Questions about my new jersey

[jimandpj]

Thanks for all of the replies to my questions about my new calf. He is doing very well. We are still bottle feeding - mom just won't let him nurse, but she's a very good mom otherwise. I have a few questions about the mom. She is a 4 year old purebred jersey that came from a dairy. Her front right quarter is completely blind from a bout with mastitis.

1. The blind quarter is very large and hard. Why? Is there milk in there and it just can't get out b/c of scar tissue? Will it go down as the milk gets absorbed? Or does it stay big and hard?

2. Her two front teats are a decent size (milk with 2-3 fingers), but the back two are very small (just one finger). Is this common?

3. Can a cow control let down in the different quarters? If I'm milking and one teat stops giving milk, while the other is still flowing, does that mean that I emptied that quarter?

4. We milked tonight and got roughly two gallons. Both Jim and I milked her at the same time (we milk goats, so our hands are pretty strong). It took us about 20 minutes. Her udder still is very large and firm. I'm used to goats being all "loose and floppy" when they're done. What does a cow udder look and feel like when it is milked out?

Thanks so much for all the help!
PJ

[Ronney]

Hi PJ,
I must have missed your post regarding the calf but I take it that this cow has recently calved?

1. Have you tried to milk the blind quarter and if so, what do you get? Yes,
there is a possibility of a lot of scar tissue and swelling but possibly milk as
well. I would talk to your vet about this as no two cows are the same and
to that end I bought a 3 titter two years ago that had bad mastitis in one
quarter and it was dry. The following year she calved and the quarter
produced milk.

2. Yes it is common and nothing to worry about.

3. No, cows can't control the let-down to individual quarters. Most cows will
have a quarter/s that milk out before the others - usually the front milk out
before the back but that doesn't always follow.

4. A cow's udder is also loose and floppy when she is milked out but as I
presume this girl has recently calved, there is likely to be still a lot of
enlarged tissue and perhaps a bit of "caked udder" as well. I had a
heifer calve two weeks ago and her udder is still huge and hard. Today
was the first time she left the shed with a slightly floppy udder. She is
machined milked and I stand there and massage her udder while she is
being milked. You can do the same before and after milking her and
fomenting with warm, wet cloths is also a help.

Apart from the mastitis quarter, your cow sounds very normal and I hope she gives you years of good, rich, creamy milk.

Cheers,
Ronnie

[jimandpj]

Yes, she calved Thursday, 11/2.

When you try to milk the blind quarter, you get nothing, except a slap in the face with a tail

Jim and I milked this morning and got 1 3/4 gallons with the two of us milking together (I get the side with only one teat ) for 20 minutes. We can't get anything further out, but her udder just still seems so huge and hard, I find it hard to believe that we've milked her out completely.

We got the first milk for us last night. It's in the fridge with the cream rising. My children can't wait to try it! We dried up all the goats, so they haven't had fresh milk to drink in a while. Ok, I admit it, I can't wait to try it either!

PJ

[jerzeygurl]

definately caked bag other wise known as udder edema. should go away on its own, my girl had it with her 4 th calf. you can do warm compresses or they can prescribe a diaretic if it doesnt go away,

she is also the one that had a bad quarter that all of a sudden has started producing, but when it wasnt producing it wasnt hard , just empty, so after the edema is gone and its still hard you might treat for mastitis, the injectable has less with drawal time. you might try massaging it with warm cloth before you milk

it is very hard to milk a cow with udder edema,but it does go away

yes the front two teats on my cows are always longer than the backs, they will stretch with milking.

I have read that the backs hold more than the front, which stands to reason when the front ones are LONGER and milk easier than the backs you will milk the fronts faster

[lyceum]

We have both cattle and dairy goats and have had both cows and goats that have been like this. Some take longer than others to decide to let all of the milk down or will be hard for awhile and then gradually start to milk from that side.

Since the cow was in a dairy setting where the cow would have not been able to nurse her calf or only keep it for a few days, she will most likely not want to nurse her calf. I would keep the calf on a bottle and just keep milking the cow. It sounds like she is giving a good amount of milk at just a few days fresh. How much milk are you feeding the calf at each feeding? We bottle feed quite a few calves and have been very successful feeding a half gallon twice a day for a total of a gallon. Get the calf eating feed pretty quick. They will not take much at first. Take small handfulls and put them in the calves mouth.

Lyceum

[jimandpj]

"Hamburger" is eating 2 quarts twice a day. So yep, a gallon. He's doing very well. He's become quite frisky and is starting to terrorize the goats. It's quite humorous to watch.

Sunshine did very well milking this morning, but it was pretty miserable this evening. She would not settle down, pooped 4 times, shifted constantly, and wouldn't eat any grain til we were almost done. If it weren't for the fact that I want to make butter easily without having to use a cream separator, she'd be hamburger too, and I'd stick to just goats.

PJ

[jerzeygurl]

it will get better

[DJ in WA]

Sounds like you're on the same path I was 5 years ago, going from goats to a Jersey from a dairy. She was a 3 titter, and yes, she had udder edema. With edema, you can press your thumb into the bottom of the udder where it feels hard, and a depression will remain - kind of like playdough. Otherwise, it might be lack of letdown, and milk still left in the udder.

The edema/swelling goes around the teat, reducing it's effective length, making it harder to milk. As the edema fluid goes to the lowest spot, and the hindquarters are often lower, the rear teats may seem shorter. Though as Jerzeygirl said, the hind teats are usually shorter to begin with.

My jersey had mastitis in a quarter, and it produced when she freshened, but then it spread to another quarter. Then I learned about contagious (Staph) mastitis, and how it can spread between quarters if not careful. Perhaps the professionals can speak to methods to prevent spread. Don't know for sure if that's the kind of mastitis your jersey has. Some don't ever get cured, but are considered chronic, and are often culled.

Hopefully your experience gets better than mine. Not one to want vet bills, I eventually swapped to a half Jersey half Lowline angus cow (smaller, and fewer problems than pure dairy).

[Ronney]

PJ, stick with it - as Jerzeygurl says, it will get better. It's unfortunate that the calf isn't drinking from her as they are the best cure for oedema but failing that, it does clear up, it just takes a little bit longer.

Remember too, that as an ex-dairy, your cow is facing a whole new set of rules and her normal regime has been turned upside down which is upsetting and confusing for her. It's only a week ago since she calved and I look at 3 weeks to a month for new cows or first time milkers to settle down into a routine.

Cheers,
Ronnie

[jerzeygurl]

keep in mind her heat cycle will put her in a funk as well, and will mess with production letdown AND behavior