Calf sudden death

patsy_mccabe

Relative found one of his bucket reared heifer calves dead this morning. Approx 6 weeks old.

Drank fine last night. No scour or any signs of pneumonia. Calves are in a straw bedded shed. She was the best calf of the lot. I've never seen it happen here.

Any ideas? Should he be concerned for the other calves?

Base price

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058289975/calf-sudden-death

No symptoms of anything? Would there old lead based paint on any metal work.

DBK1

Something similar happened here one time, 30 plus years ago, turned out to be a ball of chewed up twine in his stomach.

patsy_mccabe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120406635#Comment_120406635

No symptoms. Pen is basically 2 galvanised gates and blockwork on 2 other sides. I dehorned them for him about a week ago.

Dunedin

Get a PM done on him just to see if anything shows up that he could watch out for in the others

moneyheer

Same happened here had good few losses this got post mortem done. Lab said it was crypto. Still don't think it was.

Lime Tree Farm

A similar case here, 7 week old LM calf in 2017.

PM Findings: perforated abomasal ulcer.

tanko

Maybe a twisted gut, get the knackery to open him up and have a look inside, they might have some idea.

I wouldn’t be concerned about the others unless it happens again.

Lime Tree Farm

I looked up the 2017 birth record, to see that he was stomach tubed 2 litres beestings, now wondering if the tube entry caused some damage

Anto_Meath

I have had a few over the years like that, I just couldn't figure out what caused it, calf fine one evening then you go out the next morning to find 1 dead, (usually one of the best ones) . Kennels have nearly always put it down to a twisted gut. I wonder how I seem get a twisted gut every year others don't. Friend of mine said to me last year I should do them with the black leg vaccination when I de-horn them. He said he was have the same issue for years but for the last 5 years he has vaccinated them at under a month and has had no issues, I am think of doing it this year. Going to discuss it with my vet soon.

patsy_mccabe

Ya. the black leg vaccine would cover the clostridial diseases.

1373

If it was a twisted gut , you'd get a good idea from the eyes. The eyes get sunk very quickly in nearly all twisting gut . I've had a few over the years and did pm on a few . Another time I was shaking straw out in a pen of 10 calves, as they jumped around , one just dropped dead , his heart was completely stopped as he hit the ground.

Limestone Cowboy

I seen a month old calf to just drop dead in front of me a few years ago. There was a few calves running and playing in the field and it just dropped like it was shot mid sprint. She was sucking the cow only a few minutes before that. Really sudden. I assume it was something to do with the heart.

Injuryprone

I had one like that 5 or so years ago. Unexplained. Then the next year I looked into the shed for no reason as I was doing my nightly calving check and there was a very similarly aged calf thrown down with colic.

Would've definitely been dead of he was there til the morning so that's what I put down the previous unexplained death to.

So with the colic, any changes to the diet?

Lime Tree Farm

I read an article on it yesterday, not allowed copy the link. Basically it was saying that not fully thawed colostrum stomach tubed causes clostridial disease in young calves. Our one that died 2017 had been stomach tubed thawed colostrum.

patsy_mccabe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120409984#Comment_120409984

I don't know if there was a change to the diet. He was fed up enough with losing the calf without me questioning him.

GNWoodd

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120410345#Comment_120410345

Happened to me a few years ago . Found dead out in field in the morning , fine the evening before . Was putting it down in my head to blackleg but got him PM’d . Heart issue that had been there for some time as scar tissue had built up around where the anomaly was .