean, dry, comfortable housing quarters.

Vaccinations at receiving?

It may seem logical that administering vaccinations at receiving also would support calf health and be an efficient use of time and labor. This can be true with calves shipped short distances and not dehydrated. Many veterinarians will say that animals don’t respond well to vaccines when they are stressed and dehydrated. Vaccination protocols should be developed in collaboration with the operation’s herd veterinarian.