Post by DanMa on Feb 27, 2015 6:38:38 GMT -5
For those of you who have been follwing my posts about my down cow, Camilia, she passed away of her own accord late Wed. afternoon. I was with her when she took her last breath. She did not appear to be in distress until that afternoon. I saw her born here, die here, and buried here (I should be so lucky). Ultimately, what did her in, of course, were the injuries she sustained 8 yrs ago when, as a calf her rear leg and tendons were chewed up by a neighbor's german shepherds. At that time, the elderly vet who sewed her up didn't think she would ever be able to stand again. This became her Archille's heel which gave out on her most recent visit to the bull (previous visits were uneventful). It is difficult to say what actually caused her demise. I am told that, given the results from her mastitis panel tests (dna tests), it is doubtful that the mastitis did her in. I am guessing that most likely it was a combination of factors that just became too taxing for her.
She could be quite a character at times. My most vivid memory occured two summers ago at milking time. I brought the milk pail out of the house with water in it which I pour into a pan to wash her udder with before milking. During the summer, my cows drink brook water (tested very good) but Camilia preferred my well water. I turned around & caught her drinking from the milk pail and said "you know I really shouldn't let you do that". She pulled her head out of the milk pail, licked my wrist & resumed drinking the well water.
A thousand thanks to all of you who cared to help. It is a great consolation, as is the fact that Camilia knew I was trying to help her and cooperated accordingly when I doctored her daily. Unfortunately, she was also very much a victim of the culture and discrimination by some vets who just couldn't be bothered to extend themselves to contribute to her healing. Had she been a horse or a dog, cat, etc., they would have given her MUCH more interest and attention and been much more forthcoming such that she might still be alive today but, as they saw it, she was "just a cow". It was like pulling teeth to get some information out of them. I am very touched by all the dimensions which her being down brought out, meaning the support, the negativity, the indifference and, from a couple of people (not on this board), the downright hostility, betrayal of trust, and potential headaches that could have caused.
Her burial spot is next to a section of my pasture that she particularly favored (the other cows not quite so much).
She will be sorely missed, that's for sure.
Thank you all again.
She could be quite a character at times. My most vivid memory occured two summers ago at milking time. I brought the milk pail out of the house with water in it which I pour into a pan to wash her udder with before milking. During the summer, my cows drink brook water (tested very good) but Camilia preferred my well water. I turned around & caught her drinking from the milk pail and said "you know I really shouldn't let you do that". She pulled her head out of the milk pail, licked my wrist & resumed drinking the well water.
A thousand thanks to all of you who cared to help. It is a great consolation, as is the fact that Camilia knew I was trying to help her and cooperated accordingly when I doctored her daily. Unfortunately, she was also very much a victim of the culture and discrimination by some vets who just couldn't be bothered to extend themselves to contribute to her healing. Had she been a horse or a dog, cat, etc., they would have given her MUCH more interest and attention and been much more forthcoming such that she might still be alive today but, as they saw it, she was "just a cow". It was like pulling teeth to get some information out of them. I am very touched by all the dimensions which her being down brought out, meaning the support, the negativity, the indifference and, from a couple of people (not on this board), the downright hostility, betrayal of trust, and potential headaches that could have caused.
Her burial spot is next to a section of my pasture that she particularly favored (the other cows not quite so much).
She will be sorely missed, that's for sure.
Thank you all again.