How long to dose heifer's eye?

KatyMac

Have a heifer with pink eye. I've put Tetra Delta in two days running and it's getting much better looking, but I don't know how many more doses does she need. It's the first case I've seen in so long. The last case of pink eye here it was my father doing the doctoring and unfortunately his memory has left the building. Her eye is only slightly cloudy now and she seems to be able to see okay.

_Brian

We had a few cases last year for the first time in about fifteen years.
Neighbour recommended the blue almicen spray. It's very handy to administer. We did it for 4-5 days until the streaming had eased considerably. I think maybe 4 animals affected, all have their sight and one has a slight permanent cloud.
God some of the photos on the web of ruptured eyes are horrific.

leoch

Had 2 with it this year in one eye I put in the stuff in the tube and it only took one dose and they were perfect again one or two days later great stuff

sandydan

had 1 case this year . put tetra delta in 2 days in row, and skipped to 4th for rest of tube. just one tube in all. and just kept an eye on her, she was fine but had only started to weep, so i caught it early, i always check cows eyes at least every second day since. there was a product a few years ago PEP(pink eye powder)

KatyMac

sandydan wrote: »

had 1 case this year . put tetra delta in 2 days in row, and skipped to 4th for rest of tube. just one tube in all. and just kept an eye on her, she was fine but had only started to weep, so i caught it early, i always check cows eyes at least every second day since. there was a product a few years ago PEP(pink eye powder)

It got worse on me coz she went partying with neighbour's bull and I couldn't get her home for 2 days! I'll put the rest of the tube in day after tomorrow so. She is cooling her heels in the shed at the moment as I don't intend to spend any more days chasing her round a field! Thanks:)

farmerjj

KatyMac wrote: »

Have a heifer with pink eye. I've put Tetra Delta in two days running and it's getting much better looking, but I don't know how many more doses does she need. It's the first case I've seen in so long. The last case of pink eye here it was my father doing the doctoring and unfortunately his memory has left the building. Her eye is only slightly cloudy now and she seems to be able to see okay.

We gave 3doses to each case when I was a kid, but in recent years I stopped given any treatments and all cases cleared up with time

greysides

I'd be inclined to do it daily, or twice a day if it's bad. Yes, I know, it's a lot of work. How long will depend on response, rule of thumb would be one day longer than you think necessary.
It takes a while for the eye to clear but a good response is reduced tears, redness and swelling.

sandydan

farmerjj wrote: »

We gave 3doses to each case when I was a kid, but in recent years I stopped given any treatments and all cases cleared up with time

that one hell of risk to take with pink eye if it scale covering eye when it gets red like red eye in photographs it hells kithen time with no reprieve if unlucky. by any chance are you referring to weeping from eye caused by horse flies or injury. ive seen vets to inject eye in rare cases and not every vet will do it as injury to eye is another problem. ive actually squirted any penicillin injection into eye and its worked regardless if date out or in in case almost hard-where it was too raw to put in tube or if i had nothing else some use put salt-water in eye if nothing available.

sandydan

KatyMac wrote: »

It got worse on me coz she went partying with neighbour's bull and I couldn't get her home for 2 days! I'll put the rest of the tube in day after tomorrow so. She is cooling her heels in the shed at the moment as I don't intend to spend any more days chasing her round a field! Thanks:)

might be better for her in there for a few days till cleared up, as long as no flies ,harsh breeze and as you say easier for handling as well as being out of sunlight
all aggravating factors in eye injury or ailment

KatyMac

sandydan wrote: »

might be better for her in there for a few days till cleared up, as long as no flies ,harsh breeze and as you say easier for handling as well as being out of sunlight
all aggravating factors in eye injury or ailment

She's coming along nicely now. She's also getting mighty quiet - amazing how far a measure of nuts goes to settle a sick/scared animal.

sandydan

KatyMac wrote: »

She's coming along nicely now. She's also getting mighty quiet - amazing how far a measure of nuts goes to settle a sick/scared animal.

your telling me . i bought critters that instead of getting hot tongue and cold shoulder got plenty stick across shoulders , one week feeding in yard and calling them every time i fed them, they would stand in field beside me now.
good to hear she is recovered give her a few more days it will make collecting her from field easier in future and help bring in others too. oh keep eye on others for next week or so especially if there is any mist or fog, that spreads it

Farmer Pudsey

I have had a few cases, in general I uses to tube every second day about half a tube into eye until it dried up. getting it in under lower lid is the trick. It was opticlox I used or long tubes. Remember it takes time to work.

However last winter lad told me about blue allymicin spray. Ideal if cattle are in pen and you are by your self. You can catch them at the feed space. Again time is the key but if you can spray every second day you will cure up. Great thing about the spray is you can catch them at the feedface of the pen if no help available to remove them that evening and get the help the following day to get them out.

KatyMac

Hey Pudsey
I'm going to look for that spray tomorrow - I've got another one!!! I have to get help to bring her home as she managed to get stuck across a gate with her leg threaded through the bars, scared the life out of me as I thought she was going to break a leg or her neck. So she now has a sore eye and a sore leg. Aaaagh the joys of this job. She's supposed to be in calf as well so I'm hoping she hasn't done any harm to her innards.

I've just looked up the spray, or what I think is the spray. Is it the stuff used for footrot, a cutaneous spray?? Comes in a blue can with a yellow top (according to the interweb)!!

sandydan

KatyMac wrote: »

Hey Pudsey
I'm going to look for that spray tomorrow - I've got another one!!! I have to get help to bring her home as she managed to get stuck across a gate with her leg threaded through the bars, scared the life out of me as I thought she was going to break a leg or her neck. So she now has a sore eye and a sore leg. Aaaagh the joys of this job. She's supposed to be in calf as well so I'm hoping she hasn't done any harm to her innards.

I've just looked up the spray, or what I think is the spray. Is it the stuff used for footrot, a cutaneous spray?? Comes in a blue can with a yellow top (according to the interweb)!!

i cant help with spray but it seems to me they are itching their heads off something infected unless its windborne, keep checking them every day till you sort it, by the way will they not follow a bucket of nuts ,that way get the lot into yard and check all and douse all posts in crush with diluted Jeyes Fluid its supposed to be good preventative for that( keeps flies away id guess) and ringworm as well. the last time i had more than 4 i had cattle in field where a fresh heap of lime was tipped in field, cant figure out connection but...

greysides

Pink Eye is spread by flies so 'wind-borne' in a fashion. Anything that irritates the eye is going to predispose to the infection.... dust, grass stalks etc.

KatyMac

There were 4 together, so half are now infected/recovering. At least I got the second one in only a couple of hours unlike the first that I could see romping around a neighbour's field getting worse and worse. I'll be gazing fondly into the eyes of the other 2 for the next week!

sandydan

KatyMac wrote: »

There were 4 together, so half are now infected/recovering. At least I got the second one in only a couple of hours unlike the first that I could see romping around a neighbour's field getting worse and worse. I'll be gazing fondly into the eyes of the other 2 for the next week!

id check rest of herd as well , its windborne , flies probably spread it so distance no object, if flies travel about half mile in day...

KatyMac

You are such a comfort.

sandydan

KatyMac wrote: »

You are such a comfort.

thats what we are here for, to keep you alert that is:D

KatyMac

Well Sandy, you were soooooo right. I've just come in from putting Tetra Delta in the eyes of no less than 3 cows tonight!!!! One started Friday and this evening the other eye is streaming And 2 more cows with an eye apiece. I've put Stockholm tar on their ears and the middle of their faces in the hope it might keep the flies away. What am I doing wrong?

sandydan

KatyMac wrote: »

Well Sandy, you were soooooo right. I've just come in from putting Tetra Delta in the eyes of no less than 3 cows tonight!!!! One started Friday and this evening the other eye is streaming And 2 more cows with an eye apiece. I've put Stockholm tar on their ears and the middle of their faces in the hope it might keep the flies away. What am I doing wrong?

nothing ,its just a bad patch ,are they in sheltered area by chance plenty bushes and heat, if there is no signs of anything other than streaming id ease off on tetra delta and switch to maybe to spray recommended by Farmer Pudsey or opticlox just to change tube.
might be bloody flies irritating eyes only, its bad enough but maybe not pink eye. maybe move to new paddock in higher ground if you can.
i have cows with eyes streaming a little and moved out of lowland paddock flies there would take bites out of ya ,apart from that its not got worse as opposed to going pink or scaling.
also id use a fly repellant pour on it does help.

Base price

Sorry but I cannot condone spraying Alamycin into an animals eye and I am shocked that such comments are allowed on this site.
Get your Vet to show you how to inject into the lower eye lid and if you are up to it and have a steady hand, inject into the upper eye lid as well.
From memory 1.5 mls into both eye lids (mixed ingredients x 3)
Once off treatment so no need to get them into the crush again.

sandydan

Base price wrote: »

Sorry but I cannot condone spraying Alamycin into an animals eye and I am shocked that such comments are allowed on this site.
Get your Vet to show you how to inject into the lower eye lid and if you are up to it and have a steady hand, inject into the upper eye lid as well.
From memory 1.5 mls into both eye lids (mixed ingredients x 3)
Once off treatment so no need to get them into the crush again.

i admire your nerve injecting an animals eye i must say,
i dont spray but another recommended it awhile back and i certainly dont recommend injecting into eye for beginners and certainly not on own. a little movement can do serious injury, what i have done a few times though when unable to hold or get animal into crush gate is squirt injection into eye it just needs reasonable luck to do accurately, about 5ccs.

greysides

My understanding is that the blue sprays were originally produced for eye infections. I can't say I like doing it but it does seem effective. It would also be safer than a subconjunctival injection which requires good restraint.

Dry cow tubes which are made to stay in a dry quarter for long periods, rather than milking cows tubes made to go into a quarter which contains a large amount of diluent, are less irritant.

Base price

greysides wrote: »

My understanding is that the blue sprays were originally produced for eye infections. I can't say I like doing it but it does seem effective. It would also be safer than a subconjunctival injection which requires good restraint.

Dry cow tubes which are made to stay in a dry quarter for long periods, rather than milking cows tubes made to go into a quarter which contains a large amount of diluent, are less irritant.

When I was a 17yo teenager (many years ago) I had a few heifers with pink eye (New Forest Disease) my then Vet introduced me to Alymacin type "puff" sprays. That spray was manual and did not have an additional accelerate like modern sprays have.
I wonder how the Dept of Ag Vets would view indigo/purple patches on animals heads.
Anyway years ago we had a "pink eye" problem throughout the herd in weanling and yearlings, older cattle were not infected.
Phoned the vet to get advice as this pink eye was affecting most of the herd of the younger cattle. Vet did a few upper and lower eyelid injections to demonstrate, then instructed me on how to do it and watched over as I did same.
Problem solved, tickety boo and all the rest.

greysides

Base price wrote: »

When I was a 17yo teenager (many years ago) I had a few heifers with pink eye (New Forest Disease) my then Vet introduced me to Alymacin type "puff" sprays. That spray was manual and did not have an additional accelerate like modern sprays have.

That would sound like a kinder delivery method alright.

Base price

I have no understanding of dry cow tubes but a friend who is a dairy farmer told me to only use water based tubes for minor eye infections. Apparently oil based tubes have little or no effect.

Base price

greysides wrote: »

That would sound like a kinder delivery method alright.

To be honest when it comes to eye problems in any animal I cringe and weep tears especially when injecting near the optical area.

whelan2

sandydan wrote: »

id check rest of herd as well , its windborne , flies probably spread it so distance no object, if flies travel about half mile in day...

flies have been very bad this last few days, so maybe put spot on or something on them to keep flies away

_Brian

We had a little pink eye last year.
Brought first one on and injected under eye lid, it's not hard to do.
But for the two Others that got it we sprayed with blue spray out in field. It's easier on man and beast and hell of a lot quicker, I'd say they healed up quicker too.

sandydan

_Brian wrote: »

We had a little pink eye last year.
Brought first one on and injected under eye lid, it's not hard to do.
But for the two Others that got it we sprayed with blue spray out in field. It's easier on man and beast and hell of a lot quicker, I'd say they healed up quicker too.

am i right in saying you spray eye area not directly into eye. there definitely was a pink eye powder PEP and it was puffed into eye worked fine. if a number of animals are getting infected i nearly would consider tubing rest of animals as preventative at this stage(even though its nearly against my principles to do). as i said id also take animals out of sheltery paddocks for a while if possible and as well id put them through crush with slightly diluted #Jeyes Fluid in foot bath underfoot (i know it stinks but flies don't like it and cattle scratch their head area with hind legs as well) , as well ive used it to control ringworm around eye area and use some product like spot on or fly tags on ear to prevent flys irritating cows eyes.if more years with fly problems like this occur with added risk of mastitas as well we would want to copy the african idea of plastic fly trap in fields. is there any known deterrent for field fly infestation, i heard some suggestion of scattering cow dungs using disc mower for topping but that's too bare imo in dry years like this where grass is getting burnt (in my case anyway)

whelan2

theres a mineral lick with garlic in it, flies dont like garlic

_Brian

sandydan wrote: »

am i right in saying you spray eye area not directly into eye. there definitely was a pink eye powder PEP and it was puffed into eye worked fine. if a number of animals are getting infected i nearly would consider tubing rest of animals as preventative at this stage(even though its nearly against my principles to do). as i said id also take animals out of sheltery paddocks for a while if possible and as well id put them through crush with slightly diluted #Jeyes Fluid in foot bath underfoot (i know it stinks but flies don't like it and cattle scratch their head area with hind legs as well) , as well ive used it to control ringworm around eye area and use some product like spot on or fly tags on ear to prevent flys irritating cows eyes.if more years with fly problems like this occur with added risk of mastitas as well we would want to copy the african idea of plastic fly trap in fields. is there any known deterrent for field fly infestation, i heard some suggestion of scattering cow dungs using disc mower for topping but that's too bare imo in dry years like this where grass is getting burnt (in my case anyway)

Both in and around the eye, on the recommendation of our vet I must add. Handy to put meal in trough and stand there, spray when they are close.

KatyMac

whelan2 wrote: »

theres a mineral lick with garlic in it, flies dont like garlic

Now there sounds like an idea. I used to give horses garlic in their feed to stop midge attacks. Why didn't I think of that before now.
They seem a lot better this evening, their eyes have stopped weeping at least and no new. I got two of them nice and early, but the first one was very sore.

sandydan

KatyMac wrote: »

Now there sounds like an idea. I used to give horses garlic in their feed to stop midge attacks. Why didn't I think of that before now.
They seem a lot better this evening, their eyes have stopped weeping at least and no new. I got two of them nice and early, but the first one was very sore.

heard of vet who sprayed a garlic mix on cows nose to cure mastitas never thought of using it as fly deterrent even though i used it long ago to stop nosey girl from asking for lifts to dances,worked too better than onions