These calves seem to have avoided flies and ticks.
Calves can lose hair on their legs and ears for a number of reasons. External factors such as flies, ticks and mites can cause hair loss. Dietary causes also can lead to hair loss. Based on the specific spots where the loss is occurring, most farmers rule out mites and ticks before taking the calf to the vet or making any major dietary changes for the animal.
Mites
Mites are tiny microscopic creatures that live on the skin of animals, causing them to scratch and make themselves bald. When the skin is broken the mites crawl inside and lay eggs, causing more of a problem for the calf. This process results in scabies, followed by chorioptes and then mange.
Scabies
You must contact the disease-control authorities if your calf contracts scabies. Scabies can weaken your calf and make it susceptible to all kinds of other diseases as well.
Ticks
If your calf has ticks, it’s also very possible it will have a more serious condition known as Lyme Disease, which transfers a virus through the tick to the calf’s blood. If ticks are prevalent in your area you should get your calf vaccinated for Lyme Disease.
Treatment for External Factors
If flies are the cause of the hair loss, you can install back-rubbers in the areas where the calf spends most of its time. Back-rubbers let your calf treat itself while resting and scratching. Dust bags are an effective treatment if the calf can pass under them daily to get to water or minerals. Feed additives target flies breeding in fresh animal manure. High-pressure sprays can treat your calf thoroughly and at a low cost. Insecticide-impregnated cattle ear tags release small amounts of an insecticide over the animal during grooming or rubbing. Pour-on insecticides are ready-to-use formulations that are applied in measured doses to animals based upon body weight.
If ticks are the cause, you need all the above to prevent infestation. Ticks are hard to control, especially in brushy wooded areas where they like to live.
If the problem is lice, use pour-ons and sprays during autumn and early winter when lice thrive on cattle. During the spring, when the calf sheds, the lice also will shed. Repeat treatment every three weeks until the calf begins shedding.
If mites are causing the hair loss, get a vaccine or use a pour-on product to control the infestations. A sure sign of mites is a thickening of the skin along with hair loss. Treat your calf every two to three weeks to effectively control the pests.
Dietary Factor
Too much calcium in the calf’s blood can also cause it to lose hair on its legs and ears. Calcium blocks zinc absorption, ultimately leading to hair loss. If the calf shows signs of hair loss, try decreasing the amount of calcium intake.
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