GMO crops killing dairy cattle ?????

springvalley · #1 02/07/13, 10:16 PM

We have a very nice Reg. Holstein dairy herd in our area, has been there for many , many years. Owner is very old and has done a wonderful job raising prize winning cattle. The farm is a show place and the owner is a respected person in the neighborhood. This was overheard from someone visiting while looking at calves that were for sale. There were several people in the yard and some were vets. and some spoke a different language. Seems the dairy has been loosing cows the last few months, cows start going down hill and finally die. The vets can`t figure out what is going on, nothing abnormal that they have tested for, but yet the cows keep dropping. The only thing they have figured out was the farm started planting GMO corn and using it for feed for the cows the last two years. This is being kept on the down low as no one really knows what is going on. Could it be GMO crops? something else? no one knows for sure yet, but they are keeping things very quite. > Thanks Marc

ksfarmer · #2 02/07/13, 10:30 PM

NO. There may be a problem with feed but not because of GMO.

Judy in IN · #3 02/07/13, 10:32 PM

Well, it might not be the corn. It might be that fungus that they've discovered where Roundup is used.

We're not supposed to discuss GMO on HT, though. We can discuss politics and religion, but GMO's are too hot to handle.

springvalley · #4 02/07/13, 10:35 PM

sorry Judy, I forgot, it seems to upset some on here. > Marc

Judy in IN · #5 02/07/13, 10:37 PM

Just curious, Marc....Is this a free stall barn system, or do the cows get some pasture?

springvalley · #6 02/07/13, 10:39 PM

I`m not sure, I haven`t been there in many years, not sure, but would say free stall sheds. > Marc

Judy in IN · #7 02/08/13, 05:29 AM

Marc,
You might want to pass along that information that I sent to you via pm to the owner.

He might recognize the symptoms there.

If his cows aren't on pasture, they are probably on an all-GMO diet.

haypoint · #8 02/08/13, 07:16 AM

We had a similar problem in Michigan about 30 years ago. Stillborn calves, strange hoof growth, cows dying. University checked feed and it was alright. Blamed farmers for their bad management. Most farmers kept quiet about itt, not wanting the neighbors to think they were having trouble. But the problem continued and spread.
Then a farmer started finding dead rats. The rats were getting into his feed pellets. The pellets were a mineral protein supplement. So they had them tested. It tested just fine, nothing wrong with it. But when they tested it again, the machine was accidently left on and it showed something far down on the scale that they test for. It was PBB, used to retard fire. The chemical company, in St. Louis,MI, that made the feed pellets, also handled other chemicals. Fire Starter, brown bag with a red star was the brand name of the mineral for cattle. Fire Master, brown bag with a red star was the brand name for the fire retardant. PBB collects in the fat, secreted in the milk, absorbed by humans , secreted in human milk and absorbed in babies. Nearly everyone in Michigan that drank milk had/has PBB in them. Ron Howard did a movie, based on this true story, Bitter Harvest.
Several dairy farms that have been plagued with health, have discovered that a poor electrical ground wire, sometimes not on the farm’s property, was causing low level electrical shock to the cows as they fed or were milked.
Seems strange to me that this farmer only switched to GMO in the past 2 years while the majority of farmers switched 20 years ago?
But, if you are going to get a GMO myth rolling, best to do it before any tests or conclusions are found. Even better if you can keep it a bit of a secret. We don’t want a bunch of folks knowing about it and shining the light of truth. Write about something that is pure speculation, blame GMO, if people ask why they haven’t heard about it, say they are sequestering the witnesses. Then no one will doubt it. If the cause isn’t found, then it still could have been the GMO. If it is shown that GMO isn’t the cause, people will complain that the Health Department, USDA and Department of Ag were all bought off by Monsanto.

Judy in IN · #9 02/08/13, 07:40 AM

I see that the pit bull of Monsanto has been here.

I don't have to read his posts anymore, but I didn't think it would take this long for him to show up.

matt_man · #10 02/08/13, 08:18 AM

Marc - my Aunt Tara told me the story as well. I hope that they can find the answers. It must be so devastating for that old farmer. It's bad enough that milk prices are so bad and feed is so high but to start loosing parts of your herd to sickness and death on top of it must be so discouraging. Especially when you have no idea what is causing it so that you can fix it.

Johnny Dolittle · #11 02/08/13, 08:29 AM

I thought the moratorium on GMO debates was just for the Homesteading Questions forum. We have been discussing GMO in the gardening forum (concerning more practical issues).... one poster asked a question about composting GMO crops.

Roundup has been used for many years before GMO crops were made available.... such as pre plant applications or as a spot treatment applied by wick applicators.

..... and seemed to be problem free.

i do not like the company Monsanto .... but I do not think GMO crops are killing these cows.

Lazy J · #12 02/08/13, 08:34 AM

Sounds like it might have been a mycotoxicosis, at first glance. But that isn't as sexy as blaming glyphosate resistent crops.

springvalley · #13 02/08/13, 08:36 AM

This is an old community, with alot of mennenite close by. I am sure he bought his corn from the mennenite seed company because they don`t believe in GMO corn. He was proably trying to save money with the GMO`s with not wanting to cultivate and only spray. And it may have nothing at all to do with GMO`s. It was stated that this was the only thing done different in the last two years on this farm. They may find it could be they changed the type of fuel they now use on the farm. Maybe it`s a different type of rubber boots that they wear in the barn yard. Or maybe it`s the birds that fly over, maybe they are pooping a deadly fungus in the cow yards. Maybe the only reason I posted this was to see if Haypoint would have a stroke about it.
We have no idea what the GMO crops will do to us because it has not been studied enough in my opinion. I am still a firm believer that messing with the genes of a plant and putting genetics in them they know nothing about the long term effects, is not healthy for us. This post was put on by me just because I wanted to tell what was going on with a farm that has just started using GMO corn, and now are having problems with their cattle. NO proof of anything, no proof that GMO`s are the true cause, just pure speculation. I don`t make the news I just report it, just like your local news program. > Thanks and God Bless America. > Marc

Lazy J · #14 02/08/13, 08:43 AM

There are MILLIONS of animals being fed commercial corn and soybean meal derived from commercial soybean varieties and there is not a widespread sudden death syndrome running rampant in our livestock industry. If anything our livestock producers are becoming more and more efficient. So I find it hard to believe that the GMO corn is the cause for the problem.

What about a vitamin D deficiency? There is a growing concern in the feed industry about the vitamin D supply.

randiliana · #15 02/08/13, 08:54 AM

springvalley · #16 02/08/13, 08:58 AM

Could be Vit. D, pure speculation just like the GMO speculation. You guys have no idea about this farm. Money is no object when it comes to his cows, I am sure every vet from the state is or has been working on this problem. This man will leave no stone unturned when it comes to his cows, they are his life. And I know he will find out, it just may be a matter of time before they nail it down. And just say that perhaps it is the GMO crops, then I think we will never know, because lots of money will cover it up real fast. > Thanks Marc

linn · #17 02/08/13, 08:59 AM

Almost duplicate post.

linn · #18 02/08/13, 09:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Judy in IN

I see that the pit bull of Monsanto has been here.

I don't have to read his posts anymore, but I didn't think it would take this long for him to show up.

Don't worry about him. I have been accused of spreading hated by his cohort and told to shut up by him because they didn't like what I was saying.

Judy in IN · #19 02/08/13, 09:02 AM

I wasn't aware that we could still post about this. Thank you, JD.

So I will post this link and let people make up their own minds.

Information is power. If the bullies of the world can squash information, they win.

hp basically told me that it was my imagination that allergies were more plentiful now than in the 60's. Not so.....

springvalley · #20 02/08/13, 09:02 AM

If for some reason they lock down this post, I will post again on HT to let you all know what they find out. > Blessings Marc