Standing in mud...

[Anonymous]

Greetings. I have a question regarding cattle standing in mud. This past unusually wet spring, our cattle stood in mud for long periods of time and seemed to prefer to do so even though dry ground was readily available. Unfortunatley, numerous cows and the bull developed horrible limps that seriously incapactiated a few of the older cows. After carrying water and feed to a few, everything seemed to be back on track minus some weight loss. About two months later a middle aged, otherwise healthy cow croaked. She had a limp during the mud fiasco two or so months earlier. Any idea what the cows got and if the death of the cow months later was connected? Thanks alot for your time. Duncan



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[Anonymous]

Two reasons the cows got sore feet when standing in mud--the first is footrot, which is a bacteria which spreads cow to cow. The second is that the mud will soften the hooves and allow abscess formation, or bruising when something sharp is stepped on. I have a hard time correlating that with the death of a cow. When an animal dies, it's always best to know why they died, and post mortem exam is the only way to know that!!

V