What to do with a cow with a severed teat.

[Todd 02]

I have a cow with a severed teat (across the width) that is leaking milk constantly. The tip of the teat is hanging on by a half-inch or so of skin. She is no longer nursing. I had a vet sew the teat back together but it somehow tore open again.

Can I just cut it off? Will she ever dry up and quit lactating if the milk continues to leak from the teat? Should I try to sew it back together again?

Right now, I'm leaning towards a trip to the sale barn as is. I don't want to feed her over the winter if she's not a keeper.

Any ideas would be appreciated...

 

[TexasBred]

Todd I knew one dairyman that use to put about 50-60 ccs of strong iodine up in the quarter then apply a castrating band on the teat. This killed the quarter and the teat would fall off in time. Believe it or not it worked.

 

[Lucky_P]

Teat lacerations all the way into the teat canal can be difficult to suture - and get the stitches to hold long enough for everything to heal, and even harder to get success if there's a vigorous calf sucking it - or if she's passing through the milk parlor 2 or 3 times a day.
Yes, she'll 'dry up', if there's no longer a calf nursing her and continually stimulating milk production; just leaking out through the laceration is not enough to maintain lactation - but, with that thing open to the world, she's at increased risk of mastitis. If she's worth it, and there's no longer a calf nursing her, I'd be inclined to try having it debrided and sewn again. Otherwise, ship her.