Any ideas to get a down cow up

[greybeard]

No news is probably bad news.

And just because one can get a downer up, it does not mean the job is done.

1. She may go back down from weakness after a few steps.
or

2. She may just be fine, but after laying down at the end of grazing, she may not have the ability to get back up on her own, and will have to be assisted each time.

or

3. After getting her up and she walks around some, everything may be fine from now on..


My experience with a neighbor's bull was #2 and death was the eventual consequence, tho it was several weeks later.

Hopefully, M.Magis' results are much better.

 

[TexasJerseyMilker]

It's Tuesday. We haven't heard about the cow since since last Friday.

 

[M.Magis]

Sorry, haven't been online for a while. Starting to run out of ideas and optimism. She's been moved, rolled, lifted, given her a couple tubes of CMPK, etc… She acts as if she can't move her legs. Lifted her today and let her hang there for 5-10 minutes. She didn't even drop her front feet, let alone the back. We rolled her clear out of the barn so she's in a new position, gave another tube of CMPK, and we'll lift her again here in a bit. Probably repeat the process for a couple days and hope for some leg movement.

 

[TCRanch]

Dang, @M.Magis, sorry to hear that. I went through a down cow drama last summer from a breeding injury that didn't end well. And my best friend just had to euthanize one of her cows that had been down for a week. Granted, her cow was considerably older, but "didn't even drop her front feet" caught my attention. She was also hip lifting and initially going well, but when her cow wouldn't attempt to use her front legs, she knew it was time. Plus, the bed sores. That said, I gave my cow considerably longer because she still had the will to live.

Sending good luck!!!

Thread 'Down. And out!'

Jun 8, 2024

Not good. Found this girl all splayed out Thursday morning. Looking at my notes, I'm pretty sure it was a breeding injury because last I saw, the bulls were following her, but she wasn't in standing heat. Started with Banamine Transdermal and did eventually give her Dex but my vet said stick with just the Banamine going forward. Discussed lifting her but quite often that can do more harm than good. She is moving around and I'm assuming getting up occasionally because she ended up busting through the fence and into the ditch. Neighbor came over and we put up temporary panels and I...

• TCRanch
• Replies: 36
• Forum: Health & Nutrition

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[farmerjan]

If she has had several tubes of CMPK and there is no response, she has had enough of it... Don't keep giving it to her, there is no point. It is something that will work fairly fast and after a few times, more will not help.
I am glad you managed to get her out from under the barn but I am sorry to say it does not sound good if she is not trying. I wish you luck with her but sometimes what we do isn't enough.

 

[M.Magis]

Every once in a while she does something to tease hope, but I suspect that's all it is, a tease. No movement when we lifted her last night, but we did move her to a flat spot out of the wind and put up a tarp for rain and sun, her position is different than it has been. This morning while driving by taking the boys to school she was rocking herself back and forth more than she's done all week. I can even see witness marks in the dirt where her back feet have moved. We'll lift her again when my son gets home, but I don't think we can let this continue much more without seeing improvement. I've already starting laying the groundwork with him, but I want him to agree that she's not getting up. Not gonna be easy, he just lost his pet goat at Christmas.

 

[TexasJerseyMilker]

Maybe you could explain to the boy she's suffering and can't get well. When we love mortal creatures the time comes we have to learn to love them with an open hand and let them go .

 

[M.Magis]

Yeah, he's 14 so he understands "how it works". But this is one he bottle fed since the day she was born, and the first cow he showed in 4H, so understanding it and accepting it can be two different things. But he'll be alright. If he can make it through losing his goat, he can make it through anything. Him and that goat were inseparable for a long time, she followed him around like a dog.

 

[Double R Ranch]

Is she getting any anti inflammatories? How about vitamin b complex and probiotics to keep her gut going and give her energy? I had one down years ago for about two weeks. She ended up getting up and lived and calved a few more years. You'll know the right thing to do if/when the time comes. Still hoping you can turn her around for the better.

 

[M.Magis]

Given her some over the counter stuff (no large animal vets around), her gut seems to be doing good. She eats, drinks, poops, licks and chews on your jacket, etc. Just acts like her legs are locked up. We just lifted her again, nothing. Her legs don't even drop, they stay tight to her body.

 

[chevytaHOE5674]

I'd try banamine IV for inflammation.

 

[TexasJerseyMilker]

They make a Banamine pour on for cattle, I have used it. It is prescription and you need a vet to prescribe it and the IV kind also. Is there a large animals vet in another county? I think her leg muscles are dead. Can she move one if you poke it with a pin? All my cows were bottle fed pets that follow me around. Things die or are put down, you are sad, you get over it and life goes on. One thing that helped me accept that life goes on is getting another baby animal to raise ASAP.

 

[chevytaHOE5674]

The pour on banamine doesn't work as well as the IV IME, also it doesn't work as well in the rain, snow, dew. I keep both on hand because the pour on is quick and easy to put on. But if I have a down animal or one in the chute then IV is the goto.

 

[Little Joe]

I'm in a similar situation, had a cow get hung up in the head gate yesterday for about 2 hours before we could get her out, she went down when she realized she was stuck, after lots of different options finally got her back in the chute enough that we could roll her out the side. Her belly got hung up in the head gate because she is so wide. We had just weighed her when she was in the chute, 1510 lbs. She wasn't able to stand but was crawling around, borrowed a hip hugger from a neighbor, cows too wide to get it on her. Called my nephew that's a large animal vet tech to ask for suggestions, he came over last night and gave her several different things through an IV including dextrose and calcium, he said they usually get right up afterwards but no luck. We got a tow strap under her and lifted her with the tractor for a while, she tried to walk so we let her walk herself to a better area using the tractor to support her. She's still down this morning. He left me 3 tubes of calcium and 3 tubes of a hi energy supplement, told me to give her a tube of each morning, noon and night. I'm going to also pick up some pancake syrup and give her a bottle.

 

[cowman82]

once you have her lifted, grab her back legs and move them around, stretch them out, etc. see how she reacts.

 

[TexasJerseyMilker]

Pour on Banamine says don't use on damp hides 'because it hasn't been evaluated' Haha well thanks for the real world evaluation.

I called Merck about it pour on use. The bottle and paper says use only one time. It worked pretty well for my old cow with foot rot (her hide was dry) It says meat has a long withholding time after using it . I told the scientist my 14 year old pet cow will never be eaten or milked. What happens if you use it more than once, will she die? He laughed and the drug clears in 4 or 5 days so in this case every 5 days is OK. He said watch for irritation and flakyness of the skin if repeated use. What fixed her foot rot was Nuflor IM 48 hours apart.

 

[Silver]

I'd

Pour on Banamine says don't use on damp hides 'because it hasn't been evaluated' Haha well thanks for the real world evaluation.

I called Merck about it pour on use. The bottle and paper says use only one time. It worked pretty well for my old cow with foot rot (her hide was dry) It says meat has a long withholding time after using it . I told the scientist my 14 year old pet cow will never be eaten or milked. What happens if you use it more than once, will she die? He laughed and the drug clears in 4 or 5 days so in this case every 5 days is OK. He said watch for irritation and flakyness of the skin if repeated use. What fixed her foot rot was Nuflor IM 48 hours apart.
View attachment 56255

Looks like you have a set of kickers on the table. Surely those aren't for her?

 

[TexasJerseyMilker]

Good spotter. My old pet cow will never be milked again. She has a staph aureus mastitis history. It is incurable and flares again every time they come fresh. It can also be contagious to calves. Her calf is being raised on milk replacer. This is how I could get a heifer calf to carry on her line.



That thing is for my young cow, AKA the Kicking Little Witch. I use a cow can't kick device on her. It's like a giant pincher made of curved steel bars you tighten with a crank. It sets in front of the hooks and slants back to block their stifle joint from flexing so they can raise a foot to kick the milker off. I thought I'd try these shackles on her when she comes fresh in May. Both my cows are technically culls

 

[Little Joe]

Any update @M.Magis ? Mine died Sunday, I had high hopes Saturday but she fell off Sunday and died that afternoon, 1500 lb cow that was due to calve any day, makes me sick.

 

[TexasJerseyMilker]

No news is bad news.