Starting a treatment, day-by-day dosing, finishing the course

Treatments are where the bookkeeping really matters. Right calf, right drug, right dose, right day. Withdrawal period tracked accurately from the last dose, not the first. Course actually finished — many recurrences come from someone quietly stopping antibiotics on day two of a five-day course. Calfmate handles all three with one-tap dose recording, automatic withdrawal tracking, and a daily "what's owed" view.

The two ways to start

• From a flag (the common path) — Health page → find the flagged calf → Treat. The Start treatment screen opens with that calf pre-selected.
• From scratch — Treatments → Start treatment. Or from a calf passport → Treat.

The Start treatment screen

Top section: Choose a protocol — your saved regimens as cards (Pneumonia, Scour 3-day, Lameness). Or tap Custom / one-off for an ad-hoc treatment.

For custom you get a drugs table:

Then:

• Start date — defaults today.
• Session notes — context, vet's reasoning.
• Who is being treated? — calf checklist with "All pens" filter.
• Start treatment.

What starting a treatment actually does

• Creates a treatment session per calf, for every drug in the list.
• Moves each calf's health case to Under treatment.
• The calf's row in Feeding mode goes red (withdrawal active).
• The calf passport shows a "Do not sell" banner.

The daily rhythm

Once a treatment is running, every day you owe a dose:

Option A — from Health page (fastest). Health → Under treatment tile → each calf has Record dose(s). One tap logs every drug in the session for today.

Option B — from Treatments page. Active sessions listed. Tap Record doses given on each.

You'll see Day X / Y progress, withdrawal days left, last dose timestamp.

Already dosed today? Calfmate warns you and asks for confirmation before logging a second dose. Safety net for tired sheds.

Finishing the course

Reaching the last dose automatically completes the session and moves the calf to Recheck.

You can also force-close manually:

• Done — green button, completes the session.
• ✕ (cancel) — cancels. Use when the calf doesn't need the rest of the course, or you're switching drugs.

Withdrawal periods — the bit that saves you from residues

Use the override only for live-export, breeding or pet sales where slaughter isn't the next stop. Tick it deliberately — it's your declaration.

Worked example — a scour case

1. Worker flags calf #234 at AM feed: "Loose, day 1, alert."
2. Manager opens Health → sees the flag → taps Treat.
3. Picks the "Scour 3-day" protocol (already set up).
4. Selects calf #234 → Start treatment.
5. Day 2 morning: Health → Under treatment → Record dose.
6. Day 3 morning: Health → Record dose → course completes automatically.
7. Day 3 evening: Health → Recheck → calf is bright and on feed → Mark healthy.
8. WHP countdown shown on passport until clear.

Four tips worth a coffee

• Set up your common regimens as protocols first (see the protocols guide). One-tap starts beat re-typing dose and duration every time.
• Withdrawal periods come from the Drug library. Get those right once and they apply everywhere.
• Cancelling sends the calf back to Flagged — you still owe a decision.
• Routine vaccines and boosters go through Task protocols, not Treatments. Treatments are for sick or injured calves.

What's not there

• No stock decrement against drug bottles. Calfmate's drug library is templates, not inventory accounting.
• No automated vet SMS. Sharing happens via the calf passport URL.

One thing to take away

A treatment isn't finished when you start it; it's finished when you've recorded the last dose and made the recheck call. Both ends of the course matter as much as the drug in the middle.