Nutritional Factors in Calf Diarrhea

The influence of various components of milk-type diets on consistency of feces has been evaluated. Calves were fed modified milk (whole or skimmilk) diets to determine the effects of fat, lactose, minerals, and curd formation, individually and in all possible combinations. The presence of milk fat (3%) reduced diarrhea. Increasing the mineral content of the milk to four times normal by addition of simulated whey ash produced moderate diarrhea; increasing lactose to twice normal increased diarrhea to a lesser extent. The prevention of curd formation with sodium citrate did not increase the incidence of diarrhea. The response to minerals may involve additional factors since, under slightly different conditions in this study, the mineral content of milk diets was increased to ten times normal without causing diarrhea.