More Cows and Family Christmas

Yesterday I headed out with the cattle vet again. We started the day with a "nursery barn"- not the official name but that's what I call it. These are farms where farmers essentially board their calves until they go into their first pregnancy and begin producing milk. This is definitely an interesting way of handling the dairy cow production system.The young cows being raised on the farm would take up space and feed that producing cows could use, and so the calf farms are really a necessity for the volume of milk that farmers need to produce to stay  afloat. Since cows normally have their first calves at about 2 years of age, the calves leave the main farm once they are off of milk, and stay at the nursery barns until they are two. Most nursery barns also work with the young cows a lot to get them friendly and used to people and equipment, so that they are ready to "do their job" once they return home.

We were doing pregnancy checks there on the older heifers, and I got to learn to herd and cut cattle to get them one by one into the run and head gate. They tend to follow the fence and have a little more prominent "shy" zones than horses, making them much easier to herd. I felt like a sheep dog in the pen, but I had a great time, even though it was very cold. The farmer who ran the barn kept making jokes to me and encouraging me on, and Dr. C. was plenty patient with me, even when I turned them the wrong way. He and I are continuing to get to know each other, and he even gave me some small things to do (even if it was just holding things and herding cows!) which not only made me feel somewhat useful, but also helped keep me warm!

We got an emergency call shortly after we left this barn and were heading to another. It was for a cow off her feed. On the way over the farm, I picked his brain about what the first things were he looked for in cattle when evaluating them for possible sickness, and common ailments. The main thing he mentioned, which it turned out to be, was a displaced abomasum (D.A.) or twisted stomach.

When we got to the farm, it was deserted. We couldn't find a single person, though we found the sick cow and looked her over. Her temperature was low at 99. Dr. C. showed me her lymph nodes and had me feel for them, and then let me listen to the "ping" that acompanies a D.A. The D.A. is caused by gas being overproduced in the stomach, either from poor nutrition, sickness or a secondary symptom of another disease. This causes the stomach to move around inside the body cavity, getting out of place. It can move either to the right or left side of where it is supposed to be. In this case, it was the left. When a stethoscope is placed on the side of the cow, and her side is flicked, rather than the dull thud you would expect, you get a "ping." It is an almost tinny noise that occurs from the gas.


The treatment for this could have been medical or surgical; the owners (once we tracked them down via phone), opted to try for the medicinal and go with surgery if needed. The cow was put on antibiotics (since her uterus also had pus in it), and would have baking soda put in her feed for the next couple of days, as well as calcium and some banamine being given in vein. Why baking soda? Well, calves have a special pipe that transports milk directly from their mouth to the abomasum, the main compartment of the stomach. This allows it to bypass the other compartments (the rumen, reticulum and omasum) and go straight to where it will do the most good. This tube is essentially unused once the calf is weaned, but it still exists. The pH of baking soda, being similar to milk, causes the flap covering the hole to open up, and the baking soda, a bicarbonate, acts to reduce acidity and gas in the abomasum. If it doesn't after a few days, then surgery (necessitating the stomach wall being sewed to the body wall to keep it in place) becomes necessary. Really interesting to learn about.

Our last farm call was to a small dairy farm (about 40 milkers). The facilities there were really nice, though the farm was small, and you could tell that the farmer really took care of these cows. They all had fresh straw and clean bedding, with the poop being removed very quickly after it occurred. The cows were quite friendly as well, and very clean (for cows!). It almost looked as if he brushed some of them! We just did some more pregnancy and heat checks on these cows. Dr. C. explained to me what he felt for upon palpation and the main signs of pregnancy and heat in the uterine structures. He also gave me a comparative anatomy lesson between horses and cows reproductive systems, which is summarized in the diagrams below. Cows truly have uterine "horns"- they even curl under! The development of placenta is also a lot different in both species.

Horse

Enough about cows though. Today was the family X-mas party. We held it at my house this year, which was quite fun! Remi got to wear her jingle bell collar all day, and we lit a fire in the upstairs fireplace. Many of my cousins and relatives who I don't often get to see were able to make it up, which was great. We ate off of paper dishes so that there wasn't much to clean up, and my grandmother stuck around and gave me a hand afterwards, since Jared had to go to work. Made for a nice and easy day! I have so many leftovers in my fridge :)

Melissa