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NellieBelle
11217 Posts
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 Posted - Apr 22 2015 : 6:18:30 PM
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| I had an interesting late afternoon. When I let the cows in to be milked I was putting my equipment in the breezeway and noticed Sienna was having some difficulty breathing. I then looked at her from the back and she was in severe bloat. She had eaten her grain. She was so large and so tight I couldn't believe my eyes. I started pushing with my hands on the side of her tight gut. When I wore out doing that I used my foot. I got her out of the stanchion but she didn't want to move, but I made her. I got her out into the paddock and then went and called my vet. He was on his way home and would swing by. He had no equipment with him so I was rounding up stuff I might have to use. Now, here is the great part of my story. When the vet finally got here, he walked up to Sienna, and she got up. And the bloat was gone. I kid you not. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it. So, the vet showed me where to use the trocar, and explained using the metal speculum. I'm ordering both tonight. He suggested I make an incision before using the trocar, if the case should occur. Easier to insert the trocar he said otherwise the trocar has a hard time going through. So interesting evening. Here I thought I was about to lose my Sienna, but all is well. I explained what I had done to the vet and he said it may have been what helped her release the gas. If you haven't seen bloat before, it's a looks like they swallowed an air balloon and could float away. Don't know the cause. That will be the next mystery to solve. |
To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown |
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NellieBelle
11217 Posts
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Posted - Apr 22 2015 : 6:20:48 PM
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| Oh another thing, he said I could use a knife in a pinch. |
To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown |
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maryjane
7074 Posts
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Posted - Apr 22 2015 : 7:08:13 PM
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| How scary Janet! Quick thinking on your part. I wonder what got her rumen out of balance? Strange. Time for me to get a trocar now. I've had it on my KIT list that I've been working on (my will-get-this-finished-tomorrow list). My father told me how he had to poke his cows with a pocket knife and showed me where to do it once (he started milking their family cow alone every day when he was five years old). No such thing as a trocar back then. I'll bet your adrenaline level was through the roof. |
MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~ |
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NellieBelle
11217 Posts
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Posted - Apr 22 2015 : 7:31:25 PM
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| Not as bad as I thought I'd be. But for some reason I thought I needed to get some movement going inside of her and that's why I start pushing, it was a workout. I was relieved to know the vet was on his way. But the equipment is a must for me. He said there may be a time when a vet can't get her in time, and I knew that, but put it off. |
To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown |
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farmlife
1413 Posts
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Posted - Apr 23 2015 : 11:39:29 AM
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| Yikes! Quick thinking, Janet. |
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CloversMum
3486 Posts
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Posted - Mar 21 2016 : 7:27:22 PM
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I'm reviving this thread since Clover just went through bloat. Does anyone know if a solution of baking soda and water would help (4 cups to a gallon)? A friend said that was what she used with her goat to relieve bloat.
Also, does the trocar work better than tubing? It seems like last night the tubing was helpful with Clover ... but she had been down and stuck for so long. |
Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens |
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![[flourish]](/images/flourish-txt_mobius.png)
Bloat
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