calf growth?

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Ohioteerchick

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Stupid question but, I've heard a few differnt things about this and wasn't for sure, a friend of mine has a calf who lost its mother, and they've been bottle feeding it, its a really nice calf but someone said I won't gain as well as if it were on the mothers milk.

So will the calf turn out as well since it was on the bottle?
 

the angus111

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ITS NOT A STUPID QUESTION,WE WEAN THESE CALVES SO EARLY ANYMORE AND START THEM ON FEED AT SUCH A EARLY AGE THAT I AM SURE IT TAKES LONGER TO CATCH UP, BUT IMO IF THE GREAT GENETICS ARE THERE,THEN THEY WILL OVERCOME AND PERFORM.I GUESS EACH SITUATION WILL BE DIFFERENT.HERE IS SOMEBODY A REARCH PROJECT.I AM SURE RESEARCH HAS ALREADY BEEN DONE. RUSTY
 

cowcrazy

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We have raised at at least 50 bottle babies, and the only drawback to feeding a bottle is that the calf seems to bet a big belly, almost as if they are wormy. 
 

LN

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I could turn out just as good as the others further down the road, but when they're young they have that potbelly dogie look. I would venture to say that a bottle baby probably won't be a good show animal.
 

cracehole

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well this may be a liitle off topic but i have been looking for a place to ask this and this one seemed to fit the best even though it still doesnt fit perfectaly.        Well any way the thing of it is, is about transfering your future club calf embryo into a holstein or some other dairy breed so then the calf will have two clubby genetic parents and a dairy birth mother. That way the calf will have a ton of rich milk every day giving you a huge calf.          What do you guys think
 

Jill

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Not true, we had 3 bottle babies this year and you couldn't walk through the calves and tell me which ones they were.  The trick in getting them to turn out is to feed them less more times a day, we start out feeding 4 bottles a day and introduce feed the 2nd week, the sooner you can get them eating feed the better your chances are of them turning out.  The down side to bottle babies is that they are BIG babies!  I can't walk in the pen without having them right on top of me and that gets to be a pain.  Good luck and I hope your calf turns out for your friend
 

BCCC

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M&M Farms said:
well this may be a liitle off topic but i have been looking for a place to ask this and this one seemed to fit the best even though it still doesnt fit perfectaly.        Well any way the thing of it is, is about transfering your future club calf embryo into a holstein or some other dairy breed so then the calf will have two clubby genetic parents and a dairy birth mother. That way the calf will have a ton of rich milk every day giving you a huge calf.          What do you guys think
Your calves will also have the $hits like no tomarrow, with that much milk.
 

cowcrazy

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We have a dairy cow and tried putting an embryo in, but she did not take.  I have heard that dairy cows are a little more difficult to put them in and be successful.  You might have better luck.  If it does take, that calf will grow really well getting all that milk!
 

Cattledog

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cowcrazy said:
We have a dairy cow and tried putting an embryo in, but she did not take.  I have heard that dairy cows are a little more difficult to put them in and be successful.  You might have better luck.  If it does take, that calf will grow really well getting all that milk!

We had some holstein cows that we used to put embryos in and I can honestly tell you that I will never mess with those cattle ever again.  They were the dumbest cows I have ever seen! They tore up fence, gates...you name it.  The actuall best recip cows I have ever had were half blood Simmental X Angus.  They took the embryos and milked very well.  Dispositions were pretty good too.
 

DLD

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What Jill says is right, but the other key to avoiding the big bellies and getting a more natural look and better growth is to be sure to use a milk based milk replacer.  Most are soy based, and the belly is the big side effect of that.  Real milk based replacer will be more expensive and harder to find, but it's very much worth the difference if you think the calf might have the potential to be special.  I believe Vigor Tone makes a milk based replacer, and I think there are others, too.
 

cracehole

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Well actually we dont do that even though we own holsteins and brown swiss for show        It was an idea thats all
 

knabe

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cowcrazy said:
We have a dairy cow and tried putting an embryo in, but she did not take.  I have heard that dairy cows are a little more difficult to put them in and be successful.  You might have better luck.  If it does take, that calf will grow really well getting all that milk!

not only that, but you have a higher risk for johne's as it is far more common in dairy cattle.
 
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