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cedmunds2
10 Posts
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 Posted - Apr 28 2016 : 09:53:04 AM
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Our Jersey, Abby, suffered milk fever after her third calving in June of 2015. It was really scary, and I was totally ignorant on the subject, the signs and symptoms, and the treatment. Luckily, a vet came out before it was too late, and administered a calcium drip. Got her up immediately. The next morning to my horror, she was down again, but the vet came back very quickly and administered more calcium. She got up quickly again. We talked about what her feeding routine was pre-calving.
Being the kind country vet that he is, he didn't blame me but seemed to gently instruct that feeding rich alfalfa hay (in my mind it was "just hay") pre-calving, was a no-no because of it being a "hot" feed, very high in protein.
Adding to the wrong diet, we milked Abby just a few hours after calving (we usually let the calf nurse 24 hours, then take it off and milk for the first time) because a different vet had advised me to milk her quickly after calving, looking back I think she said that because of Abby's noticeable edema, enormously swollen teats. I think the combination of the wrong diet plus the early milking might have triggered the milk fever? But I'll never know for sure. For a while, I vowed not to breed her again but never to sell her. She'd just retire to the pastures early and I'd always care for her.
After she seemed fully recovered, no more signs of fever, mastitis popped up on two teats. We'd treat with Pirsue (because I didn't know many options), and she'd be clean for maybe a week, and then she'd have clinical signs of mastitis again. Eventually, we figured out that it was only one quarter that was still a problem, and after some research, decided to quit milking that quarter completely, in the hopes that it would dry up naturally. And it did. Beautifully. No infections, no redness or hotness. Just dried up perfectly. Despite what people told me would happen! We've been milking her on three teats, without mastitis, for several months now.
After seeing Abby looking so healthy, mastitis free on the three milking teats, for so long, I started thinking (right or wrong) about getting Abby bred again. She looks great and she is such a good milker. So I called the A.I. lady. She is bred again, due in November. I am soliciting all advice on three major concerns that I have:
1) How to manage her health to prevent a recurrence of milk fever? My current plan is to dry her off early, giving her 5 months dry before calving vs her usual 2 months dry. I only plan to let her eat pasture grass, have access to loose minerals, and supplement a little dry hay, something low protein, but absolutely no alfalfa. I also plan to give her calcium orally, immediately after calving.
2) If she shows signs of edema pre-calving, does anyone advise milking her a little bit, for about a week before she is supposed to calve?
3) Does anyone have any experience on what I should expect to happen in her quarter that was previously dry and mastitis prone? I am guessing it will fill with milk again, and trigger/awaken mastitis immediately? Maybe Mastoblast proactively would help? Someone has told me that giving 35cc 7% iodine intramammary at dry off would "kill" the quarter, forever. But I am nervous/uncomfortable about that because it just seems like it would be painful. Has anyone else ever heard of that?
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Valle di Latte Farm |
Edited by - cedmunds2 on Apr 28 2016 09:53:50 AM |
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maryjane
7072 Posts
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Posted - Apr 28 2016 : 09:58:02 AM
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| I'm milking a cow right now in which I've dried up one of her quarters and hope to breed her in August. I've been taking photos of her treatment as I go along. Hopefully, I'll have a block of time soon to post what I've learned so far. We are in the same boat! |
MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~ |
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maryjane
7072 Posts
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Posted - Apr 28 2016 : 09:59:34 AM
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| And yes, killing a quarter is PAINFUL and sometimes will kill a cow. More on that later. |
MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~ |
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maryjane
7072 Posts
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Posted - Apr 28 2016 : 10:22:48 AM
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Also, just wanted to quickly add that grass hay can be very high in protein. For example, timothy hay. Dr. Parrish told me that a couple of years ago when I mentioned I was serving my girls timothy. You really can't know protein content unless you get it tested or your hay source has tested it and provides that information. It isn't the protein that is the problem with milk fever, it's the calcium. Alfalfa is higher in calcium that most grass hays.
And therein lies a problem with putting a cow on a strict grass-fed diet which is the reason I like to supplement with grains because it gives the rumen flora/fauna something to live on. Too much protein can be a problem for long-term cow health. This page has some information on that:
https://www.heritagejersey.org/chatroom/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6281&whichpage=2
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MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~ |
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cedmunds2
10 Posts
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Posted - Apr 28 2016 : 10:56:09 AM
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Very interesting. And thank you for clarifying that high calcium hay, not high protein hay, triggered milk fever. I am sure the vet said it right, but my brain wasn't taking good notes under the stressful circumstances.
What kind of dry ration do you feed/ would you recommend? And how much would you recommend feeding? (Abby is big, I'd guess around 1100 lbs, but I need to get a weight tape) Organic alfalfa pellets + Dairy premix? I tried wickslivestock.com as referenced in MCK but they don't seem to be in business anymore. |
Valle di Latte Farm |
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maryjane
7072 Posts
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Posted - Apr 28 2016 : 11:36:34 AM
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Let's see, I no longer feed the organic alfalfa pellets because I serve my girls http://chaffhaye.com/chaffhaye-for-cattle/
I also serve either #5046 or #5040 from Modesto, depending on whether I'm using it for a calf or a lactating cow.
http://modestomilling.com/livestock.html
Up until recently, Miss Daisy (the only cow I'm milking right now who weighs 670 pounds) was getting about 2 to 3 gallons/day of the grain. Now that she's getting some pasture again, I've cut back to about 1 1/2 to two gallons.
Michael Wicks is still very much in business. This isn't the first time I've heard of this but he had someone build his website, and then when that person quit, that person still owned the URL and won't provide him with a forwarding service. You can find him here:
http://www.wickslivestocknutrition.com/
Try calling him. I've found his thoughtful advice over the years invaluable: 402-925-2475
I get his Hi Phos Dairy Premix because of where I live. I've done a fair amount of blood testing over the years and his mineral program has been very good for us, including my bulls.
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MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~ |
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cedmunds2
10 Posts
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Posted - Apr 29 2016 : 2:11:29 PM
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Fantastic. There is a Chaff Haye dealer within driving distance...I'll check all the sources you cited and give Michael a call. This is such a challenging area of cow management for me, I need all the advice and direction that folks are willing to give!
Have you ever heard of someone milking a cow out "some", before she calves, if she shows major edema? Watching her teats swell like that was disturbing. It took two people to hold the inflations on until they grabbed - we did this twice a day for a month - until some of her swelling subsided. |
Valle di Latte Farm |
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maryjane
7072 Posts
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Posted - Apr 29 2016 : 3:05:05 PM
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| I was reading about that recently but only in passing. Yes, I've heard of getting started milking the week prior because their protective keratin teat plug is probably gone so you should be getting intimate with her udder/teats anyway the week before. I also read that with a cow prone to severe edema, a diuretic shot can be administered. And I also came across a preventive diet measure that I will rummage around again for to see if I can find it. Maybe Vit E???? I will check and get back to you! My girl Miss Daisy got really huge last time also. |
MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~ |
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Managing a cow that has had milk fever
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