Preventing diarrhoea in calves

Kisii Agricultural Training Center Livestock Officer Caroline Kisera with some of their calfs. [Sammy Omingo, Standard]

Dear Dr Othieno Joseph, I am a dairy farmer from Bukembe in Bungoma County. My three cows have calves, and all the calves recently had bad diarrhoea. Luckily, they are healed. What can I do to prevent such things in the future? [Dennis Sikolia Bukembe]

Thanks, Dennis, for your question. You are lucky to have not lost your calves because of diarrhoea. Diarrhoea can be fatal to calves as it results in the loss of body electrolytes, and death can easily occur. My experience is that diarrhoea is a result of poor animal husbandry. Where bucket feeding is exercised, you will either find that the farmhand did not wash the bucket well or they did not wash their hands while giving the milk, resulting in contamination.