About 10 minutes after posting yesterday’s adventure this morning, I received a call from Miguel that we ANOTHER bloated cow. This time #40, a year old steer. The steer wasn’t in nearly as bad of shape as the first two cows, a sure sign we are getting better at diagnosing the issue early. Fortunately and unfortunately we are getting better at this whole thing and we had the steer treated and in the barn in about 30 minutes.
A small incision and our turkey injector goes in. Again the pressure was relieved and the bull felt immediately better. We made up a bed at La Casa Convalescence and left our new patient to recover beside #9 who is fully recovered but still enjoying her spa treatment.
This afternoon our bull was showing some bloat again so we hauled him back out to the head gate to have the pressure bled off again and this time he received a treatment of DSS surfactant. He is back in the barn on a very limited diet of roughage and water. I will check him again tonight and again in the morning. If he settles down till in the morning he should be ok. If not, we might have to install a trocar to keep the vent open and give his stomach time to settle down.
I’m getting too comfortable doing this vet stuff. I think ignorance was bliss. I kind of miss it.