Some Bad Days

Life on the farm is not always fun and joyful, in fact many days it is not. Allow me to share a story about what went on while I was home for a week over Thanksgiving. 

We have our cows spread out all over the farm, and while my dad feeds them all twice a day he often has to do it in the dark after he gets home from work, so he cannot see them well all the time, therefore he asks me and my mom to walk around at least once a day to double check the cows to make sure they are looking healthy. On this particular day I had volunteered me and my boyfriend to do the walk around, and boy was it eventful. 

We walked past the Container Garden (Start your own with my guide: How to Plant a Container Garden in 5 Easy Steps) started at the big cattle barn and the first group looked fine, however when we made it to the second pen we immediately saw 2 problems: One cow was laying upside down in a metal feed tub with its head stuck in the gate, we were almost certain it was dead, the second problem is another cow was laying completely flat on its side, a bad sign. Luckily we had our boots and chore clothes on, even though we weren't exactly planning to get in the pen so we hopped right in. (Check out my review of Muck Chore Boots if you're curious what boots I was wearing) We checked the cow laying down first and it was still alive but very weak. We then checked the upside down cow and confirmed our original thought, and called to inform my mom. We focused our attention to the sickly steer and got it dragged out of the pen on a tarp to keep the other cows from bothering it. Unsure what to do with it because it looked like a lost cause we moved the deceased cow out of the pen before waiting inside for my father to come home. While inside we made sure to wash up good in case the sick steer was contagious. Using my favorite Soap for Grimy Hands.

Once home my father check the steer over and managed to prop it up to a sitting position, and surprisingly it was able to hold its head up, we fed it medicated feed and made it a little hay bed so it could stay upright and eat a little. After talking with the vet and doing some research we concluded that the steer most likely had acidosis, or a very severe stomach issue. This comes about when the feed is too rich and messes with the acidity and pH of the cows stomach. While it hadn't seemed to bother the other cows in the group this particular steer was not digesting the silage ration in out feed very well. If you don't know what silage is check out What's the Hype about Silage?  While we tried our best to revitalize the steer we knew that it was likely in vain as this is a killer issue when it becomes this severe. Don't say we abuse our cows either we had checked them the day before and this particular steer was still standing and eating our of my hand, although looking a little skinnier than the others our only indication that we ought to keep an eye on it for a little while. 

While it held on for several days while we tried to get it to regain some strength, ultimately it didn't make it. It sucks that you have to have days of loss on the farm, but it is part of what you sign up for, things happen out of your control and you can't prevent everything either, you just have to roll with the punches.