Heifer with Lump under jaw

barryoc1

I have a 2 year old heifer that has a big lump under her jaw this morning. Bout the size of a tennis ball and soft to touch. Seems watery inside it. Anyone know what this is and how i should treat it.

vanderbadger

barryoc1 wrote: »

I have a 2 year old heifer that has a big lump under her jaw this morning. Bout the size of a tennis ball and soft to touch. Seems watery inside it. Anyone know what this is and how i should treat it.

probably an abcess, was she outside, they can get them off briars i think, they burst eventually but are messy, had a cow that had one in her neck a while back, awfal thing, got the vet to open it eventually but still it kinda filled up again, might not be the same thing but kinda sounds like it

reilig

vanderbadger wrote: »

probably an abcess, was she outside, they can get them off briars i think, they burst eventually but are messy, had a cow that had one in her neck a while back, awfal thing, got the vet to open it eventually but still it kinda filled up again, might not be the same thing but kinda sounds like it

I was going to say the same. If she was in the shed, she might have prod it off a sharp bit of steel, gate bolt or pin??
Vet will sometimes burst it, but will most often just inject her with penicillen.

blue5000

lump under the jaw can also be a symptom of liver fluke

barryoc1

She was dosed with Albex for Fluke so i would be hoping it is not Fluke. She is inside so perhaps she did just get a prod of something. She is in calf so I guess i better ask my vet what to treat her with then.

Bizzum

I have seen links, depending on where the lump is, and the nature of it, with Fluke, BVD and an abcess.

The last bullock (on slats) we had with an abcess, the vet advised to let it run its course, and antibiotics were not needed in this case. It came to a head a few days later, bursted and the bullock was perfect.

Did this come on your heifer very quickly?

barryoc1

Bizzum wrote: »

I have seen links, depending on where the lump is, and the nature of it, with Fluke, BVD and an abcess.

The last bullock (on slats) we had with an abcess, the vet advised to let it run its course, and antibiotics were not needed in this case. It came to a head a few days later, bursted and the bullock was perfect.

Did this come on your heifer very quickly?

Yeah, she was fine yesterday and was swelled up today.

Bizzum

barryoc1 wrote: »

Yeah, she was fine yesterday and was swelled up today.

Worth a chat with the vet perhaps?
I'd be interested to know how you get on!

MfMan

Lumpy jaw perhaps? Kind of like timber tongue I think...

Pharaoh1

Had similar last year - vet advised to rub in a solution of turpentine and powdered mustard to help it ripen.
He banged it off a bar on the crush when I was getting him in and it burst.
I rang the vet and he arrived and made a decent cut with the scalpel, washed it out with soap and water. No injection or anything and he healed up nicely.
Was glad I got the vet as if it wasn't attended to at that time I might have ended up with a bigger problem later.

bbam

We had one two years ago on a six month old suckled calf, vet said to leave it unless it got sick... Lasted about two weeks and burst, no medicines required thankfully.

barryoc1

Update for those interested:- She is perfect again. No medication required and it didnt burst. Swelling started to go down after 2 days and she is back to perfect today. Wouldnt think it was ever swelled to look at her now. Cheers to everyone who gave advice on the matter.

reps4

was dosing them last sat, must have hit something sharp. was bit burst tue but has dried up again.

will she need penicillin just in case.

ABlur

reps4 wrote: »

was dosing them last sat, must have hit something sharp. was bit burst tue but has dried up again.

will she need penicillin just in case.

Did you injure her throat with a dosing gun? Did one here with a bolus gun big swelling lots of drooling eating nothing had to get the vet. He lost a lot of condition (bullock not vet!) Just about survived but no great thrive since.

Zr105

reps4 wrote: »

was dosing them last sat, must have hit something sharp. was bit burst tue but has dried up again.

will she need penicillin just in case.

Had a bullock similar in work last year, didnt know what it was, vet was reluctant to inject as it did seem like normal abces at first and he thought he might be on one way ticket to factory. He's grand now a year later, well you could just about make out were it was still alright.
Might be no harm to give him the penicillin, but id get some of the stokholm tar spray and put it around it, it'll keep the flys away and at least prevent it from getting infected from them

Figerty

Biggest problem this time of years for something like that is flys and maggots. Keep it clean and washed out if it bursts.

I'd call the vet and get antibiotics if it needs it.

onyerbikepat

I had a heifer get a lump like that last year. It was a reaction to a copper injection. Vet lanced and covered with stokholm tar to keep flies away.
It could be a reaction to a thorn from a blackthorn, they're deadly.

Dont be daft

reps4 wrote: »

was dosing them last sat, must have hit something sharp. was bit burst tue but has dried up again.

will she need penicillin just in case.

Take a look at the end of the dosing gun. Sometimes they can get damaged around the hook bit leaving a bit of sharp metal sticking out, if you know what I mean.

I've seen lads letting the hook drag on the ground behind them :rolleyes: