Post by Lannie on Sept 18, 2014 12:44:10 GMT -5
When I thought my life couldn't get much more interesting, it did.
This morning, I went out at 6:00-ish as usual to call Bandit in and let Oggie nurse. When I opened his stall, and he boinked by me to get to his mom, I noticed a mess on his tail and butt. WTH? Then I saw a big runny puddle of milk scours in the corner of his stall. HUH? Did Bandit all of a sudden start making a bunch more milk, like OVERNIGHT? I reached under and felt her udder, and it was very tight and full, so I thought maybe she did. It's a lot fuller and tighter than it was shortly after she calved, so obviously his demand is pushing up her supply. But still...
So later, I went out to milk, got Cricket milked and sent her out to the pen, brought Bandit and Oggie back in the barn, checked her udder, gave her her morning treat, stripped and tasted the milk (we've been battling on-again-off-again mastitis now for a while), and she was good and empty. Judging by previous years, her udder early this morning felt like there were at least a couple gallons in it, so I thought maybe Oggie IS getting milk scours from all that milk.
Then when Bandit was finished, I sent her and Oggie to the pen and brought Helen in for her stanchion session and morning treat (not that she NEEDS it, OMG she's a chunk!). When she was done, I tidied up the stanchion, put the bar up to close it off, loaded my cart up, then opened the gate to the pen so they could all go out and spend the day together, as they have been for the last several days.
When I got around to the horse side, and was topping up their water trough out in the corral, I saw Bandit and Cricket out by the trees, but no Helen or Oggie. Sometimes Oggie gets "lost" if he doesn't see where Bandit went, but she was in plain sight from the barn, so I went back over to the cow side to see what was up. Helen was standing at the big hay feeder in the barn, cleaning up scraps, and Oggie was underneath her, trying to nurse, AND SHE WAS LETTING HIM! I slapped him on the nose and sent him out the door, and he saw his mom and ran over to her (but she was empty).
I brought the milk in and told Rich, and said I think we have to lock him up ALL the time now, and just let him nurse morning and evening, or he was going to ruin Helen's udder (and by the way, I checked and although her teats were all slobbery, she still has the wax plugs in her teats, so he didn't do any damage this morning, just licking). So we went back out to fetch Oggie and bring him in the pen, and he was standing next to CRICKET with his head under her flank, and SHE WAS LETTING HIM. Holy cow! She never does that, but I guess she misses Bean, and any calf will do at the moment. And Oggie has obviously discovered that EVERY cow here has hangy down things that milk comes out of. Well, almost every one. Two outta three...
We got a lead on Oggie, and managed to push/pull him all the way back up to the pen, where he's currently cooling his little heels. But now I think I know why he had the runs this morning. Cricket let him nurse yesterday, and he gorged. Now I have to worry that he transferred Bandit's mastitis to Cricket. If THAT happens, I'm going to shoot myself. Or shoot Oggie, I'm not sure which...
He's not even two months old yet, and already I'm thinking of tasty beef in the freezer. I don't think it will be hard to beef him after all. I just hope all my girls make it through this with no adverse consequences. Cricket's not due to calve until May, so he'll have to be kept away from her at least until then (well, maybe he'll be weaned by then), and Helen SHOULD start kicking him off when she has her calf in another month or so (I HOPE!).
This whole cow thing is hard sometimes, you know? LOL!
~Lannie
This morning, I went out at 6:00-ish as usual to call Bandit in and let Oggie nurse. When I opened his stall, and he boinked by me to get to his mom, I noticed a mess on his tail and butt. WTH? Then I saw a big runny puddle of milk scours in the corner of his stall. HUH? Did Bandit all of a sudden start making a bunch more milk, like OVERNIGHT? I reached under and felt her udder, and it was very tight and full, so I thought maybe she did. It's a lot fuller and tighter than it was shortly after she calved, so obviously his demand is pushing up her supply. But still...
So later, I went out to milk, got Cricket milked and sent her out to the pen, brought Bandit and Oggie back in the barn, checked her udder, gave her her morning treat, stripped and tasted the milk (we've been battling on-again-off-again mastitis now for a while), and she was good and empty. Judging by previous years, her udder early this morning felt like there were at least a couple gallons in it, so I thought maybe Oggie IS getting milk scours from all that milk.
Then when Bandit was finished, I sent her and Oggie to the pen and brought Helen in for her stanchion session and morning treat (not that she NEEDS it, OMG she's a chunk!). When she was done, I tidied up the stanchion, put the bar up to close it off, loaded my cart up, then opened the gate to the pen so they could all go out and spend the day together, as they have been for the last several days.
When I got around to the horse side, and was topping up their water trough out in the corral, I saw Bandit and Cricket out by the trees, but no Helen or Oggie. Sometimes Oggie gets "lost" if he doesn't see where Bandit went, but she was in plain sight from the barn, so I went back over to the cow side to see what was up. Helen was standing at the big hay feeder in the barn, cleaning up scraps, and Oggie was underneath her, trying to nurse, AND SHE WAS LETTING HIM! I slapped him on the nose and sent him out the door, and he saw his mom and ran over to her (but she was empty).
I brought the milk in and told Rich, and said I think we have to lock him up ALL the time now, and just let him nurse morning and evening, or he was going to ruin Helen's udder (and by the way, I checked and although her teats were all slobbery, she still has the wax plugs in her teats, so he didn't do any damage this morning, just licking). So we went back out to fetch Oggie and bring him in the pen, and he was standing next to CRICKET with his head under her flank, and SHE WAS LETTING HIM. Holy cow! She never does that, but I guess she misses Bean, and any calf will do at the moment. And Oggie has obviously discovered that EVERY cow here has hangy down things that milk comes out of. Well, almost every one. Two outta three...
We got a lead on Oggie, and managed to push/pull him all the way back up to the pen, where he's currently cooling his little heels. But now I think I know why he had the runs this morning. Cricket let him nurse yesterday, and he gorged. Now I have to worry that he transferred Bandit's mastitis to Cricket. If THAT happens, I'm going to shoot myself. Or shoot Oggie, I'm not sure which...
He's not even two months old yet, and already I'm thinking of tasty beef in the freezer. I don't think it will be hard to beef him after all. I just hope all my girls make it through this with no adverse consequences. Cricket's not due to calve until May, so he'll have to be kept away from her at least until then (well, maybe he'll be weaned by then), and Helen SHOULD start kicking him off when she has her calf in another month or so (I HOPE!).
This whole cow thing is hard sometimes, you know? LOL!
~Lannie