Cow lacking in something ? Front feet turning outwards and she takes small steps, wha

GreatOaktree

Hi all, I have a bó riabhach cow, only 20 of the breed survive. She's had sore feet since I bought her a year ago. She improved last summer but during the winter she got progressively worse. I got a lad in to pear her feet, she had a few cists but he said that the feet were not her biggest problem. Her front feet are turning outwards.

What is wrong with her ? Can she be brought back to full health ? The vet wouldn't give me a straight answer.

Mooooo

Could be an inbreeding issue? If vet doesn't know it would be hard for anyone to help without seeing her. Was she on straw over winter or did she have access to hard ground? If on straw for too long the feet could go soft

GreatOaktree

Mooooo wrote: »

Could be an inbreeding issue? If vet doesn't know it would be hard for anyone to help without seeing her. Was she on straw over winter or did she have access to hard ground? If on straw for too long the feet could go soft

She could go in or out. Her feet are soft but the lad who trimmed her feet thought it was something more serious than just soft feet. Inbreeding could be the problem. Lacking in vitamins is the suggestion I get from my neighbors.

Would steeping her feet in blue stone harden them up ?

Lady Haywire

Yea bluestone is good to harden them up, any way you can get her to walk through a bluestone bath a couple of times a day? A drench of thriver- grovite etc would be no harm, depending on what she's been eating during the winter. As she's such a rare animal it might be good to get her blood tested too, see if anything pops up there.

greysides

Picture?

_Brian

Mooooo wrote: »

Could be an inbreeding issue? If vet doesn't know it would be hard for anyone to help without seeing her. Was she on straw over winter or did she have access to hard ground? If on straw for too long the feet could go soft

We bought in a heifer few years ago and she developed sore feet, got a hoof care guy out to do what he could and he said the same.

Inbreeding, that she’d never be right.

K.G.

Age?

GreatOaktree

K.G. wrote: »

Age?

You'll see some pics here

http://www.thatsfarming.com/news/farmer-focus-24th-sept

She is 7 year old. She had a bull calf this year.

Should I take the calf off her ?

K.G.

Econonmically yeah pull the calf as soon as either the calf is fending for itself or her milk is slack enough to dry and let her there for the summer and kill in the autumn.buti take economics are nt the only consideration in this.if you want to keep her breeding thats fine and she may come right but i suspect she get worse every winter from now on and will die on you sometime

TheBoyConor

The factory? Are you mad?

Its a rare breed cow, one of only 20 left. I'd say get someone knowledgeable to do the best they can with her and put her in calf again and keep going to build the herd size up for this breed.

Mooooo

TheBoyConor wrote: »

The factory? Are you mad?

Its a rare breed cow, one of only 20 left. I'd say get someone knowledgeable to do the best they can with her and put her in calf again and keep going to build the herd size up for this breed.

Well of she wont come right factory is a better option than the Knackery

TheBoyConor

Would it not make more sense to try get a few more calves out of her first though?

Mooooo

TheBoyConor wrote: »

Would it not make more sense to try get a few more calves out of her first though?

Look it depends on the animal, no point continuing if she wont come right, for the cows sake as much as anything. Certainly give her every chance of coming right just know the point when enough is enough

TheBoyConor

Well she will probably never come fully right again. But is it an awful waste of a rare animal to kill her off without at least trying to produce another calf or two to replace her.

Bass Reeves

This winter was hard on all sucklers cows, heard of different issue's with cows and calves. It a case of pull the calf as soon as possible. Maybe even only allow him access to cow twice a day for a few weeks and then once a day and dry her off that way. If she comes around maybe do not put her in calf until July or even August.

You only want to get her to breed calves not completely rear them. Long term May/June calving may be easier on her. Every calf you get from now on is a bonus and you are looking for a heifer or two. As another post stated maybe a bit of grovite and copper sulphate for the feet.

Lady Haywire

Always the option of flushing her and using recipient dams too. If her feet are bad with her she's less likely to go incalf herself.
But i'd exhaust a good few more options before the factory!!

longgonesilver

TheBoyConor wrote: »

Well she will probably never come fully right again. But is it an awful waste of a rare animal to kill her off without at least trying to produce another calf or two to replace her.

There is a balance between getting another calf and the welfare of the cow.

OP could you take pictures of the cows hooves and legs so we, or more specifically a vet who might hang around here can see, also maybe a video of her walking on a hard surface.

How are her back feet?

What is the normal husbandry for this cow, what does she eat, winter and summer.

GreatOaktree

longgonesilver wrote: »

There is a balance between getting another calf and the welfare of the cow.

OP could you take pictures of the cows hooves and legs so we, or more specifically a vet who might hang around here can see, also maybe a video of her walking on a hard surface.

How are her back feet?

What is the normal husbandry for this cow, what does she eat, winter and summer.

Her back feet are fine.

Front ones are turning outwards, she's walking alot better now but what happens next winter ?

I would never send her to the factory, I am only farming as a hobby so it's not about economics for me.

She's on grass, silage and dairy nuts at the min.

The calf is a very good red lim. 150kg I think.

K.G.

GreatOaktree wrote: »

longgonesilver wrote: »

There is a balance between getting another calf and the welfare of the cow.

OP could you take pictures of the cows hooves and legs so we, or more specifically a vet who might hang around here can see, also maybe a video of her walking on a hard surface.

How are her back feet?

What is the normal husbandry for this cow, what does she eat, winter and summer.

Her back feet are fine.

Front ones are turning outwards, she's walking alot better now but what happens next winter ?

I would never send her to the factory, I am only farming as a hobby so it's not about economics for me.

She's on grass, silage and dairy nuts at the min.

The calf is a very good red lim. 150kg I think.

Is she not bulled to the same breed.her best bet is to calve her in may or later and pull the calf early.you dont want her feeding a calf or heavy in cakf during the winter/early spring

Bass Reeves

GreatOaktree wrote: »

Her back feet are fine.

Front ones are turning outwards, she's walking alot better now but what happens next winter ?

I would never send her to the factory, I am only farming as a hobby so it's not about economics for me.

She's on grass, silage and dairy nuts at the min.

The calf is a very good red lim. 150kg I think.

If he is that kind of weight wean him. Let him suck her twice a day for a week and then once a day for 2 weeks then every second day to dry her up. Do not put her in calf again until late July or August. Try to get a heifers off her

greysides

l think the OP could do a lot worse than make contact with the Vet College in UCD. You'd get advice on the current problem, flushing and maybe some genetic advice. I think Michael Doherty is the current Dean and I'd wager a fair bit he'd be interested in a native breed.

michael.doherty@ucd.ie

GreatOaktree

greysides wrote: »

l think the OP could do a lot worse than make contact with the Vet College in UCD. You'd get advice on the current problem, flushing and maybe some genetic advice. I think Michael Doherty is the current Dean and I'd wager a fair bit he'd be interested in a native breed.

michael.doherty@ucd.ie

Thanks Greysides, that is exactly the reply I was hoping for.

Finally got talking to the vet today. She is giving me a tar spray for her feet and I am sending away her bloods.

Her bull calf is off a bull that was a bó riabhach red lim cross. Her calf is starting to change color now. He is the best bred bó riabhach bull calf in existence. I was hoping for a bull calf. Hopefully a hef next year. I will not be bulling her till the end of August.