My cow are dying

[jarhead]

The Vet came in the middle of a snow/ice storm and tried to save the animal I can't complain about her. She instructed my wife on how we shoulld dose the animal the next day I work at night.

I have a question? Did your vet come and see the animals or just give advice over the phone?

 

[jarhead]

I am feeding all the praire hay they want until the trouble started I was feeding the 20% feed in a Drum mineral fortified. The hay is not the greatest, now I am feeding about 5 lbs per head per day 20% breeder cubes

What are you feeding them? Are you feeding em enough?

 

[jarhead]

Had one cow start getting stiff in her hind quarters with her hock or ankle trying to roll under as she walked making a popping sound, we pulled blood sample and gave her a tube of cal-mag and a dose of pro bios the next day her footing was solid, the next day another dose of cal-mag then on day three took blood and another dose, that night she slipped a calf. Still born.

 

[ga. prime]

jarhead, have you got it figured out enough where you could boil it down to the underlying cause(s) for this series of unfortunate events?

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Now that you hopefully have checked the charts, what Body Condition Score are your cows? Be brutally honest. It's really hard to look at your own cattle and SEE that they are thin, but compare the pics on the web site.

 

[chesncl]

have you thought about pregnancy toxemia?? this can hit mulitple cows if they are heavy bred and depending on what they're eating..just something you might wanna run by the vet.

 

[jarhead]

They are thin looking at the chart I would say a three or four if I am reading it right.

Now that you hopefully have checked the charts, what Body Condition Score are your cows? Be brutally honest. It's really hard to look at your own cattle and SEE that they are thin, but compare the pics on the web site.

 

[jarhead]

Not at all waiting on blood test results just treading water....

jarhead, have you got it figured out enough where you could boil it down to the underlying cause(s) for this series of unfortunate events?

 

[jarhead]

Never heard of it, very new to the buisness will look it up thanks.

have you thought about pregnancy toxemia?? this can hit mulitple cows if they are heavy bred and depending on what they're eating..just something you might wanna run by the vet.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

They are thin looking at the chart I would say a three or four if I am reading it right.

Now that you hopefully have checked the charts, what Body Condition Score are your cows? Be brutally honest. It's really hard to look at your own cattle and SEE that they are thin, but compare the pics on the web site.

This could be the major underlying problem. Late pregnancy takes a lot out of a cow, and if she is that thin, she has no reserves. Cattle can starve to death standing bellie deep in hay if it doesn't have any food value. I would definately be graining them. Don't just start pouring the grain to them - you can make them sick by giving them too much too fast. You have been feeding them some grain, so I would start giving them more, slowly increasing the amount, til they are getting 5-10#/hd/day. I would never recommend feeding grain to a cow, but sounds like your cows need it.
Your vet might not have been overly excited about "helping" because of the condition of the cows. Hard for a thin cow to fight any kind of illness, especially in bad weather.

 

[dieselbeef]

3 pergo cows all dying of malnutr at the same time..within a week...comon..really..how many cows ya got jar??

something has changed..feed/pasture/or somethin/protien block/mineral..etc...its contagious ro common... ill bet whatever it is or something common to all the cows

 

[Caustic Burno]

This boils down to a management problem not a cow problem other than a bad case of holler tail.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

This boils down to a management problem not a cow problem other than a bad case of holler tail.

I was not trying to say they are dieing because they are thin - just if they are that thin they do not have any reserves if there is a disease. I realize I said they could die standing bellie deep in hay - should not have said it in this case - just making a point that a lot of newbies don't understand. Just because they have something to EAT doesn't mean it's doing them any good.
Several of you have mentioned "holler tail" in other threads - that's a new term to me (or maybe really, really old term - or Southern term??)
Edit: I get the "gist" of what you are meaning!

 

[kypops]

thanks for the replay, she is only 4 day old . the snow is about 9 in deep here.
the other cows stay in the barn or the 3 sided shed.

 

[Caustic Burno]

This boils down to a management problem not a cow problem other than a bad case of holler tail.

I was not trying to say they are dieing because they are thin - just if they are that thin they do not have any reserves if there is a disease. I realize I said they could die standing bellie deep in hay - should not have said it in this case - just making a point that a lot of newbies don't understand. Just because they have something to EAT doesn't mean it's doing them any good.
Several of you have mentioned "holler tail" in other threads - that's a new term to me (or maybe really, really old term - or Southern term??)
Edit: I get the "gist" of what you are meaning!

Old timers back in the day before we fed hay just let the cows roam the woods. Old cows would get poor and sick and they would bring them in and treat them for hollow tail. The only thing that was holler was their belly.
They always got better as they were kept up and fed corn and molasses.

 

[jarhead]

Hope I am replying in the correct place I have 23 head left.

3 pergo cows all dying of malnutr at the same time..within a week...comon..really..how many cows ya got jar??

something has changed..feed/pasture/or somethin/protien block/mineral..etc...its contagious ro common... ill bet whatever it is or something common to all the cows

 

[jarhead]

I am new at this and may be doing it wrong. I ask several people what would be best the cake or the tubs, then I ask if I needed to put out mineral or put out mineral fortified tubs, I may have got it all wrong.

This boils down to a management problem not a cow problem other than a bad case of holler tail.

I was not trying to say they are dieing because they are thin - just if they are that thin they do not have any reserves if there is a disease. I realize I said they could die standing bellie deep in hay - should not have said it in this case - just making a point that a lot of newbies don't understand. Just because they have something to EAT doesn't mean it's doing them any good.
Several of you have mentioned "holler tail" in other threads - that's a new term to me (or maybe really, really old term - or Southern term??)
Edit: I get the "gist" of what you are meaning!

Old timers back in the day before we fed hay just let the cows roam the woods. Old cows would get poor and sick and they would bring them in and treat them for hollow tail. The only thing that was holler was their belly.
They always got better as they were kept up and fed corn and molasses.

 

[Workinonit Farm]

They always got better as they were kept up and fed corn and molasses.

Ask some of the folks around here and they'll tell you that it wasn't the corn that cured them but the turpentine and lard that was slathered into/on the slice they made in the "hollow" tail.

The same cure worked for 'Hollow Horn'. :roll:

katherine

 

[jarhead]

Not yet waiting on results of blood work. Hopefully that will give me a direction to run.

jarhead, have you got it figured out enough where you could boil it down to the underlying cause(s) for this series of unfortunate events?

 

[BRYANT]

Well I have been following this post for a few days and the more I read the more I wonder if this is even real or just a joke ???
1)If it is all true I would get me a Vet that knew what is going on
2) I would stop asking so many question and saying how I don't know much and am new at this and would put out tubs , range-mix , minerals ,cubes , good hay , filler-hay ,grain ,sweetfeed and any other thing I can think of to get my cows back up and going
3)If I did not know what I was doing or at least know something about cattle I would have started out smaller at least for a couple of years
4)You said you have 20 some head left ,23 maybe , well I would pick me out about 3 of the best looking ones . if I could not determain that I would get someone to help me that knew cows -farmer or vet and keep them and the rest would be headed to the first and nearest sale barn from the sound of things that should have happened last week