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Pre-purchase testing

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T O P I C R E V I E W
txbikergirl	Posted - Jul 13 2016 : 5:17:00 PM so we may have a new wet cow we are interested. i know the tests that everyone talks about getting, these: q fever tb johnes brucellosis/bangs BLV BVD but does anyone test for others? i have been reading around the internet and some others recommend these as well: staph A e. coli 15717 camplobacter listeria monocytogenes any thoughts or experiences?
15 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First)
farmlife	Posted - Jul 21 2016 : 11:25:14 AM This is perfect one stop shopping.
txbikergirl	Posted - Jul 20 2016 : 5:25:00 PM i had no idea either janet, milk based testing - go figure. i love that maryjane or someone on here can take the time with one little comment, and then it can send us on a new journey and we can learn a lot along the way. i had wanted to start testing my raw milk at least quarterly just for peace of mind, but its nice to have sources for testing focusing on various health areas. its all very fascinating to me.
NellieBelle	Posted - Jul 20 2016 : 2:43:52 PM Very interesting Cindy. Thank you for the information. Didn't realize you could find results for all these dairy tests with a milk draw. Awesome.
maryjane	Posted - Jul 19 2016 : 9:05:47 PM Hear ye, Cindy! Sending milk off is easier than blood for sure. Thanks for taking the time to share your research Cindy.
CloversMum	Posted - Jul 19 2016 : 8:49:54 PM Thanks for the info, Cindy. Great job with your research and then being willing to share it.
txbikergirl	Posted - Jul 19 2016 : 6:47:27 PM in researching pre-purchase testing for my next future cow, maryjane said something that i had never thought of - take the samples yourself and send them in. that was a lightbulb moment for me as it had never occurred to me to do that, and honestly i think it could make a lot of testing much more affordable to people who want to get a cow and have the ability to visit it to get a sample about 1-2 weeks before bringing it home. here is one alternative i thought was a real good "one stop shop" for many people if buying a cow in milk: http://alternativedairy.org/ note - you aren't going to get a TB or brucellosis test with this. so this isn't an option for people that could or would do a vet visit. but there are lots of people that don't want the vet to do anymore than that, and that is the most the seller would pay for. or perhaps you want to screen f or all this first and then spring on the vet visit to finish the rest if you see what you want with these results. just another option... note it is geared toward support of the raw milk industry, and vermont especially. its not necessarily as cheap as some other options, but if you don't or can't do a vet visit it could be a reasonable cost for some pre-purchase testing insurance. you can also test for the milk composition to see if you like it (fat/protein/etc), or if you don't regularly have a vet out you could do some of your own annual livestock check-ups this way. and charlene, they even do goat milk! what i like is that it is easy to do for us less experienced people, and these are all milk-based tests - so no blood draw if you find that intimidating. i went ahead and purchased a 6 pack of the collection kits, and then just paid for testing for one cow up front. so when i get my next cow home, i am going to go ahead and run the entire options of tests on them - even if some of them are duplicate of what the vet just did. i am curious to see it in play here. here is the testing info page http://alternativedairy.org/test-prices.html they have individual tests as well as group packages, so you can do whatever you want to do if you don't need everything. here is the "new cow package": New Cow Package $60.00 ea. Includes: Annual Wellness Package and Cheese Maker's Package (Johne’s, Leukosis, Pregnancy, SPC, Coliform/E. Coli, SCC, Staph, and Component Analysis) If you’re interested in buying a new cow for your family or dairy, consider sending us a sample of her milk for a complete diagnostic test. Similar to bringing that ’89 Ford to your local mechanic, we can tell you what you can’t see easily at first glance. This package includes the full suite of bacterial dairy tests (Standard Plate Count, Coliform and E. Coli, Staph Aureus, Somatic Cell Count) and all of our milk ELISA tests (pregnancy check, Johne’s Disease and Leukosis). Did you see that it even has a pregnancy test? i mean, nice double check to see if you unintentionally brought home a pregnant cow or unpregnant cow - depending upon what you were told you were purchasing ;> the new cow package had just about everything they offer, but i did add this in as well: Antibiotic Residue $6.00 ea. For: Required for VT Tier II We use the Delvotest for Antibiotic Residue. It detects the broadest spectrum of antibiotic residues in every kind of milk – cow, sheep, goat,buffalo – as well as in dairy products. i'll let you know how it goes when i get my new to me cow home next weekend and send the sample off. i kinda find this type of thing exciting, and milk is so much easier to deal with than blood. oh, and it was founded by Bob White Systems for those in the know
txbikergirl	Posted - Jul 18 2016 : 6:06:29 PM thanks keeley. i appreciate everyone's input. the concern is that we are a raw milk family, i won't pasteurize as i have immune system issues and have seen a GREAT increase in my health when i drink raw milk - and several of the second tests are for things that cannot be gotten rid of in a cow, and can be passed through to humans. that said, i try to be reasonable and not insane about this stuff. the seller found another vet w/in an hour from them that would do all of the first set and most of the second set. so the lesson here is that when you have a good seller, and one that actually cares where the animal is going, they go out of their way to accomodate reasonable requests of the buyer to make it a win/win. they are actually even taking the animal into the vet instead of having an additional farm visit to save us money - not them. we would have paid for the farm visit if it was needed. so i think we'll have enough tests to feel good about the cow, and then i can do as keeley suggests and test myself for other things that i am concerned about.
farmlife	Posted - Jul 18 2016 : 09:12:27 AM I don't know that I would have more tests done just to buy, Cindy. The tests I had done on Elli at that time were for my own benefit. I wanted to know if what we were doing was maintaining her digestive tract health and the TB test was because TB can be transmitted in milk.
txbikergirl	Posted - Jul 15 2016 : 12:37:41 PM the other concern i have is i don't believe we have a safe place to truly quarantine at all. we have one area without shared fence lines we could keep a new cow for 30 days. but reading up, some things are airborne and others are feces related and it could just as easily be carried from a deer/fox/coyote/wild pig/pug from one pasture to the other. we only have 23 acres. so testing for anything and everything, even if vaccinated, is the only thing extending/ me comfort.
txbikergirl	Posted - Jul 15 2016 : 12:34:29 PM maryjane, you are truly my cow dealer. you make things too easy for me - the addiction! i am serious about becoming a cow collector, it would be very simple to fall into that trap. lover boy has a strong hold on me for that. that testing idea is very good maryjane. i'll start thinking about that. if a cow is closer, like within 4-5 hours then it is a day trip for us and i would go up the first time and do the draws myself and ship t hem out from there. then i could easily go back in a week t o pick her up. but its t he cows that are 6-10 hours away that make that a little difficult. my thinking cap is on... keely, do you recommend tests in addition to what i have listed above? just wondering.
farmlife	Posted - Jul 14 2016 : 9:10:11 PM Is the cow still available in Montana? It sounds like you have a contingency plan. Testing is kind of the same around here, Cindy. I had a TB test done on Elli last fall and the vet wanted to know where we were taking her. Apparently people only get tests done if they are required to for travel. She was very surprised we weren't going anywhere. Then the parasite test I asked for threw her for a loop as well.
maryjane	Posted - Jul 14 2016 : 5:49:44 PM Oh, and tell Lover Boy he's right. We'd hatched up a plan to fetch the cow from Montana and at least get her here for you, which is the reason I'd checked into tests.
maryjane	Posted - Jul 14 2016 : 5:46:41 PM Here's an idea. Some how or have someone draw 30 cc of blood (it can be in three 10cc red top tubes--tail draw???) and then also get a milk sample using very sterile methods, stripping her first and then combining the samples in one tube, put them on ice in an insulated container and ship them to WADDL overnight (I can check but 2nd day air may be fine). You can use my account and they will send me your results and I'll forward them to you or you can set up your own account ahead of time. They know me over there so I can explain what we're up to. Pretty easy actually.
txbikergirl	Posted - Jul 14 2016 : 5:09:47 PM thanks maryjane, thats what i thought. the first vet said he wouldn't test for the second set, and is checking if he'll test for the first... seriously?? honestly, this search is very interesting and informative. apparently no jersey cows in the arkansas/kansas/oklahoma region are vaccinated. and vets think tests are silly. i would have thought this was hard to believe if I hadn't made about 20 calls and 50 emails/texts myself. not in a rush, just finding the process interesting. if it is meant to be it will work itself out. and maryjane, lover boy actually said during our cow discussion last night..... "we should have just gone to montana and gotten that cow maryjane suggested". what? since when did we have time to go there and back? i think he has selective memory...
maryjane	Posted - Jul 13 2016 : 7:11:40 PM I would test for all of them. When I was looking into the wet cow in Montana for you a month or so ago, I asked them if they'd be willing to let a vet not only do a blood draw but also a milk sample. Keep in mind that when your vet does a milk sample, she/he should take it from all four teats but combine them into one sample only for testing. Even one quarter with any of those things would be a deal breaker and one culture is cheaper to pay for than four.