F- skinned teat update & mastitis

[Shelley (whistlingtrain)]

Well, it's been a week now, and Beauty's teat is healing fairly nicely. It's about the same size as the others now, and her production (including the damaged quarter) is back to what it was previously. The pain, tenderness, and bruising seem to be gone because she lets me massage it and doesn't fidget or kick any more. I still try not to handle the teat much itself, other than what is necessary with cleaning and inserting the cannula each milking. All of the teat that is skinless has a nice scab all over it and I'm afraid to dislodge anything and open it up to the evils of our currently very muddy environment.

I've been using the mastitis test cards each milking and they have consistently been negative, but tonight when I milked the cannula plugged and I instantly thought--mastitis clot. I was able to dislodge it with a little pressure on the udder and then the milk flowed perfectly into my pail. When I filtered afterwards there were a number of small, yellowish clots in the milk. I have set it aside for the pigs tomorrow. These are the first clots I've noticed--nothing this morning in the filter. I'm wondering if I dislodged them with the extra massaging this morning, since that is a new step. She wasn't letting down well until yesterday so the upper part of her udder stayed very firm.

I do have three tubes of Amoxi-mast, which is what the vet supply had when I was there last week. They didn't have Today, which has been pulled. I reread the mastitis chapter in Joanne's book (and then chapter 36 in All Creatures Great & Small, about the all-night massage-and-strip job). I'm not up to that, and even though I believe in organic, I feel that antibiotics have their place. They saved my life last summer. And I've lost pigs from trying to avoid antibiotics, when a simple shot or two would have spared them.

So, I'm assuming that I milk her out and then use the infusion through the teat? And then, if I give her a shot of antibiotic as well, as Joanne suggests, what should I use? I really don't want to mess around with any further illness or infection, so I want it to be as quick as possible. And, if I'm using the infusion, should I try to milk her out a third time between doses, or will I milk out the drug?

Thank you for any suggestions...

Shelley

[Shelley (whistlingtrain)]

After milking this morning there were only three tiny clots in the filter. I went ahead with the Amoxi-mast, and I will continue for the next two doses just to be safe, since I've already started. The card still says completely negative.

I tried handling the bad teat again and she didn't seem to mind TOO much, so I think I'll try and handle it like I'm milking while I strip out. My gut feeling is that it will help get everything in working order inside the teat. It must be like a urinary catheter, and I know you're supposed to get those out as soon as you can or the muscles lose condition.

Anyway, Beauty's a peach. I love this cow. I had to threaten with the rope when I did the medicine, but she only needs a reminder, not a full-blown cinch.

Shelley

[Claire]

That is good news. I would stick with just the teat infusions. I don't use injectable antibiotics for mastitis unless its a really, really, really bad case to the point I have the vet out and he recommends it.

[Joann]

I agree with Claire. It would be unusual for me to give a shot for mastitis although my vet has done it a couple of times over the years. The infustion is usually highly effective.

Joann

[Shelley (whistlingtrain)]

This morning I finished the mastitis antibiotic. After 5 milkings we can keep milk again. Although, I might wait longer since I can't actually milk out the oily medicine. We'll have to wait and see how that goes. I gobbed up the scabbed teat with balm this morning, so hopfully that will soften up the scab and I can handle it without worrying so much about cracking it and opening it up to infection.

There are no clots at all in the milk any more, and weren't last night. I'm wondering if I jumped the gun on the medication and maybe she didn't have mastitis after all. Maybe I just dislodged some deposits in massaging.

Now I need a shower--I smell like a cow!
Shelley

[Midgimoo]

You've done a good job with a tricky injury Shelley, well done
And Beauty must be a great wee cow.

It is very difficult to avoid mastitis with an injury like this. Does the quarter feel nice and soft now?

I'd suggest that when you've done the five milkings, you milk some from that quarter into a cup and taste the milk. If it's at all salty this indicates mastitis.

[Shelley (whistlingtrain)]

Thanks, Midge. I'm not sure if I've done a good job or not. I know I didn't do bad though. :-) Thanks to Claire, Pat, and Joanne for your support!

The quarter feels softer since I've been massaging, but it still feels a bit tight at the top, like it does when she hasn't let down completely. It's not rock hard, just stiffish. I will taste it Sunday and see what I think. It didn't taste salty yesterday, before medicating, I just panicked when I saw the clots.

Midge, and everyone else, what do you think about trying to work the scabbed teat end? I think she'll let me do just about anything, so I can't go by that. Should I just let it rest until there is scar tissue there, or should I risk breaking the scab. Remember, about the bottom inch of the teat is scab with no skin. Also, it's started leaking when she lets down now, without the cannula inserted. Is that an indication that the sphincter is gone or too early to tell?

Thanks Everyone!
Shelley

[Claire]

I would think if the sphincter were gone she would be leaking all the time- just leaking when she is letting down would indicate to me that its still intact.

[Tricia]

I recommend leaving the scab and letting her body do what it needs to there. It is protecting the damaged area so if at all possible don't mess with it. Vit E or Aloe or olive oil would help keep soften it if you want to try that.
Beauty sounds like such a sweety. Give her a hug from me.

[BasleeBackwoodsFarm]

I would leave it alone except for putting some vitamin e or other on it. It is healing under the scab and when it is ready it will come off and her skin should be smooth. If you break it or take it off before it is healed it will start over with a new scab. Some parts of the scab might come off sooner than the other. Just means that part isn't healed yet. If you are wanting to try to milk that quarter just lube it up real good and see how she does. Hope this helps.

[Shelley (whistlingtrain)]

Last night when I went out to milk I noticed that the top half of the scab had fallen off and it was pink underneath with a few red spots. It didn't seem overly tender. I tried to milk that teat in the morning and I actually made the poor dear jump. So I slathered it up with balm and left it. I'm guessing the balm softened it enough to slough it off. When I milked this morning the entire scab had nearly fallen off. Just the bit on the end where it was still attached seemed tender, what with that hulk of scab hanging there. She stood still for me while I soaked it in warm water. Hopefully that will get the whole thing to come off on its own and we can start with a fresh scab. It's not bloody or anything, but does look tender. I had a hard time keeping the cannula in there while I was milking this morning. I think there is not enough swollen tissue to keep it in there any more. The good news though is that without all that scab there, she definitely isn't leaking much, if at all, except at let-down. That's a relief to me because I've been worried that she lost the sphincter with the teat end. Now, I'm hoping that she'll let me milk out the injured teat tonight, just like normal without the cannula. The whole teat seems stretched out and where it joins the udder is still floppy, like the muscle tone is gone. I hope that can be remedied with normal milking. Tonight's milking will be the last to be thrown out after the antibiotic, so tomorrow I'll give it a taste and see how it is.

Thanks again for all your support and advice!
Shelley