Post by barefootfarmer on Dec 17, 2015 10:21:51 GMT -5
I posted earlier this week about my cow Nelly whose behavior was "off" after freshening. Here's the link familycow.proboards.com/thread/82273/fresh-cow-sour-stomach?page=1&scrollTo=784937
But a brief synopsis- 25 month Holstein, first time calving, no trouble delivering. Milked her by machine 24 hrs after delivering calf, and separated calf at that point. Her milk production was 1 1/2 gallon the first milking, 1/2 gallon second milking. Day two first milking gave 1/2 gallon and she had no appetite, cold ears, cold nose, and had to be coaxed in to milk. At that point I called the vet out.
The vet who came out diagnosed her with Milk fever and ketosis from getting into the grain barrel.
He treated her with IV calcium, tubed her and gave more meds then left me with a bag of powdered electrolytes and instructions to get her to drink a lot of water, feed her alfalfa and no grain. He also suggested that I dry her off completely. I opted not to dry her off because I couldn't afford to keep her an entire year without milking her. I'd have to beef her out. It was a painful decision to have to make.
12 hours after the vet visit she was up and alert, although still showing signs of dehydration. She's eating alfalfa and hay, no desire for grain or alfalfa pellets. Her total milk production yesterday was 1.5 gallons.
My questions are:
First, are we out of the woods? Do I need to worry about her relapsing?
Second, is her milk production going to increase over time? Or is she actually drying herself off? Or did her milk fever and ketosis permanently affect the amount of milk she will produce this lactation?
Last night she milked out half a gallon and 7 cups was pure cream.
I'm still trying to grasp how such a young, first timer (holstein) came down with milk fever.
Does this mean she's going to be high risk with her future calvings?
I didn't post in 911 because by the time I knew it was an emergency I already had the vet out. It happened quick and I got him here within hours. And now it's not so much an emergency as I'm just trying to figure things out. And hoping those of you with more experience in this situation can help me understand and possibly tell me it's all going to be ok, truthfully.
But a brief synopsis- 25 month Holstein, first time calving, no trouble delivering. Milked her by machine 24 hrs after delivering calf, and separated calf at that point. Her milk production was 1 1/2 gallon the first milking, 1/2 gallon second milking. Day two first milking gave 1/2 gallon and she had no appetite, cold ears, cold nose, and had to be coaxed in to milk. At that point I called the vet out.
The vet who came out diagnosed her with Milk fever and ketosis from getting into the grain barrel.
He treated her with IV calcium, tubed her and gave more meds then left me with a bag of powdered electrolytes and instructions to get her to drink a lot of water, feed her alfalfa and no grain. He also suggested that I dry her off completely. I opted not to dry her off because I couldn't afford to keep her an entire year without milking her. I'd have to beef her out. It was a painful decision to have to make.
12 hours after the vet visit she was up and alert, although still showing signs of dehydration. She's eating alfalfa and hay, no desire for grain or alfalfa pellets. Her total milk production yesterday was 1.5 gallons.
My questions are:
First, are we out of the woods? Do I need to worry about her relapsing?
Second, is her milk production going to increase over time? Or is she actually drying herself off? Or did her milk fever and ketosis permanently affect the amount of milk she will produce this lactation?
Last night she milked out half a gallon and 7 cups was pure cream.
I'm still trying to grasp how such a young, first timer (holstein) came down with milk fever.
Does this mean she's going to be high risk with her future calvings?
I didn't post in 911 because by the time I knew it was an emergency I already had the vet out. It happened quick and I got him here within hours. And now it's not so much an emergency as I'm just trying to figure things out. And hoping those of you with more experience in this situation can help me understand and possibly tell me it's all going to be ok, truthfully.