A Few Oddities...

[Sarah317]

I posted this at another board but for those who aren't members there here you go...

Here are a few odd things I see at work.

Here's a picture of a cow who has an abscess on her brisket.

This is a heifer who has an extra teat right next to her functional one.

This cow pretty well only has two quarters...er..halves. (Left side.)

Here is a picture of a 6-quartered cow...well, a cow with sixths.

This poor gal had an abscess with probably 2 square feet of discharge. This was after most of it drained .

Finally, we have a cow with an abscessed quarter. Apparently she's going to be shipped soon.

That's it for now!

 

[Beefy]

nice.

 

[msscamp]

I guess I'm missing something.

 

[Beefy]

thanks for sharing sarah.

msscamp, i dont know what there is to miss?

 

[Sarah317]

Are the pictures not showing up for you?

 

[glover36]

i owulkd never let our dairy animals gte like that

 

[Sarah317]

Well, if I had the choice I would do something about it too but where I'm just an employee it's hard to make these decisions. Of course, there's nothing that can be done for the one with the abscessed quarter.

 

[rkm]

brings back bad memories.

 

[msscamp]

msscamp, i dont know what there is to miss?

I have no experience with, nor do I know anything about, the dairy industry except what has been posted on here. These pictures show some pretty serious management issues - not to mention downright inhumane treatment of the cows - but, for all I know, it could very well be common practice. I would certainly hope not (although a couple of posts seen to indicate that it happens more often than it should) and I would like to think that most dairy operators take better care of their animals than what is shown in these pictures but, the fact of the matter is, I don't know. Hence my comment. I wasn't sure what Sarah317 was trying to get across.

 

[rkm]

Bad things happen to beef and dairy cows, more to dairy cows because they have to be confined and handled 2 or 3 times a day. Sometimes they are mismanaged, most of the time it is just the nature of the business.

Sarah, though your pictures may have interest to some, There are others that don't understand and it could be offensive. To others can be used as fuel for the fires they are already burning.

Just something to think about.

ron

 

[Sarah317]

That's true Ron. Considering the farm only grew 5 or 6 years ago to now more than 600 altogether, I'd say they're doing well if only a couple have abcsesses though. Plus, I've heard vets say before to let them drain on their own. Once they do, I know I try to keep them clean but it's pretty hard to do when it's above their knee like that poor gal's.

Next time I may be more selective about the pictures I'll post.

 

[3MR]

I've seen PETA and other animal rights and/or environmental groups take pictures totaly out of context and use them as propaganda many times.

 

[msscamp]

Bad things happen to beef and dairy cows, more to dairy cows because they have to be confined and handled 2 or 3 times a day. Sometimes they are mismanaged, most of the time it is just the nature of the business.

Sarah, though your pictures may have interest to some, There are others that don't understand and it could be offensive. To others can be used as fuel for the fires they are already burning.

Just something to think about.

ron

Ron, I truly hope you're not referring to me with this post.

 

[milkmaid]

msscamp, i dont know what there is to miss?

I have no experience with, nor do I know anything about, the dairy industry except what has been posted on here. These pictures show some pretty serious management issues - not to mention downright inhumane treatment of the cows - but, for all I know, it could very well be common practice. I would certainly hope not (although a couple of posts seen to indicate that it happens more often than it should) and I would like to think that most dairy operators take better care of their animals than what is shown in these pictures but, the fact of the matter is, I don't know. Hence my comment. I wasn't sure what Sarah317 was trying to get across.

Cows with the abcesses...may not be a darned thing one can do for them. Had one cow last fall end up with a football sized hematoma below her hip due to having had to be lifted with the hip lifters after calving. Fluke thing. Ya'll might have drained it, but the vet happened to be out and we asked about her - he felt it, said leave it. If it's hard, leave it, soft, then lance it. When it finally did burst and drain on its own "nasty" doesn't even begin to describe it.

Six teats...some folks leave them on, some take them off. I like them OFF as calves, but to each his own. On a big dairy it's not exactly practical. I was shadowing my vet at a 1200-cow dairy recently and they don't remove (extra) teats. Never seen so many heifers in one place before, BTW. Whew. LOL.

I've seen a lot of things happen to cows and these pictures really aren't that bad. Have one cow here that actually WAS treated heavily for mastitis, but she had absolutely no response and I don't know what caused it. Haven't been able to get anything to show up on culture except a couple molds, which makes me wonder if she has a systemic fungal infection going on? gets more interesting every day. Saw boss tonight and he said she's still alive. To use the p.c. words, the teat on that quarter had to be amputated due to the fact the infection went from local (in the udder) to systemic and the cow was sicker than sick, not eating, bloody diahreaa, and dropping weight overnight. You want to discuss nasty, those pictures don't even come close. Last I saw her she was looking better since the quarter had been allowed to drain, but she's still at high risk for her next shot to be a bullet rather than a needle.

Dairies deal with a lot worse things than beef folks typically deal with. I wouldn't fault the management that much, really -- how many of you beef folks have even had to deal with quarters that abcess and cows that are so systemically sick from mastitis that you resort to even thinking about the knife? those beef cows don't even get to that point -- and from some of the posts here with folks asking about how to treat mastitis and cows with multiple "utters", trust me, it's not because you all manage things that much better, no offense intended.

 

[msscamp]

msscamp, i dont know what there is to miss?

I have no experience with, nor do I know anything about, the dairy industry except what has been posted on here. These pictures show some pretty serious management issues - not to mention downright inhumane treatment of the cows - but, for all I know, it could very well be common practice. I would certainly hope not (although a couple of posts seen to indicate that it happens more often than it should) and I would like to think that most dairy operators take better care of their animals than what is shown in these pictures but, the fact of the matter is, I don't know. Hence my comment. I wasn't sure what Sarah317 was trying to get across.

Dairies deal with a lot worse things than beef folks typically deal with. I wouldn't fault the management that much, really -- how many of you beef folks have even had to deal with quarters that abcess and cows that are so systemically sick from mastitis that you resort to even thinking about the knife?

Never, and I see your point. That is what I was trying to get across (although I see now that I failed abysmally) with my response to Beefy's question. I don't know the first thing about dairy, so who am I to judge? In retrospect I can very easily see that what I posted does not mean what I intended it to mean, and that is my bad. I was wrong to state anything in reference to management simply because I know nothing about the dairy industry, and I sincerely apologize. To state it again, it was not my intent to judge or make pronunciations and I apologize for any comments that do that.

....and from some of the posts here with folks asking about how to treat mastitis and cows with multiple "utters", trust me, it's not because you all manage things that much better, no offense intended.

No offense taken - at least by me - because I think you're right. Thanks Milkmaid.

 

[rkm]

msscamp, I was not referring to anyone in particular, I thought you had some valid points.

ron

 

[msscamp]

Thanks for the clarification, Ron. I thought for a moment there that I had been dumped in the Peta ranks! :shock: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Medic24]

The larger number of cattle being milked, obvously the larger percentage of herd health issues will arrise. Things do happen, And it seems that in the pics I saw, the problems were being addressed, at least to some extent.????

I remember as a youngster, and left alone with my brother milking without pappy around we once milked a cow out that turned out tank a nice strawberry pink from the blood, it was of course an accident, and we meant no harm to the cow, nor the consumer, but it happened, and yes, believe it or not, it shipped, even after my dad pointed it out to the bulk tank driver. hummmmmmmmmm :cboy:

But, in todays world, lots of folks are watching over our shoulders, and perhaps for good measure. I know that when one of my beef cattle is not 'right' I will often get a call from a neighbor driving by. Often it is nothing, but sometimes, it's a real issue, and I am glad for the call.Can be a good thing for you,if you try and practice good management, or a bad thing if you don't care, as others will care for you.

I for one, get so angry when I see any kind of livestock being neglected or abused, as it is a direct reflection on me, and our fellow producers. I often see evidence of that come into the sale barns on a regular basis, and there simply is no excuse... :cboy:

 

[Ronald Boggess]

That's one of the MANY things I like about you msscamp. You are not afraid to apologize or to admit that maybe you mis-understood someone. It says a bunch about your character.

Ron