bloating

[buckaroo_bif]

also he said NOT to use a nife to poke the holes. what is your opinion on that?
i have used kinves screwdrivers anything to make a hole in the rumen anything you can find and do it quick cause within minutes they can be daid. i have seen cattle daid in as little as ten minutes! calves don't usuallly keil over as quickly but once the lining of the gut is stretched you are in trouble. hopefully she won't go down try to keep her up and moving.

 

[Farminlund]

Buckaroo - I have had the same experiences relative to calf vs cow bloating rates. Seems I have time to get a calf up & tubed (have saved probably 3-4 over the yrs), while cows are always down when I first notice the issue. Thus my first post suggesting that either the trocar or knife is the appropriate treatment - again assuming they are down. I've not tubed a cow (only calves) - that sounds challenging. Yes - agree; use anything to release the pressure as it so quickly stops the diaphram from contracting which inturn leads to the obvious.

 

[Linda]

I watched a vet tube our cow once. She was at a friend's house and had gotten into a garbage can full of grain. She ate nearly the entire can full. I hauled her to the vet as fas as I could. He tubed her, which let out some gas, then dumped a bunch of mineral oil down the tube - more than a pint - more like a gallon. He gave her some other meds down the tube, and a shot of banamine. Amazingly, she lived. She never showed any symptoms - guess we caught her in time.

The reason for avoiding poking a hole with a knife or needle, unless there is no other resort, is the hole allows some of the stomach contents to spill into the peritoneal cavity. Peritonitis is not a fun way to die. The contents of the stomach belong in the digestive system, not in the rest of the belly. Vets often suture the stomach to the opening in the side until everything heals.

The reason a cow dies from bloat is usually that the stomach becomes so large from the gas that it pushes up into the chest cavity and interferes with breathing. There isn't enough room for the lungs to expand.

Make sure you are actually dealing with bloat. If the cow is on its feet, look to see if there is swelling to the left of the spine. That's where the rumen pushes up.

Respiratory distress from bloat is a true emergency. If the cow is comfortable, and chewing its cud, you can merely observe it, or use other measures. Therabloat can help, followed by a dose of Probios.

 

[Ryder]

also he said NOT to use a nife to poke the holes. what is your opinion on that?
i have used kinves screwdrivers anything to make a hole in the rumen anything you can find and do it quick cause within minutes they can be daid. i have seen cattle daid in as little as ten minutes! calves don't usuallly keil over as quickly but once the lining of the gut is stretched you are in trouble. hopefully she won't go down try to keep her up and moving.

I go along with you buckaroo.
If the animal is up, a trocar, needles, whatever is better than knife. But once one goes down they are dying. Heart not working. Got to relieve the pressure now. Use whatever you got-usually knife.
I have never tried a needle, but don't thinnk they would relieve enough gas fast enough unless it was a mighty big needle.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Katethefuturevet said:
i went back to get some potatoes for the other cow

Did you feed the bloated cow whole potatoes prior to bloating - could she have gotton one stuck??

 

[buckaroo_bif]

uh?
feeding potatoes? hmmmm?
I'm not at all saying Don't tube just knife but when time is a Big factor and you are having trouble tubing then cut quickly!
bif

 

[Sent Grace]

Tubing a cow gets tricky because they're a lot stronger and those chewing teeth will really frazzle fingers and hose. When we had a bloat epidemic we made a piece of wood a couple of inches in diameter (maple) and about a foot long. Drilled a hole through it from side to side and put the wood in the cows mouth and fet the tube trhough that. Sticking them is definitely a last resort and is best done with supervision for the first time. I think now the approved method is a large needle instead of the trocar annula method.

dun

I have a question for all the members who are sharing their experiences with their animals suffering from bloat - Are any of the herds or animals spending 100 % of their time out of doors on pasture and grass fed? Hay fed in the winter? I am knocking on wood - never had an issue with it and certainly do not want to!

 

[greybeard]

I have a question for all the members who are sharing their experiences with their animals suffering from bloat - Are any of the herds or animals spending 100 % of their time out of doors on pasture and grass fed? Hay fed in the winter? I am knocking on wood - never had an issue with it and certainly do not want to!

This thread is 16 years old. Some of the people posting in it are no longer around..

 

[Sent Grace]

Wowzers! 16 years!? Ok - Thank you for the heads Up. I was interested in finding out what might have up ended the cow's Microbiome and how to ensure avoiding it.
My present herd is coming on 14 years old and I am always interested in avoiding missteps.
They are and always have been 100% Grass and Browse Finished. They absolutely love seasonal burdock, acorns, apples, berries, hickory nuts, etc in plenty, all found in their wooded cover - so far - without issues.
I would guess more than 100 years ago this would have been the diet that their back heritage bovine would also have been accustomed to as well as enjoying.
I raised a hybrid cross of Red Angus and Herford. Knocking on wood again!

 

[TCRanch]

Wowzers! 16 years!? Ok - Thank you for the heads Up. I was interested in finding out what might have up ended the cow's Microbiome and how to ensure avoiding it.
My present herd is coming on 14 years old and I am always interested in avoiding missteps.
They are and always have been 100% Grass and Browse Finished. They absolutely love seasonal burdock, acorns, apples, berries, hickory nuts, etc in plenty, all found in their wooded cover - so far - without issues.
I would guess more than 100 years ago this would have been the diet that their back heritage bovine would also have been accustomed to as well as enjoying.
I raised a hybrid cross of Red Angus and Herford. Knocking on wood again!

My recent thread on bloating: Pasture in the growing season, bales during the winter, always have access to woods (fortunately, no acorns).

Hope she makes it!

Went out to feed this afternoon and saw one of my cows bloated, frothy, coughing & gagging. I immediately suspected a hedge apple. Fortunately, she wasn't far from the barn and I was able to get her in (after a little detour in the woods and me face-planting in the mud). Called the vet...

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