Content
Diarrhea in cows after calving is so common that many owners consider it normal. Of course this is not true. Digestive disorders should not be related to the birth of offspring, otherwise female animals would not survive in nature.
Why does a cow have diarrhea after calving?
The causes of diarrhea in a cow after calving can be infectious or caused by metabolic disorders:
- ketosis;
- acidosis;
- alkalosis;
- eating the placenta;
- postpartum sepsis;
- enteritis;
- helminthiases;
- allergy;
- hormonal surge.
It is quite easy to disrupt a cow's digestion. When calving, the queen can eat the released placenta. While this is normal for carnivorous mammals, the placenta can cause severe stomach upset in herbivores. This is to a large extent due to the fact that there are a lot of hormones in the tissues of the child's place. And the stomach of herbivores is not adapted to eating large amounts of animal protein.
Also, according to the observations of livestock breeders, diarrhea can occur after drinking sweet water to a cow. Here the owner finds himself between a rock and a hard place. It is recommended to drink sugar dissolved in water to prevent postpartum paresis.But a large amount of easily digestible carbohydrates provokes rumen acidosis. As a result, the cow develops diarrhea after calving. But it’s not always possible to guess the dosage of sugar syrup in order to “walk along the razor’s edge.”
Why is diarrhea dangerous in a cow after calving?
Immediately after the birth of a calf, a cow needs a lot of fluid: she needs not only to “provide” water to her own soft tissues, but also to feed the baby milk. That is why, after the birth of offspring, it is recommended that any pets be given warm water first.
Diarrhea, especially severe, dehydrates the body. As a result, the uterus will not have enough moisture either to produce milk for the calf or for its own needs. A baby left without food is not so bad if the owner has other dairy cows. But with severe dehydration, animals die, and the result of diarrhea can be the death of livestock.
Since diarrhea is the result of disruption of the gastrointestinal tract, in addition to loss of moisture, pathogenic microflora begins to develop in the intestines.
What to do if a cow has diarrhea after calving
Considering that with diarrhea, dehydration occurs very quickly, it is necessary to treat diarrhea in a cow after calving when the first signs of the disease appear. There is no point in waiting for everything to suddenly work out on its own. First of all, all succulent and concentrated feeds are excluded from the cow’s diet, leaving only hay.
With diarrhea, most often only symptomatic therapy is possible, since it is necessary to treat the cause, not the symptom. But eliminating the symptom also alleviates the cow’s condition and contributes to her recovery.Diarrhea after calving can be treated with medications or traditional methods. The first is more reliable, the second is cheaper and often more accessible.
In some cases, enzymes can help control post-calving diarrhea, but sometimes other remedies are needed
Drug treatment of diarrhea in cows after calving
It makes sense to use antibiotics for diarrhea if they are aimed at treating the underlying disease. To regulate the proliferation of pathogenic bacteria, drugs are used only in cases of advanced diarrhea, when dysbacteriosis has already begun. To destroy harmful microflora in the gastrointestinal tract, antibiotics of the tetracycline group are mainly used. Sulfa drugs can also be used. But in any case, the dosage must be set by a veterinarian. Especially considering that the cow after calving must feed the newborn.
For symptomatic assistance to a cow with diarrhea, use:
- electrolytes;
- saline;
- glucose solution;
- drugs that slow down peristalsis;
- enzymes;
- probiotics.
Electrolytes allow you to restore the water-salt balance, which is disturbed by profuse diarrhea. They are produced in the form of powders that need to be dissolved in water. They have a rather complex composition, and it is impossible to prepare the electrolyte yourself. Not everyone may have sachets of the finished drug on hand.
As a first approximation, the electrolyte can be replaced with a solution of ordinary table salt at a concentration of 0.9%. This is the concentration of non-sterile saline solution. You can’t drip into a vein, but you can forcefully drink 2 liters.
Sorbents are used to remove and bind toxins formed in the intestines.The most commonly used are activated carbon and aluminum oxide. The most affordable drug is coal.
Enzyme preparations are used in complex treatment in case of gland dysfunction. To restore beneficial intestinal microflora, cows are given probiotics. However, there are opposing opinions about these drugs:
- a probiotic is necessary for diarrhea;
- Intestinal bacteria reproduce well on their own.
In any case, there will definitely be no harm from probiotics. But they usually cannot achieve a visible effect.
Probiotics help restore gastrointestinal microflora after diarrhea
Folk remedies
To prepare a decoction for diarrhea use:
- rice;
- oak bark;
- pharmaceutical chamomile;
- marshmallow root;
- tansy;
- sagebrush;
- elecampane;
- St. John's wort.
When giving St. John's wort, you need to take into account that the grass is not called that for nothing. In large quantities it is poisonous. Chamomile is brewed when there is a suspicion of a bacteriological cause of diarrhea.
The most accessible and least dangerous of herbal preparations are oak bark and rice. The latter belongs to the category of products whose decoction can be given in any quantity without fear of overdose. For 10 liters of water you will need 1 kg of rice, which will need to be boiled. The cooled broth should be drunk 1.5-2 liters every 2-3 hours. At the end, you can feed the remaining grounds if the cow begins to eat it.
A large amount of tannins in oak bark can cause poisoning, so the concentration of the infusion should not be high. For 10 liters of water, 0.5 kg of bark will be enough.It is simmered over low heat for 30 minutes. Then cool and dilute the broth with an equal amount of water. You can store it for 2-3 days, but in a cool place.
If you have dried herbs such as chamomile, tansy, St. John's wort and others in stock, you can simply add them to the cow's hay. But the advantage of decoctions is the supply of additional fluid needed after calving.
Preventive actions
The main preventive measures are a proper, high-quality diet and timely deworming. To prevent digestive upset, cows should be given only good-quality feed: without mold and poisonous plants.
A lack of microelements often causes a perversion of appetite in cows, and the consumption of not entirely edible substances causes diarrhea. Properly balancing your diet with vitamins and minerals will help avoid this problem.
Since diarrhea can be infectious, it is necessary to comply with the vaccination schedule and sanitary hygiene of the premises for keeping pregnant cows. Keeping bedding clean also helps prevent post-calving diarrhea.
Clean bedding and high-quality food greatly reduce the likelihood of developing diarrhea
Conclusion
Diarrhea in a cow after calving is not at all a common occurrence. It can be avoided if you follow the rules for keeping and feeding cattle.
