Is this something to call the vet about?

[Dahdo]

I started feeding some nice orchard grass (14% protein)about a week ago. They were previously just getting my hay, which is not nearly as rich (6% protein). Their daily ration is about 50/50 orchard grass/my hay. I have noticed that nearly all of them are loose now and just wrote it off to the orchard grass candy they are getting used to. But this morning, one of my girls was off by herself and she was kind of grunting and her loins were heaving each time she grunted. I haven't seen this before and am a little concerned. If I didn't know better i'd say she was in labor, but she is bred for a June calf, so she would have to be aborting. I am considering putting her in the headgate and getting a temperature. Any other ideas or suggestions? Thanks--Dave

[lakeportfarms]

Is she standing during all of this or is she down?  Also is she grinding her teeth?   I doubt it's feed related, unless she's bloated or ingested something that happened to be in the hay.  Otherwise it's pretty hard to tell without seeing it, so if it persists a call to the vet would be wise.  In the meantime I'd get her in the chute if possible and get whatever information including temperature you can so she's ready to be looked at when/if the vet arrives.

Hans

[emgiger]

Hi Dave,

This does not sound good. I would give the vet a call to be on the safe side. Please let us know what happens.

Eileen

[Dahdo]

Thanks Hans. She is up and eating and drinking. Her temp was 99.5....normal, and no teeth grinding. I have a call into the vet and will update here.

[Olga]

My first impulse is to say that the cow was bloated. If that is ever the case, you could tube the cow. Since our Dexters are small and if you are brave enough to tube one yourself, you could get a calf stomach tube (esophageal feeder), put mineral oil and glycerine into the bag and dump it down the cow's throat (you can ask the vet for amount). First, you insert the tube and make sure that you didn't get it into the lungs. If she moo's while it's inserted = you are definitely in the clear. Then you screw on the bag and raise it. You might hear the cow swallow as it gloot-gloot-gloot's down her throat. When done, first lower the bag to stop any remaining liquid from going down the tube, then pull out. This acts like simethicone drops in babies, releasing the gas in one lump sum.
My limited experience with bloat suggests that getting the cow to walk wouldn't hurt either.

On the other hand, I have heard my cows grunting while breathing when they were heavy pregnant (I would assume that this could be more pronounced in shorties) - while laying down.

[wvdexters]

Hope everything turns out OK. Good Luck.

[lakeportfarms]

Usually if it's serious bloat not only will it be very apparent on the left side when looking at them from the rear, but they'll be off food and water. Hunched back and teeth grinding are two other signs. Really serious bloat demands immediate attention. As Olga mentioned a long (6' or so) polyethelene tube of about 5/8" in diameter for full size cows and 1/2 or smaller for calves. It's not always necessary to pour mineral oil or glycerin in the tube, but you should have a 3/4" pipe of about 16" (we've always been fine with schedule 40 PVC) that goes in their mouth so they don't chew the tube. Let them swallow it, don't force it. Once they've taken it into the esophagus you can gently push it down. If they don't have frothy bloat, you'll probably hear the gas escape from the tube and you can also push on the rumen area to help expel the extra gas. If it's frothy bloat then the oil can help dissipate the bubbles to allow the gas to escape.

Though a garden hose could be used in an emergency, it's really a good idea to have a kit ready to go with all the necessary parts. We keep ours in a plastic storage bin along with the calf bottles, tube feeders, etc. so we can access it right away. I've tubed quite a few times unfortunately. We had a little bull calf that was constantly bloating and it was nearly a daily thing for a couple of months. We tried different feeds, everything you could think of and were just about to have the vet put a "window" in his rumen when he seemed to be doing better. A few days later we found him dead.

One common cause of chronic bloat like this is hardware disease that injures the vagus nerve that controls the rumen function.

[lakeportfarms]

I forgot to add that sometimes when the bloat quite advanced it can be difficult or impossible for the cow to relieve the pressure on their own, because they are in such distress. Inserting a tube all the way into the rumen is the only way (other than a trocar, the last resort) to relieve the pressure.

Sounds like Dave's cow is doing ok or we would have heard from him I think.

[Dahdo]

Sorry about not updating sooner guys. I really do VERY much appreciate the help here. My vet never called back yesterday and will not be in until later this afternoon, so I do not have a diagnosis yet. She seems stable, and she does not appear to be bloated--and she has a small frame and I think I would definitely notice. As I said, everybody seems to have the squirts,so I am still thinking this is a reaction to the change in feed. The orchard grass may be higher in protein, I have not had it analyzed yet. I also called Kirk (Cascade Meadows) who uses orchard grass from the same supplier--he said his cattle always loosen up as their rumens adjust to the new hay. He suggested scaling back the ratio of orchard to local hay for a few days.It seems unlikely to be parasites this time of year, but I also took in a fecal this morning so the Doc can look at it as soon as he gets in. I love the way folks reach out on this forum when someone has sick animals...thanks again. I will update as soon as I have more info.

[cddexter]

Dave, I second Hans. Our local hay runs anywhere from 4 to 6% protein. I supplemented with WA second cut alfalfa/grass and used it about 1:4, but started out with just 1/2 flake each for the first few days to get them used to it The much higher protein was great, they just had to become acclimated to it. I was able to get through the whole winter without resorting to grain, unless we had extra-cold weather or freezing rain, when I'd give them about 1-2 cups worth each of 16% dairy ration to keep them warm. Worked for years. Glad to hear she's looking better. Always best to be safe than sorry. cheers, c.

[Dahdo]

The vet called late Friday. The fecal was clear, but he said there seems to be a viral scours going through the beef herds in our area. He said it runs it's course in a week, and as long as the animals have plenty of water and feed they do fine. I would have thought scours would would have had the animals running high temps, but I forgot to ask the vet about that.

Cayenne has been behaving normal today and I spotted a few semi firm looking pies out there. Maybe it was a virus, maybe the feed...as usual I will probably never know. I'll keep a close eye on them cut back on the sweet stuff for awhile. Come to think of it, I should do the same for me during the holidays.

Cheers,
Dave

[lakeportfarms]

Good to hear Dave.

[lakeportfarms]

Good to hear Dave.

[djdewetsa]

If bloated use sunflower oil - and let her lay uphill with her head the highest or we have a product bloatguard - works like a bomb.
You can tube her if you know how otherwise dont as you can get some stuff into her air "pipe" (sorry for the english:)
Also you get a tube that you can stick between the ribs - but its only for the guys that know.

Stick to the sunflower oil or products like bloatguard that is on the market - much safer.
Cheers
Danie