Diarrhea is a common disease in livestock and poultry, especially in newborns. It occurs in many diseases and is not itself a specific disease. It is caused by a few single specific micro-organisms or combined micro-organisms which include: Escherichia coli, Salmonellae, Viruses and Protozoa. This form of diarrhea is transmitted via the environment where the animal is kept and the calves become exposed to these organisms at early age. Through fecal droppings, from mature cattle, calves or other species of animals' pathogens contaminate the environment. Only when the environmental load of the organisms' increases to high levels, the calves can become infected. However, the disease is more serious in intensive than extensive system.
A brief outline of the infectious organisms causing diarrhea is as follows:

Most of the organisms which cause the infection are capable of damaging the intestinal wall. They cause hence reduced absorption of the fluids taken by the calf resulting into diarrhea which can be blood stained.
The infected calves become dehydrated. They become weak, lose appetite, get a low body temperature (hypothermia) and heart failure. The eyes become conspicuously sunken and are dull looking with the skin becoming dry.

Is common and found in large numbers in the intestines of all animals including adult and young calves.

E. coli cause acute diarrhea lasting one to four days. The calves become depressed, weak and lack appetite. There may be a high fever at the initial stages of development then the temperature drops below normal and the calf may die.

There are many different species of Salmonella that can infect and cause severe disease in young calves with bloody stained diarrhea. The most common are: Salmonella typhirium and Salmonella dublin. Outbreaks of salmonellosis can cause death of the infected calves. Those that survive may take several weeks to recover.

These organisms cause diarrhea with blood stains (dysentery) often with abdominal pains and death within twenty four hours.

These viruses invade the intestinal lining and are the cause of profuse diarrhea in calves.

The diarrhea caused by these organisms tends to persist for several weeks and the severity depend on the level of infection. The infection is normally mild and animals tend to recover satisfactorily.

These parasites are major cause of diarrhea in calves which are several months old. There cause loss of appetite and profuse yellow and watery diarrhea.

Gikuyu, Kamba, Kipsigis, Maasai: Chop pepper (Capsicum sp.) fruits and mix with drinking water. Use about 3 fruits in 0.5 litre for 10 birds

Embu, Kipsigis: Chop 2 red peppers (Capsicum annuum) and mix with about 20ml of water. Add 2 tablespoons of soot. This amount is for 1 bird. Put the mixture in a saucer and give the birds to drink. If the diarrhea is serious, drench young birds with 1 teaspoon full and older birds with 2 teaspoons full.

Stop feeding infected calves with milk for two days. Instead give plenty of clean water in adlib and administer a rehydration fluid. This is prepared by mixing clean water with sugar and salt. In cases where the calf is very dehydrated, feed the fluid at the rate of a tenth of the body weight (1 litre for 10 kg of body weight) daily for four days.