Cow with 2 bad teats..

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Freeman

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I've got a cow that didnt give milk from her front two teats. It was with her first calve. My question is can/will she be able to give milk from those two dry teats with her next calve or will it cause more bag problems? Is this a problem a vet can fix? I tried putting her in the chute and milking the two fronts till i got some milk but nothing came out at all. She raised a good calve despite the bad teats so maybe this isnt something i should be concerned with?
 
The cow is now officially a cull, front teats gone means only 55 to 60% of the udder remain. Sooner or later we need a cull smiley on here.
 
No, she won't come back into milk on those. Different if she lost one to mastitis once lactating, maybe a 50% chance it would return but it still might not be full production.

But... not disagreeing with the 'ship her' but 2 teats, one calf - what could go wrong there if she's a good milker? It's not like she's being asked to raise four calves all at once.

Whether a vet can fix it depends what caused the problem. Personally I don't try because of the low chance of success compared to the high chance of mastitis from trying to open up the teat canal.
 
BUT!, if you are a teat man and can fix it she could be a real buy in the ring as a weigh cow.
Myself, I'm a foot and leg man.
I'll bid up to $500 for the pair!
SL
 
Was hoping someone would talk me out of taking her down the road but I guess she'll just have to go. Thanks for the input yall
 
ok i have a cow with 6 teats, but i was told that the 2 extra ones were just moles or whatever you want to call them. However that cow has produced the best calves (fastest growing) of all the rest. if cows have extra teats then thats ok, right?
 
Freeman,
Re:
Was hoping someone would talk me out of taking her down the road but I guess she'll just have to go.
As a cattleman, ship her!
But as a hobby farmer, I would try to save her, if not for any other reason then to gain experience.

Now let me get the facts straight:

"didnt give milk from her front two teats."
"It was with her first calve." ( first time heifer )
"those two dry teats with her next calve" ( still first time heifer)
"She raised a good calve despite the bad teats" ( still first time heifer)

She is a first time heifer, correct?
How long has it been since she calved?
Are her front two 1/4s swollen at all?
What breed is she?

Re:
I tried putting her in the chute and milking the two fronts till i got some milk but nothing came out at all.
Nothing, right?
Do you know what "stripping" and "reverse stripping "is? Have you tried that?

If that doesn't work I would try the same procedure used to remove a "bean" from a horses penis.
Or both in combination.
SL
 
Freeman":2kj4no1v said:
I've got a cow that didnt give milk from her front two teats. It was with her first calve. My question is can/will she be able to give milk from those two dry teats with her next calve or will it cause more bag problems? Is this a problem a vet can fix? I tried putting her in the chute and milking the two fronts till i got some milk but nothing came out at all. She raised a good calve despite the bad teats so maybe this isnt something i should be concerned with?

I agree with Sir Loin on this one. Normally, the rule of thumb is ship her - especially if you have a herd of cattle and some replacement heifers coming up. However, if she's your hobby cow you could wait another year and just see what happens - it's not like there's going to be great economic loss. Odds are great though that you won't be able to fix her and nothing will change and you'll be back to "ship her".
 
She was a heifer..
She's Brahman, calved in march and I early weaned calves in july due to the drought. Her calve was just as big and healthy as any of the other calves. Her front teats have been sitting noticable higher than the rear teats. I forgot to mention that she did have a full bag (milk in all quarters) but the front two were just clogged (not giving milk)
 
Freeman,

OK, then she will be a second time heifer, correct?
Is she fairly gentle?
Re:
I forgot to mention that she did have a full bag (milk in all quarters) but the front two were just clogged (not giving milk)
That is good news. At least we now know it was/is not genetic.
I'm 80% sure you can solve this.

When is she due?
There is nothing on her right now, correct?
How long were/are her two front teats? Back ones?
SL
 
Freeman,

I'm almost certain what she has is a keratin seal problem that can be easily cured with a little physical therapy the day of her next calving. It's not uncommon with first time heifers.
Stay in touch and give a holler when she is ready to calve.
SL
 
She's not ignorant but her fuse can be lit. Yes she will be a second calve heifer. Her fronts are about the difference in lenght as your thumb compared to your index finger, if that helps. I havent had them palpated yet but Im fearing the worst. I think the texas heat took its toll on the angus bull I had running with some cows and he didnt get the job done because there were a few cows that should be 3 to 4 months bred mounting each other as though they were in heat. If they do come up open or less than 3 months bred they will be getting shipped.
 
I kind of got lost in the translation...but...i think i got...first time calver, no milk in the front...right wrong...let me know

anyhow, some new mommas are real tight on sharing the milk with the milker. Some things which work to get them to drop the milk...and i prefer one over the other...
a shot of oxytocin 5-20 minutes before milking. Never seen a cow or heifer able to hold milk with this...vet recommended...works like a charm. If there is milk in there, she will have not choice but to give it up.
The second, and i have never tried it, but i am told it works well...a crack over the head...the guy who told me said he used a hammer. My first thought was give me a hammer and lets see if it works on you...Anyways the idea is to give her something else to think about other than holding the milk. I'm of the personal opinion that once you start milking her she will more than likely give you something to think about for a long while.

If she is a dud in those quarters after the oxytocin, your best bet is to ship the cow post weaning. It is a good chance that this cow puts the energy into herself rather than the calf. This would be evident by the cow being in the best shape or close to the top in the herd of the best shape even if you are in a drought area. That feed conversion to calf might not be that good and there is a good chance the two fronts could be full of fatty deposits. This means, in a year or so, her breed back will also be affected because a good condition, or rather over conditioned cow will not come around as regular as a decent condition cow with a decent calf. A calf should be between 50-60% of the cow's weight at wean time.
Now i understand that the drought will bring the cow down in conditon, but compare her with the rest of your herd. If she is in better shape than the rest, and if her calf is either the same or of poor quality...she is and will always convert the energy for herself before her calf.
The other thing is, how did you feed her when she was a weaned heifer? Heifers which have been fed heavy hot feed from weaning to breeding have a tendancy to develope this energy conversion crapper more often than not. Pushed fed overconditioned heifers will not breed back on time once that first calf hits the ground. And usually by year 4 is on the cull list.
We have not experienced drought like you have. But we have experienced feed shortages due to overland flooding, and in my book that is just as bad. We had to cull out alot of the cows due to the feed shortage since we were not willing to buy. The one thing the vet said when we preg tested...get rid of the poor converters. The ones who put it into themselves and not the calf. If feed shortage is your problem, then get rid of the free loaders.
 
..a crack over the head...the guy who told me said he used a hammer.
Never heard that one before. But I have been tempted many times!!

I always check the calf first to see if his sucking power is up to snuff to remove the keratin seal.

I have always used hot wet towels to massage the udder and teats vigorously. Scrubbing the ends of the teats vigorously also. Then stripping the teats up and down.
If that doesn't work, heat/melt some Vaseline in a syringe, WITHOUT THE NEEDLE, and squirt it up the teat and strip it up in the teat several times, then roll the teat in the palms of your hands.
Then strip it out. If this doesn't work, ship her!
SL
 
Sir Loin":1vcxn5e7 said:
{quote] ..a crack over the head...the guy who told me said he used a hammer.
Never heard that one before. But I have been tempted many times!!

I always check the calf first to see if his sucking power is up to snuff to remove the keratin seal.

I have always used hot wet towels to massage the udder and teats vigorously. Scrubbing the ends of the teats vigorously also. Then stripping the teats up and down.
If that doesn't work, heat/melt some Vaseline in a syringe, WITHOUT THE NEEDLE, and squirt it up the teat and strip it up in the teat several times, then roll the teat in the palms of your hands.
Then strip it out. If this doesn't work, ship her!
SL[/quote]
Or rather then going through all that rigamaroll you could just slip a teat dialater in and pull it and and be done with it.
 
Re:
rather then going through all that rigamaroll you could just slip a teat dialater in and pull it and and be done with it.
Well that probably would be true, if you just happened to have one in your back pocket.
But I don't know many who do!
SL
 
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