Cattle health3 min read
Milk fever in cows: early signs, emergency steps and prevention
A cow that goes down soon after calving may have milk fever, a calcium shortage that can kill within hours. How to recognise it early, what to do, and how to prevent it.
Despite its name, milk fever is not a fever; the body temperature is usually normal or low. It happens when blood calcium falls suddenly around calving, because the udder starts pulling large amounts of calcium into colostrum faster than the cow can supply it. Muscles, including the heart, cannot work without calcium, so the cow becomes weak and goes down.
Which cows are at risk?
- Cows in their third calving or later
- High-yielding cows, especially crossbreds
- Cows that are too fat at calving
- Cows that had milk fever before
- Most cases happen within 72 hours of calving, often in the first day
Signs, stage by stage
| Stage | What you see |
|---|---|
| 1. Early | Restless, shaky, stiff legs, stops eating, may grind teeth; still standing |
| 2. Down | Lying on her chest, cannot get up, head turned towards her flank, cold ears, dry nose, no dung |
| 3. Severe | Lying flat on her side, bloated, barely responsive; death can follow within hours |
The earlier the treatment, the better the chance. A cow treated in stage 1 or 2 usually recovers quickly.
What to do: an emergency
- Call the vet immediately. The standard treatment is calcium given slowly into a vein, and it must be done by a trained person: calcium given too fast can stop the heart.
- While you wait, prop the cow up on her chest with straw bales or sacks, with her head turned to one side. This stops bloat and prevents her from inhaling stomach contents.
- Do not pour drinks or medicine into the mouth of a cow that is down; she may choke.
- Keep her in shade and on soft, dry bedding; turn her from side to side every few hours if she stays down.
- After treatment, follow the vet's advice on oral calcium and on how much to milk for the next day or two.
Prevention starts in the dry period
- Keep cows at a moderate body condition at drying off and calving, neither thin nor fat.
- Watch the dry-cow diet in the last 3 weeks before calving. Too much calcium in this period (for example, a lot of legume fodder or calcium supplements) makes milk fever more likely, because the cow's body "switches off" its own calcium release. Ask your vet or nutritionist to balance the close-up dry cow ration.
- Give good-quality forage and the right minerals; magnesium is important for calcium balance.
- For high-risk cows, ask your vet about oral calcium (gel or bolus) given at calving and again 12–24 hours later.
- Make sure fresh cows eat well after calving: clean water, fresh feed, a comfortable calving area.
Related problems
A cow with milk fever is more likely to have a retained placenta, uterine infection, mastitis and a displaced stomach in the following weeks. Watch her closely and record any problems.
Use your records to predict
In FarmFlows, the Breeding page shows expected calving dates and dry-off dates for every pregnant cow. Mark the high-risk ones (older, high-yielding, or with a history of milk fever) in their notes, prepare in advance, and record any case under Health so you know which cows to watch next time.
Quick checklist
- Watch high-risk cows closely for 3 days after calving
- Shaky, down, head to flank, cold ears = call the vet now
- Prop a down cow on her chest; nothing into the mouth
- IV calcium only by a trained person
- Moderate body condition and a balanced close-up dry-cow ration
- Oral calcium at calving for high-risk cows, as your vet advises