Beef calf question Heat stress and loss of tail tip.

My oldest, and by far most impressive of my spring calves was hating the heat yesterday something feirce. About 3-4pm she was lethargic with her tongue hanging out, panting, and drueling. The other calves were hating the heat as well but this one was definatly worse. She was born april 21st. Is always nursing mama, has free access to unlimited fresh water. I made her get up and crowded her to the tank and she did drink quite a bit, she also peed and it was normal looking, not dark yellow. After a good drink she latched onto mama. We were able to catch her and I gave her 3ml of Draxxin, due to the fact she was weezing a bit, and I was thinking she may have a touch of Pnuemonia. Any thoughts. It was 90 degrees and humid with little wind. Also the tip of her tail is gone, instead of her nice little ball of long curly har oon the end, she now has a bloody 1 1/2" bone tip. Is this anything to be concerned about?? Will it grow back? I can only assume that she must have had a mama cow stepping on it and then she must have tried to jump up and run or something and her tail tip stay under the mamas toe. Any body ever have this happen?

Try some Blu-Kote or similar on the tail- don't want any infection or maggots. Heat stress can be pretty tough on animals, and pneumonia is a real possibility. With the cool spring we had, it doesn't need to hit 100 to be a shock to the system, especially with calm air. A bit of penicillin would do no harm.

Sounds to me like a dog/??? has been chasing it and whatever got ahold of its tail. Might keep a close watch around. Dogs will chase a calf "playing" and grab their tails.

Have had a couple over the years get the tips of their tails torn off. I put an emasculator ring for castrating just above where the skin ends, stopped the bleeding and healed real good, spray it down with blucoat too. I dont know if a vet would do it that way, but it worked good for me. I would definately give a antibiotic just in case of pneumonia.

If it were a mature animal, I'd be suspicious of the endophyte found in Fescue ( the heat problems, not the short tail). Is your pasture primarily Fescue? (I have no idea whether it grows where you are). Beings that it's a 3-month old calf, probably something else.........

Everybody else has addressed the tail thing. If signs of dehdration continue,I'd get some Resorb in her for sure. She isn't just loosing water. She's loosing electrolytes and such. You could very easily go out and find her dead if you aren't careful. I know just how she feels. I'm done for the day. I thought the indoor/outdoor must be wrong showing 97 degrees,but the mercury job on the north side of the barn says 95. I've had heatstroke twice. I can't take this crap anymore.

Thanks all for the advice/knowledge. Today she seems much better, even some what tamer. The tail is not bleeding at all anymore, is kinda scabbed over. I will try and find some dressing for it. Maybe she had gotten it wrapped up in some prickly ash and ran out of it. I've had good luck so far with this endeavor, would be really sickening to start losing any now. Boy, when I got that halter rope on that heifer last night to bring her into an area to work on, she let out a small beller and every single mamma cow cam a running for blood. They are very mellow cows, so I was a bit nervous. The big Normande (grandma) got in my face and mood so loud my hair stood up. I smacked her a good one on the nose and she backed right off and mellowed back down. I have really got to get that working chute build, cause I aint no cowboy!. Then later last night close to dark we went out to check on here and here my youngest (8) son forgot to latch the gate on the corral so we fopund 4 steers and my Simmi heifer in the woods along the pole barn. Quite and adventure trying to get them back in with an 8 and 11 year old, the wife and myself. Thank goodness we went out to check again

I'd agree with Vernon,

A dog chasing the calf explains both the tail and the heat exhaustion.

Is there a lot of dust in the area from dirt roads or just dry ground? Sounds to me like touch of pneumonia. Take her temperatur and if it"s high, a dose of LA-200 might be in order.

My vet has seen several cases of pnuemonia in calves on cows this summer. He says its almost unheard of in the summer in nursing calves. As for the tail it could have been steped on or dogs or coyotes will pull the end off when chasing them. Keep an eye on it so it doesn't get infected or infested with maggots. Spraying it with catron 4 will keep the flys away and disefct it.

What sort of minerals do you give your cattle?