Post by evamommy on Dec 6, 2009 12:37:36 GMT -5
Well, I am feeling terrible, sure that I've done something very wrong, and I'm so hoping that you ladies will be able to tell me if I have, and how to fix it if I have.
I bought a cow last night. Long story, but the cow I went to buy was accidentally sold to someone else, and so the guy's friend sold me his, since I had driven 4 hours to buy a cow. I think it's actually all for the best, since when I got there, the first cow was still there, and she was looking very thin, and rather arthritic, not wanting to put weight on her back right leg.
Anyway....the cow I bought, the man claimed that he had purchased her from the auction about 1 month ago. That she had been preg checked at the auction, and at that point she was not bred, but was in milk. He said he milked her once that first day, and then not again since. During the month she was with him, she was in a pasture with a black bull.
So...I brought her home, and this morning I thought I would see if she had any milk left. Probably a dumb idea, I guess. But, I tried all four quarters; one of them I'm guessing is lost to mastitis (and is probably the reason she was culled from the dairy). It's very hard feeling (as is that quarter), and all that came out was a few drops of slightly blood-tinged clear golden stuff.
The other 3 quarters milked just fine, but the "milk" that came out was not white....it was very yellow, and while not exactly clear like the mastitic quarter, was clear-ish, if that makes sense. So it's got me wondering, could it be colostrum? And could she actually be bred? Or is that just what happens when a cow has been dried off?
So...here's my questions.....
How long (if at all) should I wait to have her preg checked?
If she is bred, have I ruined everything by "stealing" the colostrum?
Or, is that just what happens to milk when you dry off a cow?
And, is there any chance, any point in trying, to bring her back into milk? I don't know if it's a crazy idea, but when I was nursing my babies, at one point I quit nursing for over 3 weeks, dried up pretty completely, but was able to start up again no problem. So could a cow do it? Would it be ok, or are there reasons to not do it, even if it were possible?
Thanks in advance so much....this really is an awesome group.
Carrie
I bought a cow last night. Long story, but the cow I went to buy was accidentally sold to someone else, and so the guy's friend sold me his, since I had driven 4 hours to buy a cow. I think it's actually all for the best, since when I got there, the first cow was still there, and she was looking very thin, and rather arthritic, not wanting to put weight on her back right leg.
Anyway....the cow I bought, the man claimed that he had purchased her from the auction about 1 month ago. That she had been preg checked at the auction, and at that point she was not bred, but was in milk. He said he milked her once that first day, and then not again since. During the month she was with him, she was in a pasture with a black bull.
So...I brought her home, and this morning I thought I would see if she had any milk left. Probably a dumb idea, I guess. But, I tried all four quarters; one of them I'm guessing is lost to mastitis (and is probably the reason she was culled from the dairy). It's very hard feeling (as is that quarter), and all that came out was a few drops of slightly blood-tinged clear golden stuff.
The other 3 quarters milked just fine, but the "milk" that came out was not white....it was very yellow, and while not exactly clear like the mastitic quarter, was clear-ish, if that makes sense. So it's got me wondering, could it be colostrum? And could she actually be bred? Or is that just what happens when a cow has been dried off?
So...here's my questions.....
How long (if at all) should I wait to have her preg checked?
If she is bred, have I ruined everything by "stealing" the colostrum?
Or, is that just what happens to milk when you dry off a cow?
And, is there any chance, any point in trying, to bring her back into milk? I don't know if it's a crazy idea, but when I was nursing my babies, at one point I quit nursing for over 3 weeks, dried up pretty completely, but was able to start up again no problem. So could a cow do it? Would it be ok, or are there reasons to not do it, even if it were possible?
Thanks in advance so much....this really is an awesome group.
Carrie