How to stop cow from scratching open sores

[Tamara]

These sores/abrasions on Tallulah were originally created by flies. Little bites that the flies just kept nibbling at so they turned into large-coin-sized cuts. The problem is I just CANNOT get them to heal. It's been six months - they appeared in summer, during the fly season - but now it's the second month of winter and there are very few flies left. Granted, it's been a wet winter so the flies have stayed around longer than usual, but the abrasions are now self inflicted. Every day Tallulah scratches them open again by rubbing on trees.

There are 4 on the underneath of her neck and two more higher up, one on each side of her neck. There are also two much smaller ones behind each of her horns, at the base of her ears. These have mostly healed up. They are shiny in these photos as I'd just applied ointment.



(click to enlarge)

At first I tried applying bepanthen daily, the same cream I use for her teats. That rubbed off too easily so I tried vaseline for the oily effect, and then switched to ungvita, a vitamin A ointment. It's excellent for healing cuts and it worked better than anything else I'd tried, but the problem is each time the abrasions start to heal over, she just scratches them right open again. I also spray with fly spray whenever I see flies on her (every few days) just in case. But it's a vicious, never ending cycle of continuously reopening the wounds.

I doubt a bandage would work as I imagine she'd just rip it while rubbing on a tree. She doesn't have lice or any other infestation, she doesn't have a skin condition because they don't spread and she doesn't rub/itch hard enough to scratch any other place open. She just rubs enough that the scabs are broken off each time. She also has scabs in the corners of her eyes still, also originally from fly bites.

She actually seemed worse about her scratching this year because she broke open the eye darts on not only her new fly mask, but MacLeod's too when I used it to replace her ripped one. Other years she has been gentler with her masks.

Any ideas? I'd really like to heal these things before the flies come back next summer!

[karenp]

I don't know if this is a good idea, but my first thought is some type of cortisone cream to stop the itching.

[hazelsmilker]

I've had similar problems in the past, as much from the cows licking wounds with their rough tongue as from scratching on other things. What finally worked for me was both treating topically with a herbal wound spray and also giving a vitamin AD&E supplement orally to promote skin health. I can't remember the brand of the wound spray; it was a local product that probably isn't sold down under. It seemed to help reduce the itching in any event. The vitamin supplement was a gel in a tube that was easy to add to feed. I think that it really helped boost skin health. You also might try covering the wounds with a spray on skin. There are also some gel like skin coats around; they would probably scratch off easily though.

[Jenn]

cayenne

-Jenn

[grumpycow]

For little sores that she won't leave alone and can't get her mouth too I'd be tempted to use a small amount of ointment for healing & anti-itch, a little wound dressing over the sore itself and then quality/sticky smooth duct tape for a couple of days to cover it and give it a chance to seal.
Duct tape is slipperier than most wound tape so should be harder to rub off.
It doesn't breathe too well though so don't use too much, put gauze between it and the wound and don't leave it on too long. Since it's stuck to the fur not the skin it should breathe enough?

Might be a stupid idea though - I haven't actually done it.
(and I use duck tape and cable ties for way too many things - but never yet livestock)


Otherwise, have you considered a pony neck rug? It might slow down the scratching damage and should keep the flies off. If she's wearing the halter you could attach the top of the neck rug to that.

I've previously used squares of cut up cotton tea towels to cover wounds and keep flies off. I hold them on with cattle pink-eye eye patch glue. But that'll rub off if she's determined. (put glue around the edge of the patch - obviously no glue on the wound area).

[mummaducka]

Do you think it might be fungussy now? Then i would try canesten with cortisone to take away the itch, if not i think i'd try paraderm plus which is a human antiseptic cream with lignocaine to numb it. That way she won't feel them. Next step calcium bentonite made into a paste. Also to keep the bitey flies off have some fly bait stations to trap and kill them- just put them in the trees and also try citronella mixed into the vaseline. It works a treat at keeping them off dogs' ears.

[Tamara]

Thanks for the suggestions! I'll definitely get something to take away the itchiness. My brother has some kind of cortisone cream so I'll check that.

I love the idea of a neck rug, grumpycow! I think duct tape would stay on, I don't have any experience using it on animals either but I'll try it if nothing else works.

Jenn, how would I apply the cayenne? Just rub it straight onto the abrasions? Would I have to mix it into cream to make it stick better?

[Jenn]

If she has open sores, just dab it on there, it will coagulate on contact with the wet, like flour. It is a blood stop and it doesn't sting according to my son....we used it for a cut on his hand once.

-Jenn

[karenp]

When I read the title of the post about keeping a cow from scratching I had a mental image of a cow wearing one of the "cone of shame" collars they put on dogs to keep them from scratching.

[Tamara]

Thanks Jenn. The abrasions were dry and scabbed over this morning so I applied the ointment first to have something to stick to and brushed on the cayenne with my finger.
Funny little part, Tallulah must have smelled the cayenne when I opened the bottle and kept trying to crane her head around (she was in the stanchion). I let her lick the tip of my finger which had a little cayenne on it. She didn't react immediately but after a while she started drooling heaps. I guess it was hot! XD

karenp, if a cone of shame would stop Tallulah, I'd put one on her immediately! Unfortunately it won't help in her case... it would still look pretty funny though!

[Tamara]

Well I've been putting the cayenne on each morning and the abrasions are looking a bit better. There's new skin growing over some. I've been trying to get in touch with someone to buy a neck rug but they are away for a while. I'm not sure if the cayenne alone will heal them fully but I definitely think a neck rug will work, if I can just get one!