Pastor Dave's Highlights

[Mike CHS]

I like to think that if I can ever kill an animal that I raised without it bothering me some, I'll find another way to spend my efforts. Our processor kind of shakes his head when I spend a fair amount of time at his facility getting my animals calm before sending them through his entrance gate.

 

[promiseacres]

I agree... even though we don't currently raise them for meat... I still terminally cull at times and usually cry afterwards or am in a foul mood the rest of the day. Maybe one day we'll have more space to just retire the older ones.

 

[farmerjan]

On the subject of having to dispatch an animal that has been a good one for you. I have a nurse cow that just calved about 4-5 weeks ago. Put another newly acquired newborn calf on her with hers, then let a little older one go on her so she had 3. She has 3 good quarters. Lara is about 8 years old. 1/2 jersey 1/2 holstein but big like the holstein. Took the calves real well this time.
Wednesday, Last week, she came in the barn as usual but looked real sunk in around her eyes. Didn't care much about the grain and she is a grain hog. I figured maybe milk fever as jerseys are more prone to it. Gave her calcium gel and a tube of energy gel. No better Thursday, called the vet and asked if there was anything else he suggested. No, just see how she looked in the morning. She was also staggering some on her back legs and her ears were cold. Typical milk fever signs although they usually get it much closer to calving. Tested a farm that next morning, Friday, and the farmer said maybe Ketosis rather than milk fever; some of the same symptoms but more often a little further into milk production. Okay good idea. It has a sweetish sick smell although I am one of few who cannot seem to smell it.

Got to the barn and she still looks like hell. So I called the vet and said I wanted him to come look at her. Could be Ketosis, or a DA - displaced abomasum or twisted stomach. Happens on either the left side or the right side. Right side can kill them in 24 hours but left side is more common. Pretty "routine" operation to get it flipped and tacked to the side inside so it doesn't do it again. Often happens soon after calving due to a "big empty space" where the calf was and the stomach not having enough bulk in it to keep it where it should be to explain it as simply as I can.
He comes out and does all the routine stuff. Heart okay, lungs clear, urine shows no ketosis on stick, milk fever not really an option, stethoscope hears no "ping" when they are thumped on either the right or left side so no DA. Goes in to palpate her and ..... she is full of hard masses. Bovine Leukemia, cancer. Very poor prognosis, nothing to really do. Cannot ship her to stockyards, she is still a little wobbly on her feet and she wouldn't bring anything...as well as I won't do that to her.
So options are to put her down. 2 calves right at the worst time to try to switch over to a bottle as they are too young to wean at a month and have never had anything but a cow. The older one no problem, she was in a bucket before.

So I decided to have the retired vet just look at her too, 2nd opinion, and he confirms. This is on Sat afternoon. Sunday we are hauling cattle for this vet to his place in WVA and it's a 4 hour trip out, so basically all day. I had been keeping her in with the 2 calves and she had shown a little more interest in them Sat aft.. She had water, hay, grain and was actually getting up and down and walking a little better. I told my son that I would let him know when I did her and he would come load her on the truck so I could take her to the landfill as they accept dead animals and there is no where on the rented farm she can be buried. But I would let her die in familiar surroundings.
Sunday afternoon she had eaten more than half her feed and most of the hay. She is up and walking more steadily.
Monday I call the vet and ask what I can do to make her more comfortable, that since she is more alert and looking better, that as long as she is not acting like she is in pain, that I'm going to let her just stay. She's not going to get shipped regardless. So she is on a steriod, Banamine, and today if still walking okay, will get let back out to graze some of the grass that is short but is growing some. She was standing at the gate yesterday wanting out. She will get shots, take care of her 2 calves and go on as well as she can until it is obvious she is going downhill.

You can't get attached to them all, and I tell my son we are not running an old age home for cows. But she deserves to live out what is left of her life in what comfort I can provide. I will be taking a hit of about $5-600.00 in lost "salvage" of her as a cull cow. She's big, about 13-1400lbs. Since she will not produce much milk, the calves will start eating more grain which they had just started showing an interest in, and I will hopefully get them past the critical stage they are in without having to fight them to go on a bottle. If she goes down tomorrow, then so be it.
I have several more nurse cows, and they are not as "close to my heart" and will leave when they are no longer productive. But she is now my oldest and gets a pass since this is not of her choosing, and has been doing a good job with this set of calves.

 

[Wehner Homestead]

Culling is never fun! I do agree that the “aggressive” ones are easier or the “mercy killings” when something is suffering. I agree with Mike that if it didn’t bother us in some way, we’d need to move onto something else. The “can’t keep them all” and needing to put food on the table are very important card in this “game.”

 

[Baymule]

I say a prayer over every chicken I kill, thanking it for giving up it's life that we might eat. I thank God for the chicken and the meat that will feed my family.

 

[Baymule]

@farmerjan that is tough about your cow. I don't blame you one bit for letting her live out what she has left and not shipping her. Sometimes they earn their special place.

 

[Mike CHS]

We do that for every meal we have since all of our meat was raised by us.

I still want to try some of your pork though.

 

[Baymule]

We might be going to north Alabama in August, we could bring you some home raised pork!

We do that for every meal we have since all of our meat was raised by us.

I still want to try some of your pork though.

 

[Mike CHS]

We might be going to north Alabama in August, we could bring you some home raised pork!

I would love to trade for some grilled lamb but since you already have lamb I would love to treat you to some of our awesome beef.

No matter what was being traded I would love to do something

 

[Pastor Dave]

We had a built in snow makeup day we didn't need to use today, so the kids (and parents) got an early extended weekend. They let me sleep til 9am which is unheard of. On Saturdays sometimes I get to sleep til 8am. Week days up at 6am and even Sunday starts at 7am for me. But, after getting up late, everyone's waiting on me, hungry. Haha
I generally do Saturday and Holiday breakfasts. I guess today qualifies.