It’s cold outside, what else should I be doing?

[Travlr]

This is what made me start thinking about electric blankets that run on batteries! But tomorrow it's getting down to 25.

LOL...

An electric blanket on a cow that's too fat in 25 degrees. That would be miserable for her.

 

[TexasJerseyMilker]

The fermentation tanks of cattle, their rumen or first of the four 'stomachs', is like a heat engine for cows. They take their internal heaters wherever they go. Rumen bacteria digest the indigestable cellulose and cattle then digest the bacteria for protien. They still need a certain amount of protien in their diet to make the bacteria grow. Thats why people feed some 20% cow cubes in the winter or have protien licks in the pastures

 

[Hippie Rancher]

I don't plan to breed. And I'm hoping the yearling doesn't get wander lust when she goes into heat!

get her/them spayed

 

[TexasJerseyMilker]

She might wake up with a bull in her yard.

 

[Warren Allison]

@AmandaQ , how close are you to other cattle? Specifically, bulls?

 

[CowboyRam]

My cows are not pampered. I keep them full. If it get really cold out I feed them more so they stay warm. I have a loafing shed, but I don't think they would use it even if I gave access to it. I have had calves born when it was -10 or so; the little guy as a surprise because his mama was supposed to calve in March, not January. The vet at the sale barn got that one wrong. They are pretty hardy critters. Just make sure the have enough to eat and clean water.

 

[AmandaQ]

Keep an eye on her, just like you are. Vaccines can impact cows in different ways, especially if she has never been vaccinated before.
Some are more sensitive to the vaccines. Symptoms I have noticed in my cows/calves are: some are stiff and sore for a few days, some
are a little lethargic, like the don't feel as good as normal. As far as the wormer, in horses if they are carrying a very large parasite load and
the wormer kills a large volume of parasites really quick it can set up a toxic reaction, that in rare/severe cases that could result in death.

She probably has never been handled like the average ranch cow before so it may have been a bit traumatic for her emotionally.
Her appetite maybe off a bit and she may associate the cubes with a bad experience.

It ain't easy bein a ranch cow.

Thank you! She is finally back to normal. I think she was associating the cattle cubes with her very bad day.

 

[AmandaQ]

@AmandaQ , how close are you to other cattle? Specifically, bulls?

We back up (catty corner like, but with some land between us) to a rodeo/horse training facility. It's mostly kid rodeos once a month where they rope young steers with horns. These animals are trucked in and then leave. They wear helmets on their horns if that helps identify their age. They are much smaller than my yearling. They also have grown up barrel racing competitions more frequently. They don't have real bull riding. Our fences don't touch and my next door neighbor owns the land behind me and next to me. He's building a house next to me, left the land behind me natural and wooded, and put in a very large pond behind the rodeo facility. My 2 cows hear the cows at the rodeo facility sometimes, and seem to not like what they hear. I have electric fence on those two sides so if mine wanted to leave, they likely could. Other than that, I haven't seen bulls or cows anywhere for miles!

 

[TCRanch]

Just gonna share this from the Angus Beef Bulletin. @AmandaQ, NOT that your need to gain weight

Is There Value to Bedding?

Research shows gains in performance, cattle comfort when bedding is used.

www.angus.org

 

[puzzled in oregon]

What the heavy cow really needs is to be turned out where she has to hike up and down hills.
Water needs to be a quarter mile from her food.

An individual brought their pet cow from Central Oregon to a coastal ranch, The cow was easily 200 hundred
pounds over weight, had not raised a calf for a couple years (no bull was available) and was arthritic, and basically miserable.
After spending a year or two traveling with some other cattle she lost the weight she needed to, still arthritic,
but traveling better, and has actually raised a calf.

 

[TexasJerseyMilker]

Last night my 6 month old Jersey heifers gave me a night from hell. The barn and corral are on the other side of the front yard. I woke up to bellowing and mooing. I thought they must have pushed their grass hay away from the fence. Got up, went out and forked it back. An hour later, mooing and bellowing again. I went out and put out more hay. An hour later the uproar resumed. I thought the two dominant heifers were keeping the lowest ranking away from the hay. It was that one that was making all the noise. I put her in a pen by herself and gave her alfalfa, went back to bed. Again the mooing. It was'nt just mooing it was screaming mmmoOOOOAHHH! like she was in pain. I went out again because I thought she was sick. She was just standing there with a normal repiratory rate, no fever. Then I realized what it was. This heifer was in flaming heat. I sent them allout to the pasture and went back to bed. With this heifer you've got this could happen to you.

 

[AmandaQ]

What the heavy cow really needs is to be turned out where she has to hike up and down hills.
Water needs to be a quarter mile from her food.

An individual brought their pet cow from Central Oregon to a coastal ranch, The cow was easily 200 hundred
pounds over weight, had not raised a calf for a couple years (no bull was available) and was arthritic, and basically miserable.
After spending a year or two traveling with some other cattle she lost the weight she needed to, still arthritic,
but traveling better, and has actually raised a calf.

I move the hay trough every time I feed them because I want to distribute the poop evenly. But I will start moving it farther back than I've been doing. That means I too have to walk farther with little hills but we could both benefit from that! Thanks for the tip!

 

[AmandaQ]

Just gonna share this from the Angus Beef Bulletin. @AmandaQ, NOT that your need to gain weight

Is There Value to Bedding?

Research shows gains in performance, cattle comfort when bedding is used.

www.angus.org

Thank you for linking this! I didn't check the bedding last night so that is progress. It was 26 degrees this morning and they just seemed ready for breakfast, not uncomfortable. I am getting used to winter with my girls!

 

[AmandaQ]

Last night my 6 month old Jersey heifers gave me a night from hell. The barn and corral are on the other side of the front yard. I woke up to bellowing and mooing. I thought they must have pushed their grass hay away from the fence. Got up, went out and forked it back. An hour later, mooing and bellowing again. I went out and put out more hay. An hour later the uproar resumed. I thought the two dominant heifers were keeping the lowest ranking away from the hay. It was that one that was making all the noise. I put her in a pen by herself and gave her alfalfa, went back to bed. Again the mooing. It was'nt just mooing it was screaming mmmoOOOOAHHH! like she was in pain. I went out again because I thought she was sick. She was just standing there with a normal repiratory rate, no fever. Then I realized what it was. This heifer was in flaming heat. I sent them allout to the pasture and went back to bed. With this heifer you've got this could happen to you.

Seriously!!! My heifer that has never made any noise could just start yelling because she wants a bull friend? Did your heifer keep mooing out in the pasture or did they get so far away from you that you just couldn't hear her anymore? This would be awful!