Effect of Long Term Administration of Frozen and
Fermented Colostrums of Vaccinated Cows on Performance and
Prevention of Neonatal Calf Diarrhea
M. Pourjafar*, K. Badiei, M. Gh.
Nadalian1 and R. Jafari Jozani2
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Shiraz
University, Shiraz, Iran; 1Faculty of Veterinary
Medicine, Tehran University, Tehran, Iran; 2Faculty of
Veterinary Medicine, Shahrekord University, Shahrekord, Iran *Corresponding Author: pourjafar@shirazu.ac.ir
Abstract
Diarrhea in calves under 30 days of age is one of
the most common syndromes. In order to present a useful and convenient method
for reduction of calf diarrhea, thirty newborn Holstein
calves, with normal parturition, were divided randomly into three equal groups
(T1, T2 and Control (C)). Calves weighing 31-40 kg and more than 40 kg at birth were respectively offered 2 and 2.5 kg of vaccinated cow’s colostrum immediately after birth
and the same amounts 4-6 hours later. All calves were fed milk twice daily. Both
groups T1 and T2, were fed once daily, 0.8-1 kg of respectively thawed and natural fermented
colostrums diluted with 1-1.2 kg cow milk from 2nd to 30th day of
their life. Ten calves of Group C were fed only 1.8-2.5 kg warm milk in each meal everyday. Calves were weighed
at 0, 10th, 20th and 30th day after birth. Incidence and severity of diarrhea
were recorded based on current landmarks. Totally 143 cases of diarrhea
recorded. The cumulative incidence rate of diarrhea was significantly (P<0.05)
lower in group T1 (27.9%) and group T2 (29.35%) when compared with group C
(42.8%). Little differences in average daily weight gain were recorded and
weight gain for 0-30 days, were similar for two treatments. The calves given
colostrum daily were less affected by squirt. Not only incidence but also
severity of diarrhea in groups T1 and T2 was significantly less than in group C
(P<0.05). Although the incidence of scours in group T1 was less than group T2,
this difference was not significant (p>0.05).