Cow had stroke???

[RiverHills]

Can a cow have a stroke??
I have a 4 year old brangus cow that looks like she a had a stroke.Her left ear is droopy, squinting her eye and even her left side of mouth droops and drools alittle. She bawls for food and eats like a horse. So acting normal otherwise. I would hate to loose her she has month old twins on her now. :bang:

 

[Bright Raven]

Of course. A stroke is a blood clot that obstructs normal blood flow to a part of the brain.

 

[Nesikep]

I had never heard of it, or thought it possible, but I'm quite certain I had one have a stroke.. she suddenly got "lost" and ended up in a holler (that she knew perfectly well), I haltered her and brought her home, where she paced the corral, always close to the fence and always clockwise... I put the hay near the fence so she was able to take a nibble on the way by before she had to make another lap. She was a little unsteady on her legs, and was scared to come off the fenceline. When it got really muddy she either fell or laid down wrong and cast herself in a bad spot.. this was about 2 months after she started being off. I just put her down.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Styq1RGJCzs

 

[farmerjan]

We had one that the vet said was probably a stroke. Thought she was getting listeria or circling disease or something, but it was weird so had him look at her when he was out for a preg check. She also had a calf on her and he said to just keep her in a smaller field, and we put a partially blind steer destined for the freezer in with her for company, and she eventually got over most of the symptoms. Always walked a little off on the one side and held her head a little crooked and had a little trouble eating like her mouth was partially paralysed. We made sure she had a fairly deep tub to get her grain and she managed okay. Weaned the calf off and then she went as we didn't want to breed her back. Kept her heifer and she is now an "old cow" in the herd.

 

[wbvs58]

Whether they actually get a stroke anything is possible but I suspect the majority of the neurogical conditions put down to a stroke are not a stroke, it is a term that most people can relate to and many conditions get pigeon holed as such. A stroke is rarely or never proven by autopsy or other advanced diagnostic scans in cattle.

Ken

 

[greybeard]

Whether they actually get a stroke anything is possible but I suspect the majority of the neurogical conditions put down to a stroke are not a stroke, it is a term that most people can relate to and many conditions get pigeon holed as such. A stroke is rarely or never proven by autopsy or other advanced diagnostic scans in cattle.

Ken

I agree Ken, and it holds true in humans as well, tho most humans are eventually diagnosed correctly either in hospital or by autopsy.

Have a brother that a few weeks ago had a 'stroke'. Couldn't get his arm or leg to work on his left side and his left side face 'felt funny'. Hauled to the hospital under initial on scene diagnosis of a stroke, but diagnostics showed he had 2 new brain tumors (he has been fighting cancer for 2 years) and once they got the swelling down in his brain, he regained full use of his left side. Undergoing radiation now.

I suspect you are right in regards to cattle and other livestock too..we just don't spend the time and $$ most of the time to find out exactly what the neurological problem is.

 

[Nesikep]

While I totally agree a lot of things may be diagnosed as a stroke, one of the reasons I leaned toward stroke rather than a tumor is how quickly my cow was affected.. one day she was just fine, the next she was loopy... It seemed fitting, though I guess I'll never know for sure what it was

 

[wbvs58]

Yes, nothing wrong with calling things a stroke or stroke like symptoms as it is a descriptive term that we can all relate to regardless of the exact aetiology.

Hope your brother continues to improve and beat it GB.

Ken

 

[boondocks]

Of course. A stroke is a blood clot that obstructs normal blood flow to a part of the brain.

Can also be hemorrhagic (burst vessel as opposed to a clot/ischemic)....I would wonder whether a relatively young cow that DID have a stroke wouldn't be more likely for it to be a hemorrhagic stroke than an ischemic one? My (very vague) understanding is that that is how it works in most species...