Slowing the gut before a calf’s first drink changed colostrum IgG absorption more than most people would guess. Calves given 0.4 mg/kg hyoscine N-butylbromide 15 to 30 minutes before colostrum reached 48 h serum IgG of 3,243 +/- 794 mg/dL, against 2,175 +/- 1,150 mg/dL in controls that got nothing, at p = 0.034. Serum Brix shifted the same direction at p = 0.002. Total protein, GGT and glucose did not separate. One farm, 18 calves, and no direct measurement of gut transit, so read the effect size as a first estimate. Why newborn calves start with no antibodies A cow’s placenta is synepitheliochorial, and six tissue layers stand between…