My calf just ate hay string!

[Named'em Tamed'em]

My 2 month old bull calf just ate 2ft of hay string. I couldn't get it away in time (5 minutes ). It's my K C F Bennetts Absolute calf. I'll just keep an eye on him. What is the chances of it getting twisted up in his gut?

Thanks

 

[Rhune]

probably zero

 

[Named'em Tamed'em]

probably zero

I hope you're right.

 

[Supa Dexta]

Had a bunch over the years sneak a string and run off (plastic round bale twine) Never had a problem, normally find them chewed up into a slimy ball and spit out somewhere else.

 

[Craig Miller]

I think once it goes down its fine. Thousands of string get eat everyday. Papaw had one got choked on string and die once so I cut all strings off but i know bigger operations dont do that. Im just a 'weekender' so i have time to do stuff like that.

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

Sisal or plastic?

 

[Named'em Tamed'em]

Plastic, from a 4x4x8 square bale. Pretty heavy compared to small twine.

 

[alisonb]

Had a cow that just got thinner and thinner, always seemed hungry and always had watery stool. Eventually, after trying several treatments, I put her down. Checked the contents of the rumen and found a hard ball of baling twine.
Most times they spit the ingested plastic or baling twine out in a cud but sometimes(rarely) it enters the rumen but then has to go through the small opening of the reticulum and into the omasum, where it stays causing a blockage.

Keep a close eye on the animal ;-)

 

[Lucky_P]

Have never seen it be a problem, though I suppose it can be in some cases. Have opened many a cow that died of some other problem, to find wads of baling twine, plastic bale cover, plastic grocery bags, etc., just along for the ride, not causing any problems.

Had a bottle calf one time that wouldn't stay in any fence. He'd go up and down the road frontage eating every piece of trash folks pitched out of their cars - and chewed up one leg on each of 4 new pair of Levi's I had hanging on the clothesline! That was the last straw...
Would have been interesting to see what he had in his rumen when we had him processed.

 

[Aaron]

I take strings off bales, but sometimes miss one under the bale, or a piece tears off in transport. I occasionally find a chewed up chunk with grass/hay chewed up amongst it. My theory is they spit it out when they bring it back with their cud. Along the same lines, calves love electric tape gates with no power on them. I have one in a pasture that the calves chew up every year.

 

[cow pollinater]

We had a feeder in one of my large herds that got tired of getting chewed out for running late so anytime he got behind he'd just dump hay in the processor strings and all and fed it out that way. That happened a few times a week for a year or two and as far as I know the worst damage it caused was flooding from the matted up twine plugging the flush drains. :lol:

 

[Workinonit Farm]

Im just a 'weekender' so i have time to do stuff like that.

:lol2: :lol2: :lol2:

 

[Nesikep]

I am pretty careful about not leaving twines within their reach, but yes, it happens that they get ahold of some and chew them up.. haven't been aware of any problems with it yet.

 

[Named'em Tamed'em]

We are always careful of hay string and everything else, the neighbor kid left it hanging on the fence. 5 minutes later he had it.

She feels bad about it, told her not to worry we'd keep an eye on the calf.

He's still doing fine.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Im just a 'weekender' so i have time to do stuff like that.

If I were a full time cattleman, I'd still take the time to do things right. Mistakes get expensive. Accidents too. Hate cutting that stuff off of my cutter blades.

 

[TexasBred]

We are always careful of hay string and everything else, the neighbor kid left it hanging on the fence. 5 minutes later he had it.

She feels bad about it, told her not to worry we'd keep an eye on the calf.

He's still doing fine.

It will happen to all of us sooner or later. Seems like one small piece of string suddenly appears from nowhere two days after you put it out and thought you got every bit of string off.

 

[Craig Miller]

Im just a 'weekender' so i have time to do stuff like that.

If I were a full time cattleman, I'd still take the time to do things right. Mistakes get expensive. Accidents too. Hate cutting that stuff off of my cutter blades.

My dad does not take the time. I wish he would cause of that. I hate digging it out of mowers and mounds of hay. Especially the plastic twine.

 

[donna]

My 2 month old bull calf just ate 2ft of hay string. I couldn't get it away in time (5 minutes ). It's my K C F Bennetts Absolute calf. I'll just keep an eye on him. What is the chances of it getting twisted up in his gut?

Thanks

I know this was many years ago and I hope you see this. My 3 month old calf at a piece of plastic twine about 1.5 ft that I had used to tie a battle with not thinking she could get. It was a week ago she does have loose bowels but eating fine and still on the bottle. Did your calf do ok?

 

[Named'em Tamed'em]

I know this was many years ago and I hope you see this. My 3 month old calf at a piece of plastic twine about 1.5 ft that I had used to tie a battle with not thinking she could get. It was a week ago she does have loose bowels but eating fine and still on the bottle. Did your calf do ok?

Yep.