Need help understanding a raw spot on a cow (pic)

[SRBeef]

I was checking my cattle this afternoon on a balmy +20 deg F day following a week of brutal cold down to about -28 deg F.

I was checking them all for frozen teats - saw a couple small black spots on a couple teats but nothing very unusual.

While they were all out almost sun bathing on a south slope after the morning snow stopped and the sun came out, one of my cows was a bit slower moving than usual and lying down near the feeder more than she usually does.

When she got up and over to the hay feeder I noticed a very red raw spot on her belly. This was more pronounced than the others.

Here is a picture:

Is this anything to worry about or will it just heal up?

Thanks for any advice.

 

[hillsdown]

Hmm , I don't know . It could be from rubbing but, did you feel it ? Is it hot or hard, and how much of the belly area is exposed because it is hard to tell from the pic..

 

[SRBeef]

Hmm , I don't know . It could be from rubbing but, did you feel it ? Is it hot or hard, and how much of the belly area is exposed because it is hard to tell from the pic..

I don't know - she would let me touch it. I thought it might have frozen or something related to the cold. The bare spot is just this hanging skin, both sides.

 

[HUS]

Hmm , I don't know . It could be from rubbing but, did you feel it ? Is it hot or hard, and how much of the belly area is exposed because it is hard to tell from the pic..

Looks to be the same reddened color as the teats. You mentioned that the cows had been lying in the sun. Appears to be cold stressed exposed flesh area to me. Possibly when the exposed skin (which is more sensitive in white hair areas) became stressed from the cold, maybe the cow lying in bright sunlight experienced some sunburn also???

Just a guess, but I would certainly get some type of balm or protective creme on those areas.

Keep us posted on your progress.


HUS

 

[SRBeef]

Here's another picture:

I appreciate any suggestions.

Thank you, HUS. This area was under her when she was lying down and even though the sun came out today for a bit, it seems hard to think it is that intense - but it could be.

 

[hillsdown]

I am thinking possibly frost bite from a while ago and the hair has now fallen out. If she is really off then I would think about running her through a chute and feel that area to see if there is an abscess or anything. The teats look fine as they should a normal pink / natural for that pigmentation.

Other than that, sorry I don't know what to add..

 

[HUS]

My dad would take a paint brush and apply a petroleum based rub (like used engine oil or even axle grease) on areas that were raw, cut, or injured. I use it on my stock animals also with great results.

Simple home remedy but it worked miracles as I remember. A lot of our neighbors did the same thing with cattle, hogs, goats, etc.

(He even put it on us sometimes. Hard to believe but true!) I still have a tube of "black drawing salve" that he rubbed on us for boils, cuts, splinters, etc. Boy did it draw!! Would take all the soreness out quickly.

HUS

 

[SRBeef]

Thanks. I'll try a rub tomorrow. Not sure about the motor oil though (I use synthetics!). May talk to my vet and the folks in town about a bag balm or something like that. This cow is one of my favorites for the future. I like to use both belt and suspenders on her. I'm leaning to frostbite as the cause. Appreciate it.

 

[Angus Cowman]

I still have a tube of "black drawing salve" that he rubbed on us for boils, cuts, splinters, etc. Boy did it draw!! Would take all the soreness out quickly.

HUS

You can still buy that blck salve the name it sells under is "Prid" wal mart sells it as do most drug stores

for all you ladies out their if you start to get a pimple put a little of it on and put a band aid over it and it will be completely gone by the next day Wife swears by it

 

[HUS]

I still have a tube of "black drawing salve" that he rubbed on us for boils, cuts, splinters, etc. Boy did it draw!! Would take all the soreness out quickly.

HUS

You can still buy that blck salve the name it sells under is "Prid" wal mart sells it as do most drug stores

for all you ladies out their if you start to get a pimple put a little of it on and put a band aid over it and it will be completely gone by the next day Wife swears by it

Hey Angus Cowman,

My dad used to swear that if you "put black drawing salve on the four corners of the earth it would pull the hinges off of he**." He said the same thing about the first huge 4wd John Deere he saw pulling.

I used it on my teenagers for the very reason you described. Would put some of the black salve on their pimple, cover with a piece of gauze and put them to bed. No soreness, no scar, and no pimple!

Smells like coal tar though and even works for cuts on our feet when we were barefoot and injured.

 

[SRBeef]

I had the cow above up in the corral with a couple others ready to put her through the chute and put some salve on her. While she was eating the sweet feed from the bunk I reached under and found it was soft and not really hot and had changed color from the day before. I might have tried to put the salve on there but didn't feel comfortable with that big rear leg ready to come up!

It was not the raw pink shown in the above pictures. This cow was also moving around better and eating well so I decided not to go through the chute and give her a couple more days.

I believe the pink thing had something to do with the intense cold last week.

Today I put out a 5 x 6 bale of very good hay in a very protected spot (trees on north and west) without a ring. Broke it up a bit and partially spread it out with the bale spear....

You should have seen them come over to it...like a bunch of kids on Christmas morning!

I was surprised at how deep the snow is in some spots - almost 3 ft deep. Snow covered the other spots with resting hay on the ground. since I outwinter with no buildings, I need to make sure there is a spot with clear (non snow covered) hay that they can lie down on when the temperatures get down to -20 deg F or lower. The wind has blown snow through the woods so that even in the dense woods the ground is 100% snow covered. Usually there are some bare white and red pine needles for them to bed on...but not this year.

Thanks for the responses.

 

[angus9259]

I have a black angus with the same spot in the same place (except it's black). It's been there for years. Doesn't seem to affect her one way or another. Another option is benign neglect. You might want to just keep an eye on it and see if it's bother her.

 

[VtMapleGal]

i cant really tell in the pics....could it be a hernia?

 

[SRBeef]

i cant really tell in the pics....could it be a hernia?

VT you are right - it does sort of LOOK like a hernia. And that would also answer why she was moving sort of gingerly....

But what could cause a hernia in that spot?? I don't think she has been lifting heavy boxes!

General question: what can cause a hernia in cows???

 

[redcowsrule33]

Most hernias in cattle that occur there are umbilical hernias that occurred at birth. Some animals have a very prominent umbilical stump that is not a hernia, just tissue. It may be that she had this all along and now it stands out due to the hair loss. She may have slightly frost-bit it. I have some cows that lose hair there during the summer from gnats. Is this areas swollen or is is floppy? If it is very swollen (feels like a filled balloon) then it could be a hernia. It would be unusual for a grown animal to acquire an umbilical hernia unless she had some inherent weakness there and the increased abdominal pressure from the fetus and feed has pushed some abdominal fat into the area. If there was intestine in there she would not be doing well based on the small size I suspect. My vote based on the pictures is a prominent umbilical stump made more obvious by hair loss.

 

[SRBeef]

Most hernias in cattle that occur there are umbilical hernias that occurred at birth. Some animals have a very prominent umbilical stump that is not a hernia, just tissue. It may be that she had this all along and now it stands out due to the hair loss. She may have slightly frost-bit it. I have some cows that lose hair there during the summer from gnats. Is this areas swollen or is is floppy? If it is very swollen (feels like a filled balloon) then it could be a hernia. It would be unusual for a grown animal to acquire an umbilical hernia unless she had some inherent weakness there and the increased abdominal pressure from the fetus and feed has pushed some abdominal fat into the area. If there was intestine in there she would not be doing well based on the small size I suspect. My vote based on the pictures is a prominent umbilical stump made more obvious by hair loss.

Thank you very much, red cows. I think you hit it on the head, or should I say umbilical cord?! That makes sense because I firmly believe it has something to do with the cold because she wasn't like that 10 days ago. I bit of frost bite on an umbilical stump that has been there but hair covered sounds like it makes sense. I am keeping an eye on her. She still moves a bit gently compared to how she usually moves. But I think the frost bite there might also be causing that - and might have the same effect as a hernia.

I appreciate the time spent by all to help each other on this site.