Down Beef Cow

Question 1

What results from a cow being down for too long?

Answer 1

(Compartment syndrome)

Question 2

If a cow is down, what is a simple diagnostic test you can perform to rule in or out certain general categories of disease?

Answer 2

(Offer them grain, if they eat it leans towards a certain group of dzs and a different group if they don’t eat)

Question 3

If you offer a down cow grain and they eat, what are the three general diseases that may be affecting this cow?

Answer 3

(Musculoskeletal injury, peripheral/spinal nerve injury, or starvation)

Question 4

If you offer a down cow grain and they do not eat, what are the three general diseases that may be affecting this cow?

Answer 4

(Septicemia, mineral deficiency, or toxicity)

Question 5

One of the important questions you should ask when presented with a down cow is where are they in their production cycle; if the cow is in the last two months of gestation, what diseases are more likely? Three answers.

Answer 5

(Starvation, musculoskeletal injury, or winter tetany)

Question 6

One of the important questions you should ask when presented with a down cow is where are they in their production cycle; if the cow is down immediately post calving what diseases are more likely? Three answers.

Answer 6

(Musculoskeletal injury, mineral deficiency, and toxic mastitis)

Question 7

One of the important questions you should ask when presented with a down cow is where are they in their production cycle; if the cow is 2-30 days post partum what diseases are more likely? Four answers.

Answer 7

(Musculoskeletal injury, mineral deficiency, toxic mastitis, or toxic metritis)

Question 8

What is the typical presentation of a calf that results in calving paralysis in its dam?

Answer 8

(Dead, if the calf is alive it will have a swollen head and bruised gums)

Question 9

If a cow with calving paralysis is able to stand after calving (which is rare), where do they tend to knuckle their rear legs due to their injury?

Answer 9

(At the fetlock)

Question 10

What is the treatment for calving paralysis?

Answer 10

(Prevent compartment syndrome and anti-inflammatories; start with dex in the beginning and follow up with NSAIDs)

Question 11

(T/F) Spinal nerve damage, often due to lymphosarcoma, disc disease, or abscesses, treatment is unrewarding.

Answer 11

(T)

Question 12

How does the treatment for milk fever and grass tetany differ?

Answer 12

(They don’t, both get 1-2 500ml bottles of CMPK (if you said to tell the farmer to follow up with oral magnesium for grass tetany cases, here’s a star, collect 5 and I’ll bake you cookies))

Question 13

What three minerals are deficient in winter tetany cases?

Answer 13

(Calcium, magnesium, and potassium → all will be low but not low enough to cause the cow to be down, it’s the combo that gets ya)