prolapsed uterus

[alftn]

Have a three and a half year old cow, that is due to calf in six or eight weeks. Today when I checked on them, she had a prolapse uterus.. I ran her into the head shoot , washed it off and pushed it back in side her. In seemed to return to the proper place with a sucking noise.. Gave her 36ml of oxytetracycline... She did not seem to be in labor, this is my frist ever .. Causes? What to expect? She is penned up with a buddie ,. Doc what do you think....

[Keren]

I am thinking prolapsed vagina, not uterus ... if she hasnt calved ...

I dont know, maybe you use a different oxytet, but mine is 1 ml per 10kg so 36 ml is only a 360kg beast ... small cow but maybe you have small cows

Wait till she calves, if she prolapses again in the meantime you may need the vet to stitch her up unless you have the knowhow to do it yourself. Wait till she weans the calf then send her into the yards. Dont keep the calf for a breeder.

[alftn]

We researched the archives for more information and it also provided us with valuable info. Yes, it is just the vagina that prolapsed, the cervix is closed with a blood tinged mucus plug. Our oxytet is 300mg per cc and is an LA dosing. At this time there is nothing to stitch unless she prolapses again prior to birth. Thank you very much for your response and information.

[Keren]

long as you follow the dosage on the bottle, you should be fine, but FWIW I tend to overdose a little with oxytet, for example my doe that prolapsed her vagina several times, I gave her 10ml oxytet when she should have got 7ml (1ml per 10kg, she's 70kg approx). Didnt seem to harm any.

[randiliana]

If she prolapse bad enough that you had to put it back in, she is very, very likely to do it again. Chances are you are going to have to get her stitched. Basically the vaginal lips are loosely stitched together. Once she gets close to calving you have to watch her closely so you can cut the stitches out when she goes into labour. Otherwise you lose the calf, or the stitches will be torn out.6-8 weeks ahead of time is very early for this sort of thing. She's one to put on the cull list. Once they start, they continue to do it in years to come. It gets worse, not better.

[Alberta farmer]

In reference to stitching: The drawstring method is the best way to go. Up one side, leave a loop, down the other, tie in a bow at the bottom. Use a flat skate lace and don't worry about excess lace hanging.
Got to watch her close to untie the lace when she starts.
Not sure how profitable it is to call the vet out everytime you need to do something like this? You can save yourself a lot of money by learning to do simple vet work. A good OB needle costs about $35 and last forever. I got educated early in how to sew up a cow as my Dad was a die hard Hereford man!
Another handy little device is a head snare. I think I paid about $40 several years ago. Only had to use it a couple of times but sure beats wearing yourself out trying to hold a floppy head straight while pulling.

[Onthebit]

What is a head snare?

[Alberta farmer]

Fits around the back of the ears and in the mouth. Made of plastic lined cable with sliders to tighten. Has a loop on the end so you can hook it on the puller or pull on it to keep the calfs head coming the right way when you pull him up into the birth canal. A calf that has his head back can be a real problem. Usually the cow has been straining a lot and he is pretty much like a dish cloth.
If you don't have a snare it can be extremely tough to keep that head pulled around. The best way is put your thumb and index finger in his eye sockets as you pull. Get a red eyed calf and an awful sore arm!

[Keren]

Not sure if this has been posted before, but this is a good calving link I just stumbled across

http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalo ... ec/ec1370/

Here's the head snare (they describe how to use it in the link above)

http://www.jefferspet.com/product/jeffe ... e-5409.cfm

I personally prefer eye hooks over the head snare (bottom of the page)

http://www.bainbridgevet.com.au/index.php?categoryID=6

[randiliana]

Fits around the back of the ears and in the mouth. Made of plastic lined cable with sliders to tighten. Has a loop on the end so you can hook it on the puller or pull on it to keep the calfs head coming the right way when you pull him up into the birth canal. A calf that has his head back can be a real problem. Usually the cow has been straining a lot and he is pretty much like a dish cloth.
If you don't have a snare it can be extremely tough to keep that head pulled around. The best way is put your thumb and index finger in his eye sockets as you pull. Get a red eyed calf and an awful sore arm!

Not IN the mouth!! It goes behind the ears and UNDER the jaw. Also, you don't really pull on the head, once it is through the pelvis. Most of the traction should be on the legs of the calf. We have one and have only used it a couple times in the last 15 years.

[Keren]

Randi, everything I have ever been told or read says that the head snare goes around the back of the head and in the mouth If its just round the head/neck you run the risk of choking the calf, if its in the mouth well you also have a slight problem, the mouth can open and the teeth can rupture the uterus. Just part of the reason I prefer eye hooks.

I tried to find a pic of correct head snare placement on google images, but no luck

[Alberta farmer]

Actually the one I have goes in the mouth. That idea of the eye hooks sounds interesting.

[Keren]

I guess the only thing with eye hooks is you have to have a good stomach to use them ... not for people who get queasy. But then again, all the people I know who tend to get queasy also tend to run a mile when they hear the words 'we will have to assist'

[dun]

The only time I've seen any thing hooked to the calf other then his legs was a couple of loops of baler winte looped over the lower jaw. It was there just to keep the head lined up and didn;t have any real tension on it.

[alftn]

Check her yesterday and today, can tell anything was even wrong with her, almost turned her back out with the heard, but did not..She is about a month or so from calfing time, wife saies keep her to she calfs... Sale barn on wed. is what I should do, cut my loses, befor another problem. In the last 10 years I have never had a problem of any sort in my cattle ( about 20 Plus head ) other than some not sticking..No dead, no pulls, no problems . This was the frist, want be the last.I It was about 20 degrees ,my hand sure got cold, my wife happended to be with me, she has had a lot of fun with it..