OT Cow Dead

Anonymous-0 · Mar 28, 2010

Found a cow dead. I never remove stribng from bales. Think she could have choked on a string? Used TRACTOR to dispose of her.

Erik Ks farmer · Mar 28, 2010

Watch your heard carefully, viral pnemonia has been going around here. I had 6 cows in bad shape a few weeks back. And it is a good rule of thumb to remove the twine, keeps it off wheel hubs, calves and bush hogs.

Farmallhal · Mar 28, 2010

A tractor repair facility I use on occasion told me well over half their repair work is related to baler twine from baled hay being wrapped around turning shafts eating out the seals and bearings. Fairly costly to replace gear boxes on those heavy duty bush hogs that loose their gear oil and run dry before becoming toast. Just a thought as I have it easy feeding square bales in a barn the old fashion way and always remove them for brush pile starting fuel. Sorry about your cow but happens on occasion for some reason to all of us with cattle, Hal.

Fullthrottle · Mar 28, 2010

My buddy borrowed my bush hog last fall. He doesn't pick up string either. Had to reseal gearbox after twine wrapped around shaft and ruined seal. The stuff does go away but its still a pain. I've seen the cows chewing on it but never heard of any health issues. Probably could happen though I suspect Erik is closer to the real cause.

thurlow · Mar 28, 2010

Sisal or plastic? Only used plastic one year; vowed never again. When we fed small squares many years ago, we removed the twine. Fed about 100 (5 x 6) big round bales per week for many years, NEVER removed ANY twine; if it's sisal, I can't believe it's your problem.

Anonymous-0 · Mar 28, 2010

I use plastic because sisal on big rounds baled in June is rotten by Sept., you need to take it off the bale and yes there is sometimes a little that gets by and no it never rots. As for the dead cow my neighbor once said he figures if you have livestock now and then you are going to have deadstock.

kyplowboy · Mar 28, 2010

My grandmother has always said if you have critters you are going to loose some. Ask your vet if there is a diagnostic center close by you can send her too. We have one here about an hour from the house, if it's an old cow I just figure it was her time, if it's a young's or more than one at a time and I can't figure out what coulda gone wrong I will take one to town. I think it cost less than $100 to get a pathology report done.

As for twine, I have never taken sisal twine off and never had any issues. I buy some hay most years net wrapped. I always take net off, if I were to get some with plastic twine I would take it off too. Buddy of mine lost a two year old heifer about 4 years ago, sent her to said lab. Report came back rumen was bound up with net wrap, didn't see the rumen but that is what the paper said. If nothing else any thing that don't rot will be around for years. It plays h*** with wheel seals, bushhogs, disk mowers, field cultivators, and row cleaners.

As for sisal rotting in 4 months, I try to get my hay moved out of the field a little quicker than that. It ain't going to fall apart too much on the 300' trip to the hay rings in the winter.

Good luck.

Dave

kyhayman · Mar 29, 2010

I've never removed sisal twine, thousands of bales over 30 years. When I lose a cow she goes to the diagnostic lab. Never had one that died from twine ingestion. This time of year I'd be thinking grass tetany first. With that said, I lost one cow this spring, her labs came back that she foundered. Come to find out the neighbor lady was feeling sorry for my 'poor cows' only getting hay and she was giving them some sweet feed. Seems when I moved the cows she put the sweet feed out anyway and this one cow lingered back and got what she was putting out for 50 cows.

lindy · Mar 29, 2010

I could use a neighbor like that

Anonymous-0 · Mar 29, 2010

please stop by my farm and point all the things I am doing so I can be a super farmer. If I have an open winter and get to graze cornstalks sometimes I can spare a few loads to sell, pretty hard to do with rotten strings. Plastic won't give alot of problems if one takes the time to take it off the bales.

JMS/.MN · Mar 29, 2010

Had a string of losses many years ago- vet set up work at the vet school in St. Paul. Put her in the pickup, uncovered, despite the vet"s advice... tooling down I-35 got some strange looks, especially from the school bus kids- must have wondered how she sat so still!

Nebraska Cowman · Mar 29, 2010

No, she didn't "choke" on a string. They can get a blockage in their gut but it's rare and more apt to happen with a younger critter. If you have more livestock it is likely worth the money to have her posted. (postmortem)

kyplowboy · Mar 29, 2010

Mr dboll,

I never ment to offend anyone and if I hurt your feelings I am sorry. I am far from a "super farmer" my self. I was just telling the guy who asked about a cow choke'n on a hay string why I use sisal. I graze corn stalks aswell and while I don't do it much I do haul hay to them the half mile down a dirt road to feed them there. I have had some bales that got kicked out because of operator error with out twine and they came apart when I tried to move them. I have never lost much hay moving in with forks in the winter. I don't know about two year old hay because if I have any left over it is bought net wrapped. I feel plastic string has it's place, I would want it if I were to buy square bales. I don't feel that the hay I loose with my sisal twine is worth the hasle of cutting, pulling, and keeping up with it the way I have to do with net.

Diffrent strokes for diffrent folks, and once again if I came off as be'n a d*** I am sorry. Maybe you and I both can be "super farmers" some day.

Have a nice day.

Dave

olgentdc · Mar 29, 2010

My Thoughts Exactly ,,, ..Pnemonia this time of year has claimed more cows than any month on the calandar

scot in pa · Mar 29, 2010

Not commenting on the dead cow, but we AlWAYS took the string off anything we were feeding for the simple fact that s&*^ shovels easier without it in there, and it wraps up in everything, and it was easier to keep it from wrapping on spreader beaters than to remove it from spreader beaters.

Anonymous-0 · Mar 29, 2010

yes plastic has faults and yes you are correct that bales can be moved to a feeder with decayed sisal and when days are short and I am feeding after dark it is nice to not have to worry about strings, the down side is that sisal is more money and some of my hay has to be stored lined up on the edge of the field, they use to make some stinky black sisal twine for square balers that lasted, probably creosote, of course they stopped making it, if they made longer lasting sisal for a reasonable price I would use more. What I am saying is that if one takes the time to remove the plastic it is bearable. I am not sold on netwrap based on my personal experience.

PJH · Mar 29, 2010

If I ever kick out a bale without wrapping it, it's always right by the road where all the neighbors can see that I screwed up. :~(

Paul

kyplowboy · Mar 29, 2010

I hear ya. The only time I have taken one to the lab here I got some funny looks. It was a warm day, I was short on sleep from working a 12 hour night shift, and pull'n her in the stock trailer with a come-along just wasn't in the cards. She had already stiff'ned up and they needed to get her cooled off quick. 900lb heifer lay'n on a flat bed trailer with two chains over her will get some double takes on the four lane. One old boy in a stretch of construction about fell off the shovel he was lean'n on.

Dave

COWMANSAM · Mar 29, 2010

I found a three year old coming with her second calf dead about a month ago. I had the vet cut her open and he said she bloated while eating dry grass hay. Anyone else heard of this? Thanks, Sam.

JayinNY · Mar 29, 2010

They normally bloat from fresh green grass, after turned out to pasture after bieng in all winter. I dont see how it could bloat from dry hay.

buickanddeere · Mar 29, 2010

We always took the strings off.
Can't stand trying to work and spend hours untangling baler twine from spreaders,ploughs,cultivators,planters etc.
I would like to go back in time and kick the former owner of this place in the crotch for all the strings the idiot left laying about.

OT Cow Dead

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