rockridgecattle
Well-known member
So the day starts off well. After breakfast head out to check on the cows. Hubby brings the tractor to feed as well. I am in my rav 4 and it goes where the 4 wheeler can not. Amazing
Any how, i hear a cow bellering in the cow calf pen. Head in for an inspection, calf looks like it just up and dropped dead. Called the vet for some ideas and she told me to post the calf and send her some pics if i wanted. It gets better...
Now both hubby and i are driving school bus again. I got called up from the spare list to help out. As luck would have it, a hour before we leave, we have 4 cows calving, not getting down to business, but getting the party started so to speak. Praying and praying hard.
As soon as i get home I am out there like a shot. One on the ground, one looks to be in distress. You all know the look...with the ugly string hanging out.
So, into the chute, glove up clean the cow and check. Feet under the calf, get them up. Head is off to the side, funny feeling (dead), but still forward. I get the chains on, pull abit, go back in to check on the head, still not on top. Hubby gets home and comes out. We hook up the calf jack, add some tension and i go back in to get the head and it is gone. It fell back under the cow. Now hubby hates having problems like this and leaves me to go in and get the head. I admit he tried, but decided to let me have a go at it. That head was down deep. So, hubby calls the vet, they chat, she comes out. It takes about a half hour to get from the clinic to our place, vet speed, 20 minutes. She tells me to try and push the calf back in and work on her untils she arrives. So, here i am covered in everything cow, both arms in the cow working the calf back in. Still can not get at the head. The vet comes out, inspects, and goes for the head. Her arms are 4" longer than mine and she is able to snare the jaw. I get to go back in to grab the head, unfortunately, size does matter and still can not reach it. She goes in, gets the head up a bit more, I follow her arm in...yes two arms in the cow and find the head. Then, in a way only vets do, she grabs the calf by the eye sockets and pulls it up. Both of us are pulling the calf now. I am on the chains, she has the head. Then she gives us a lesson in the puller. Ya know ya think you've been doing it right all these years....like pa before and pa before him...
The calf comes out, I am covered in blood, dead calf, live cow, some drugs for the cow, she is now eating and missing her baby. Problem though, slightly fevered at the calf pull. Why? Because the calf died about 12 hours earlier (vet called it) and these warm temps have the cows heating. Fevers set in more quickly on things like this. After the pull, the vet inspects the uterus. It had a small tear, not all the way through. This is why all the blood. This happened when I tried to push the calf back in. I did it. Not the vet. So, once the meds withdrawals are over, she, the cow, will be going for a short ride. Not her fault I know, but cows are bringing a good price, she does not owe us anything, been a good keeper. Breed back is compromised, and since she is old, might as well get something for her.
So, what happened? How did two seasoned cow producers miss this cow in labour? The idea is, being she is older, and we were calving in 25-27 degree heat, she tired out fast. So, since we check every 2-3 hours, she played out early and we missed her. Thing is, we do not usually have this kind of weather. Normally there is still 2 feet of snow out there and stinking cold. Our fault, we dropped the ball with this one.
Then, if that did not take the cake, while she was out, hubby mentions a cow with a lump jaw that will not heal. So cow in the chute, some LA, try to lance and some IV sodium iodine.
Then off to the dead calf to post mortem since i did not get the chance to do it. Man can she cut a calf fast. First into the hip joint to see if it was damaged from stepping on, then the shoulder joint. Then she skins the chest and stomach area and cuts the rib cage...in less than 5 minutes...like two.
From there we examine the heart lungs, liver and stomach area. We could see it was getting enough feed. The intestines were developed and not twisted. The liver was enlarged and fluid on the lungs and an odd shaped heart. The two day old calf died of a heart condition.
Dang, what is a calving season without some bloody clothes?
And if that did not beat all, a cow just about put me up a fence cause father in law spooked her. He got as a joke gift these coveralls that highways guys and gals wear. Bright orange with reflector tape. She took one look at him and got a bit messed in the head...as did the rest of the herd.
Tomorrow, it is making sure the dead calf momma cleaned, treating a matistis case (first one in about 10 years) tag and bag calves and then feed bees.
Any how, i hear a cow bellering in the cow calf pen. Head in for an inspection, calf looks like it just up and dropped dead. Called the vet for some ideas and she told me to post the calf and send her some pics if i wanted. It gets better...
Now both hubby and i are driving school bus again. I got called up from the spare list to help out. As luck would have it, a hour before we leave, we have 4 cows calving, not getting down to business, but getting the party started so to speak. Praying and praying hard.
As soon as i get home I am out there like a shot. One on the ground, one looks to be in distress. You all know the look...with the ugly string hanging out.
So, into the chute, glove up clean the cow and check. Feet under the calf, get them up. Head is off to the side, funny feeling (dead), but still forward. I get the chains on, pull abit, go back in to check on the head, still not on top. Hubby gets home and comes out. We hook up the calf jack, add some tension and i go back in to get the head and it is gone. It fell back under the cow. Now hubby hates having problems like this and leaves me to go in and get the head. I admit he tried, but decided to let me have a go at it. That head was down deep. So, hubby calls the vet, they chat, she comes out. It takes about a half hour to get from the clinic to our place, vet speed, 20 minutes. She tells me to try and push the calf back in and work on her untils she arrives. So, here i am covered in everything cow, both arms in the cow working the calf back in. Still can not get at the head. The vet comes out, inspects, and goes for the head. Her arms are 4" longer than mine and she is able to snare the jaw. I get to go back in to grab the head, unfortunately, size does matter and still can not reach it. She goes in, gets the head up a bit more, I follow her arm in...yes two arms in the cow and find the head. Then, in a way only vets do, she grabs the calf by the eye sockets and pulls it up. Both of us are pulling the calf now. I am on the chains, she has the head. Then she gives us a lesson in the puller. Ya know ya think you've been doing it right all these years....like pa before and pa before him...
The calf comes out, I am covered in blood, dead calf, live cow, some drugs for the cow, she is now eating and missing her baby. Problem though, slightly fevered at the calf pull. Why? Because the calf died about 12 hours earlier (vet called it) and these warm temps have the cows heating. Fevers set in more quickly on things like this. After the pull, the vet inspects the uterus. It had a small tear, not all the way through. This is why all the blood. This happened when I tried to push the calf back in. I did it. Not the vet. So, once the meds withdrawals are over, she, the cow, will be going for a short ride. Not her fault I know, but cows are bringing a good price, she does not owe us anything, been a good keeper. Breed back is compromised, and since she is old, might as well get something for her.
So, what happened? How did two seasoned cow producers miss this cow in labour? The idea is, being she is older, and we were calving in 25-27 degree heat, she tired out fast. So, since we check every 2-3 hours, she played out early and we missed her. Thing is, we do not usually have this kind of weather. Normally there is still 2 feet of snow out there and stinking cold. Our fault, we dropped the ball with this one.
Then, if that did not take the cake, while she was out, hubby mentions a cow with a lump jaw that will not heal. So cow in the chute, some LA, try to lance and some IV sodium iodine.
Then off to the dead calf to post mortem since i did not get the chance to do it. Man can she cut a calf fast. First into the hip joint to see if it was damaged from stepping on, then the shoulder joint. Then she skins the chest and stomach area and cuts the rib cage...in less than 5 minutes...like two.
From there we examine the heart lungs, liver and stomach area. We could see it was getting enough feed. The intestines were developed and not twisted. The liver was enlarged and fluid on the lungs and an odd shaped heart. The two day old calf died of a heart condition.
Dang, what is a calving season without some bloody clothes?
And if that did not beat all, a cow just about put me up a fence cause father in law spooked her. He got as a joke gift these coveralls that highways guys and gals wear. Bright orange with reflector tape. She took one look at him and got a bit messed in the head...as did the rest of the herd.
Tomorrow, it is making sure the dead calf momma cleaned, treating a matistis case (first one in about 10 years) tag and bag calves and then feed bees.
