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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Oct 24 2019 :  10:22:37 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Good afternoon! Well, seems like things just don't want to go right. I had to call the vet for Nellie last evening because she just hasn't been herself. She just wouldn't eat. The vet checked her temperature, no fever, checked for bowel sounds and a displaced abomasum, nothing. So when I told him she acted this same way after calving he decided to give her Vit B injection and something to boost her up, along with a tube of oral calcium, and he had me repeat that this morning. I turned Nellie and Ollie out this morning. Nellie is acting more like herself. Ollie was castrated also last evening. Trooper, was neutered Tues, and is doing okay so far, which is better than Ranger did, but he too is improving. So a crazy, busy, week on the farm. Watching, waiting and hoping things get back to calm and normal. (If such a thing exists)

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown

maryjane

7072 Posts


Posted - Oct 24 2019 :  8:31:48 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Just like us, I guess our cows can get low in this or that. I keep Thiamine on hand for Miss Daisy. She hasn't needed any for a year or more, but I can tell when she needs it because she gets a shaky head. Apparently when the rumen gets off, a cow doesn't produce enough thiamine. Sounds like several of your critters have attended neutering camp lately. Hope Nellie continues to feel better.

Miss Daisy and Buttercup got hoof trims today and yesterday. Otherwise, lots of winter prep going on here--I drained more outdoor water pipes yesterday. This afternoon I wandered around our back 40 cutting down tiny Ponderosa trees growing in Jacie's pollinator strips. It was chilly but the sun was very warming and delicious.

MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~
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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Oct 25 2019 :  06:50:51 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
How long before you saw a noticeable improvement with Miss Daisy? Nellie still won't touch her grain, which isn't like her at all. She would eat hers and the other cows' grain too if given the chance. She is just standing in the pasture alone, eyes dull and half closed. I will put another call into the vet to give him and update, but my Nellie isn't feeling well.

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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maryjane

7072 Posts


Posted - Oct 25 2019 :  08:25:41 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
If she isn't eating, I'm thinking she might need choline (ReaShure). To know for sure, how about picking up some ketone sticks (available at any drug store) to check her urine?

https://www.heritagejersey.org/chatroom/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=26012

Also, can you look on the tubes of calcium you've been giving her and see if it has calcium chloride?

And to answer your question about Miss Daisy; when I give her a shot of Thiamine, the results show up within an hour and so and have always given her the time she needs to get her rumen bio/digestion back on track. I also treat her with probios when I give her the Thiamine.

MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~
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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Oct 25 2019 :  11:15:12 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Well, I called the vet and she and her assistant came out. I had Ketostix and tested Nellie's urine and milk before they came. Why they never checked it is beyond me. Anyway it showed that Nellie was ketotic. So they gave IV dextrose, more B vitamins, an oil mixture tubed into her stomach to get things more active, and we turned her out to pasture again. Before they came I also offered Nellie Bicarbonate sodium, which is the first things she has readily taken for three or four days. So I'm hoping. I have some ReaSure on hand so will look into that also. Thanks MaryJane! She also checked her uterus, and her bowel, also checked for hardware, and listened for rumen sounds again, which were normal within the two minute period we listened, seemed to be okay. So we will wait and see how this all works out.

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Oct 25 2019 :  11:16:48 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
They say that checking blood for Ketosis is best so I think I may purchase a Precision Xtra meter with Ketone/and glucose sticks so I can check and get more accurate results and fast within a few seconds.

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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maryjane

7072 Posts


Posted - Oct 25 2019 :  12:51:25 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
I'm so glad they came out. Hopefully, the IV will jump start things.The trick now is to get her some Reashure ASAP but she has to want to eat. If not, you can put it in a capsule and gag it down her throat like I did with Anna in order to get her eating again. (I can give you more details about that should you need it.) Anna's appetite came back slowly but surely once I got her started on Reashure. I checked her ketones twice/three times a day for quite a while. A blood check would be even better. Since then, I give ReaShure to my girls in their grain 21 days before delivery and 21 days after.

MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~
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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Oct 27 2019 :  08:51:18 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Nellie showing some improvement but we're still not quite there. I checked her urine, taking a ketostix mid-stream, and at least today it is negative. She still isn't eating grain, but eating some hay. Milk production is way down and I'm hoping she has enough for the calf. Had Darla AI'd this morning. See if it takes. Not sure if that's a wise decision or not but will see how things work out.

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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maryjane

7072 Posts


Posted - Oct 30 2019 :  05:05:58 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Janet, I found some of my ketosis notes and thought this one might be of use.

I'm giving Anna capsules of ReaShure 2x/day for a total of 5. I cut her fresh grass, give her some hay (I'm keeping her off Chaffhaye for now as I try different food combinations), and served up about the only thing she has an appetite for and that's Purina's Dairy Special B16 Coarse. It wouldn't be my preference but if it's what she'll eat, I'm all for it. Basically, it's grain pellets and crushed corn with some molasses. It also has a good amount of calcium, phosphorus, selenium, and Vit. A. I put her calf MayBelle in with her also for companionship. I need to have Anna by herself so I can keep food in front of her at all times and any of my other cows would eat it until they popped plus they'd eat up the limited amount of pasture I have that surrounds her. Dr. Parish likened her ketosis episode to the recovery needed when someone goes into insulin shock. I checked her ketones just as it was getting dark and found only a trace. I've found that after she eats Chaffhaye she worsens. Dr. Parish gave me a explanation for that but I didn't capture it well enough to relay it. In other words, silage may not be the best thing for a cow in her condition because of the way her digestive system is functioning at this moment in time.

MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~
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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Oct 30 2019 :  07:54:29 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Thank you MaryJane! Sure hope you get Anna back on track. Nellie is doing fine. She is herself once again. Eating some grain but I'm not offering her as much. Still offering Sodium bicarbonate, and a little ReaShure in with her grain, as well as Sodium bicarbonate alone. Her milk production is back and she's eating hay again. Ketostix still negative so things are looking up for now. After my AI man was here he explained some of the issue that may have contributed to Nellie's problem. So backing off some of the good alfalfa hay and making sure she gets some long stem grass hay also. Definitely a balancing act.

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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