Rod
Well-known member
I've got a hereford that has too much milk and she has weaned her calf. Her bag is enormous and looks awfullly painful. Is there something I can give her to dry her up?
DRYING UP A COW
- Thread starter Rod
- Start date
Help Support CattleToday:
Take her off feed & water - without that she'll stop producing really quick. That's what a lot of dairies will do when a cow is ready to dry off.
Alternately you can leave her alone and she will dry herself off in time. Sometimes it takes a week or two. With the latter course you might want to check her for mastitis in a few weeks.
I do believe there is something you can give her...but it escapes my mind at the moment.
Alternately you can leave her alone and she will dry herself off in time. Sometimes it takes a week or two. With the latter course you might want to check her for mastitis in a few weeks.
I do believe there is something you can give her...but it escapes my mind at the moment.
born2run
Well-known member
Interesting. Obviously you dry off a beef cow a lot differently than you would a dairy cow. Just dried up 18 this morning using Quartermaster and Orbesol, along with a shot of Triangle 9.
Farmer Kevin
Well-known member
Do not use predef if she is pregnant. It will cause an instant abortion of the calve inside of her. I would suggest quarter master if you can get her penned-up
If I remember right...Triangle 9 is a vaccine and Quartermaster is a intramammary prescription antibiotic. Orbesol - isn't that a teat sealant?
Just checked into Predef, out of curiosity. http://pbs.naccvp.com/view_label.php?u= ... um=1049045 It's a prescription drug labeled for treatment of bovine ketosis, musculoskeletal conditions, shock, infections, allergic reactions...etc. Not labeled for drying off cows, and does state it can cause abortion in third-trimester cows.
Now Salix, on the other hand -
http://pbs.naccvp.com/view_label.php?u= ... um=1106081 Is..."Salix™ is an effective diuretic possessing a wide therapeutic range. Pharmacologically it promotes the rapid removal of abnormally retained extracellular fluids. The rationale for the efficacious use of diuretic therapy is determined by the clinical pathology producing the edema. Salix™ is indicated for the treatment of edema (pulmonary congestion, ascites) associated with cardiac insufficiency and acute noninflammatory tissue edema.
Cattle:
Salix™ is indicated for the treatment of physiological parturient edema of the mammary gland and associated structures.
The administration of Salix™ is not recommended during the second trimester of pregnancy."
From what I can tell from various postings...for beef cows, at weaning time, calves are pulled, cows preg checked and put out to pasture. No intramammary treatments like Tomorrow to prevent dry-cow mastitis, etc. Dairy cows are usually treated with something like Tomorrow, teat sealant put on, and cows are moved to the dry-cow herd. So yes, it is much different. :lol:
Looks like neither Salix or Predef are really safe for drying off cows prior to calving, but may be OK after calving if needed.
born2run
Well-known member
If I remember right...Triangle 9 is a vaccine and Quartermaster is a intramammary prescription antibiotic. Orbesol - isn't that a teat sealant?
Yes, you remember correctly. I've never dried up 18 cows at one time...herd manager decided to give me some of his work load.
Yes, you remember correctly. I've never dried up 18 cows at one time...herd manager decided to give me some of his work load.
Eighteen is a lot from my perspective. :lol: But, if I recall right...you're milking ~400 head, aren't you? My boss runs ~100 head so we've never dried that many at once. Out of 400 though, 18 is not that much.
This time of year we don't have many close to calving anyhow - just two drys and a handful to dry over the next two weeks. We had a lot calve between March and July so there's quite a few open and short-bred, but not too much close up.
This time of year we don't have many close to calving anyhow - just two drys and a handful to dry over the next two weeks. We had a lot calve between March and July so there's quite a few open and short-bred, but not too much close up.
born2run
Well-known member
Yeah...we were at 423 and the 18 I dried up early this AM brought us down to 405. That's a fairly minimal amount to be dried off there...commonly it's 30. We hit the calving peak between July and October. Now it's tapering off, and the incoming cows are slowing down dramatically. The "low" time as far as calves is in December. At that time no one is dried off, and the freestall barn is filled to capacity. 100 cows at this point in time sounds nice!
Edited to add that my coworker vanished and did other things while I was drying off cows. I mentioned that he could at least give the Triangle 9, but he shrugged it off and vanished again. It took me a full 30 min. to get everything done.
Edited to add that my coworker vanished and did other things while I was drying off cows. I mentioned that he could at least give the Triangle 9, but he shrugged it off and vanished again. It took me a full 30 min. to get everything done.
born2run":a9c9cb40 said:
Uh oh. :shock: :lol:
That actually sounds sort of familiar. LOL. When my boss isn't around, I'm either by myself or working with his 10 y/o son. He can be good help when he wants to, but....let's say I understand you real well. :lol: However, I can count on one hand the number of times it's really bothered me enough to mention to my boss. I know his son gets in trouble for not working...and I rather like that kid. Guess I'm a softie - don't want to see him get in trouble when it's not that much extra work on my shoulders.
born2run
Well-known member
milkmaid":3issftny said:
LOL...so you work with a 10 year old? Yeah, that could get interesting. I'm technically the lead milker on the 3rd shift, and have been told by the boss that it's my responsibility to get after people and make sure they're doing their job. Out of 13 employees, I commonly work with 5 of them. The boss isn't out there that much...I end up taking most of my orders from the herd manager. He's a good guy with a kind heart, so that's not a big issue.
msscamp":8ovq0pvq said:
It's a bizarre and usless process in which entire dairy herds are sent to slaughter and the dairyman is reimbursed based on the bid he put in which is based on the milk production for the last year. All milkers and any cow that has ever freshened has to go. Heifers can be kept. It's a synthetic prop for milk prices, hasn;t really worked the past couple of years, doubt it will this year.
It stands for Cooperatives Working Together. It's funded through the various dairy coops, not the gov. (Directly anyway)
dun
dun":hnahczgv said:
Ohhh, I kind of wondered if that wasn't what the deal was. Thanks for explaining. I've read about that happening in the farm journals and such things, didn't really understand the reasoning behind it.
I wondered if that was 100%. I vaguely recall hearing about it but couldn't remember much more.
That does sound senseless - sending perfectly good milking cows to slaughter. *shaking head*
Do folks that sell their cows like that do it because they're planning to get out of the cattle business/dairying, or need money...or do they keep their young stock and just start fresh afterwards...or what?
That does sound senseless - sending perfectly good milking cows to slaughter. *shaking head*
Do folks that sell their cows like that do it because they're planning to get out of the cattle business/dairying, or need money...or do they keep their young stock and just start fresh afterwards...or what?
