Does giving dairy calves with diarrhoea a combination of milk and rehydration fluids result in a faster recovery

### Bottom line One of your dairy clients calls you as he is worried about a few calves starting to scour in the preweaned calf shed. After you have discussed the possible causes of diarrhoea and preventive measures, the farmer asks you whether he should keep feeding milk to these calves or if oral rehydration fluids (electrolytes) alone will be sufficient. He is worried the milk will ‘feed the scour’ and has received conflicting advice. You advise him to keep feeding milk as well as oral rehydration fluids, but you wonder whether there is any evidence that calves fed milk recover faster than calves that are offered oral rehydration fluids alone. In [dairy calves with diarrhoea] does [feeding milk and rehydration fluids compared with rehydration fluids alone] lead to a [faster recovery time]? The search strategy can be viewed at https://bestbetsforvets.org/bet/518, and is also available as a supplement to this article on Vet Record ’s website at https://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/187/9/358 ### Supplementary data [vetrecm4031supp001.docx] Search last performed: 29 September 2020 As well …