Post by steadybright on Dec 3, 2010 22:35:57 GMT -5
Hi All,
I've read a few posts regarding milk vein edema, and I think our five year old Jersey has one.
I noticed it this evening as I was cleaning her up for milking. It is the size/shape of a flattened/elongated orange, and not too hard. It runs along the right milk vein, about six inches forward of her udder. It does not seem at all sensitive to her, even with me massaging it a bit to figure out what it may be.
She came into heat this week, and we had her artificially inseminated on Tuesday. The AI tech said she looks a little "under conditioned," and that we should increase her daily grain intake to 4-6 quarts. We were feeding her 35 lbs of baled alfalfa hay daily (and one quart of grain at each of two daily milkings). We purchased her six weeks ago from friends of friends, and I was thinking she was actually looking better... maybe we've got more conditioning to do. She has no history of disease. CMT is negative and her milk is consistently good.
At any rate, she's been a steady 2 gallon/day milker. Now that we've increased her grain to four quarts a day, she's giving 2.5 - 3 gallons a day. We want to ensure she's getting plenty of energy to settle, but I wonder if the additional grain is a factor with what I suspect is a milk vein edema. I'm hesitant to reduce the grain too much, as I want to do all I can to ensure she does settle, but the fact that she's got this lump tells me she's under some stress. Our intent is not to push her toward more milk production, rather to help her put on weight and give the AI the best chance to work.
Finally, I took her temperature this evening, and it is 102.1F. Based on the advice in the KFC book, it sounds a little high. Again, she is acting perfectly normal--her usual playful self. Could this elevated (if it is elevated) temperature indicate anything with respect to settling?
Has anyone had an experience similar to this with their own cow? Thank you in advance for your advice.
Sincerely,
steady
I've read a few posts regarding milk vein edema, and I think our five year old Jersey has one.
I noticed it this evening as I was cleaning her up for milking. It is the size/shape of a flattened/elongated orange, and not too hard. It runs along the right milk vein, about six inches forward of her udder. It does not seem at all sensitive to her, even with me massaging it a bit to figure out what it may be.
She came into heat this week, and we had her artificially inseminated on Tuesday. The AI tech said she looks a little "under conditioned," and that we should increase her daily grain intake to 4-6 quarts. We were feeding her 35 lbs of baled alfalfa hay daily (and one quart of grain at each of two daily milkings). We purchased her six weeks ago from friends of friends, and I was thinking she was actually looking better... maybe we've got more conditioning to do. She has no history of disease. CMT is negative and her milk is consistently good.
At any rate, she's been a steady 2 gallon/day milker. Now that we've increased her grain to four quarts a day, she's giving 2.5 - 3 gallons a day. We want to ensure she's getting plenty of energy to settle, but I wonder if the additional grain is a factor with what I suspect is a milk vein edema. I'm hesitant to reduce the grain too much, as I want to do all I can to ensure she does settle, but the fact that she's got this lump tells me she's under some stress. Our intent is not to push her toward more milk production, rather to help her put on weight and give the AI the best chance to work.
Finally, I took her temperature this evening, and it is 102.1F. Based on the advice in the KFC book, it sounds a little high. Again, she is acting perfectly normal--her usual playful self. Could this elevated (if it is elevated) temperature indicate anything with respect to settling?
Has anyone had an experience similar to this with their own cow? Thank you in advance for your advice.
Sincerely,
steady