Post by twistedwillow on May 31, 2021 19:28:48 GMT -5
How do you jump start a rumen?
I am planning to try to steal Leah's cud tonight for Emma, but what are other ways to get a dead rumen going again? Is there another way? I can't think lately. So far this year, I miss 2020- It was a much better year.
The latest issue on the farm is Emma, my 4 year old Jersey. Neither she nor her twin sis bred back, so both are open. They calved 13 months ago. I am blaming the A.I. guy, the bull never had a problem getting them bred. So, anyway, at least I don't have to worry about anything harming a baby.
Emma was fine on friday, May 21st when they left the barn. She didn't come in with the rest of them and we found her in the bottom of our north pasture. She couldn't get up and had water running out of her mouth. Not snot- water. Sometimes there was chunky white stuff in it. Nothing was coming from her nose. It was so much water that it sounded like we had a stream in the pasture.
The vet couldn't come out that night- he has two broken feet, and they were bothering him too much- so we did what we could, slept in the field with her, and expected her to be dead by morning. She got Vitamin B complex, aspirin boluses, Sulfa boluses, stress boluses.
The vet was out Saturday (broken feet and all) and said that she didn't sound like she had pneumonia. She seemed to have hardware disease, despite having had a magnet. He took a bunch of blood, and a fecal, gave her another magnet (He says it's actually fine- it's a misconception that it's dangerous) Gave her Excede, and something like Dexamethasone, tubed her with electrolyes, and said that the prognosis isn't good.
Long story slightly less long: she was down for 3 days then stood up and started to walk around. She hadn't eatten since sometime Friday, so we have been drenching her with feed smoothies. She definately (obviously) has ketosis.
Tuesday she walked into a bramble patch. Sabrina and I started cutting her out of it, and she would just press in farther. Emma ended up falling on Sabrina, who was still holding loppers. It forced the loppers through Sabrina's work boot and into her foot. After about 3 hours in the emergency room, and some stitches (nothing is broken) my mom helped me get Emma out of the brambles. We had to put a strap around her and drag her out with the truck. I am now COVERED in bug bites and poison oak. It's gross.
Wednesday night,somehow, Emma walked up to the barn. She also went through a fence that I had to cut her out of. She is a classic case of nervous ketosis.
She's been getting the Vit. B, Propylene glycol- though I have now switched to keto gel, an anti-inflammatory, and the feed smoothies that I make her, which also has molasses in it. She also still gets the stress boluses, and probios.
Okay- so last night she CAME AT ME for her bottles! She really wanted that stuff. I get about a gallon and a half down her, 4 times a day. Since she grabbed the bottle thing I use with her tongue and pulled it into her mouth, I tried giving her regular grain. She still doesn't remember how to eat, but wants grain and hay. She ate a few mouthfulls of hay today- I think she accidentally got it into her mouth. She still mostly blows bubbles when she tries to drink from a bucket. She is peeing though, and not dehydrated, so the smoothies must be giving her enough liquid to sustain her. Her rumen no longer looks empty- but she is still stupid.
So, if she gets enough feed into her for her rumen to work- what's the best way to get the rumen working? I should be able to steal cud from Leah tonight, but would that do enough if she hasn't eatten like a real cow for 10 days?
We are seeing such improvement, I really don't think she is going to die- but I cannot force feed a cow for the rest of her life...
**I am actually probably forgetting something else that I am doing to her, or that the vet did. I am too tired for this. LOL
I am planning to try to steal Leah's cud tonight for Emma, but what are other ways to get a dead rumen going again? Is there another way? I can't think lately. So far this year, I miss 2020- It was a much better year.
The latest issue on the farm is Emma, my 4 year old Jersey. Neither she nor her twin sis bred back, so both are open. They calved 13 months ago. I am blaming the A.I. guy, the bull never had a problem getting them bred. So, anyway, at least I don't have to worry about anything harming a baby.
Emma was fine on friday, May 21st when they left the barn. She didn't come in with the rest of them and we found her in the bottom of our north pasture. She couldn't get up and had water running out of her mouth. Not snot- water. Sometimes there was chunky white stuff in it. Nothing was coming from her nose. It was so much water that it sounded like we had a stream in the pasture.
The vet couldn't come out that night- he has two broken feet, and they were bothering him too much- so we did what we could, slept in the field with her, and expected her to be dead by morning. She got Vitamin B complex, aspirin boluses, Sulfa boluses, stress boluses.
The vet was out Saturday (broken feet and all) and said that she didn't sound like she had pneumonia. She seemed to have hardware disease, despite having had a magnet. He took a bunch of blood, and a fecal, gave her another magnet (He says it's actually fine- it's a misconception that it's dangerous) Gave her Excede, and something like Dexamethasone, tubed her with electrolyes, and said that the prognosis isn't good.
Long story slightly less long: she was down for 3 days then stood up and started to walk around. She hadn't eatten since sometime Friday, so we have been drenching her with feed smoothies. She definately (obviously) has ketosis.
Tuesday she walked into a bramble patch. Sabrina and I started cutting her out of it, and she would just press in farther. Emma ended up falling on Sabrina, who was still holding loppers. It forced the loppers through Sabrina's work boot and into her foot. After about 3 hours in the emergency room, and some stitches (nothing is broken) my mom helped me get Emma out of the brambles. We had to put a strap around her and drag her out with the truck. I am now COVERED in bug bites and poison oak. It's gross.
Wednesday night,somehow, Emma walked up to the barn. She also went through a fence that I had to cut her out of. She is a classic case of nervous ketosis.
She's been getting the Vit. B, Propylene glycol- though I have now switched to keto gel, an anti-inflammatory, and the feed smoothies that I make her, which also has molasses in it. She also still gets the stress boluses, and probios.
Okay- so last night she CAME AT ME for her bottles! She really wanted that stuff. I get about a gallon and a half down her, 4 times a day. Since she grabbed the bottle thing I use with her tongue and pulled it into her mouth, I tried giving her regular grain. She still doesn't remember how to eat, but wants grain and hay. She ate a few mouthfulls of hay today- I think she accidentally got it into her mouth. She still mostly blows bubbles when she tries to drink from a bucket. She is peeing though, and not dehydrated, so the smoothies must be giving her enough liquid to sustain her. Her rumen no longer looks empty- but she is still stupid.
So, if she gets enough feed into her for her rumen to work- what's the best way to get the rumen working? I should be able to steal cud from Leah tonight, but would that do enough if she hasn't eatten like a real cow for 10 days?
We are seeing such improvement, I really don't think she is going to die- but I cannot force feed a cow for the rest of her life...
**I am actually probably forgetting something else that I am doing to her, or that the vet did. I am too tired for this. LOL