”We are thankful
to be able
to provide the veterinary care
for Terry's cows
and humbled
by #38's
will to survive
her illness
and go on to do
her daily job
as a
valued
dairy cow.”

Elizabeth Geurts, DVM
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Cow #38

Meet cow #38. She is identified in a herd of milking cows with a number, but she is no ordinary cow! Number 39 is a member of a herd of dairy cows owned by Terry Neuman of Randolph. On the day of the big blizzard on December 9th, #38 became drastically ill.
Terry noticed her developing extreme pain in her belly during the morning milking she would get up and lay down, kick at her belly and stumble around trying to get comfortable. The weather was impossible outside, and Terry was hoping that her belly ache would pass but it only got worse. By noon, #38 was becoming weak and unable to pass any stool meaning that her digestive system was shut off and there were big problems. Terry called Dr. Betsy to try and make it to the farm in the inclement weather to help his rapidly ailing cow. By late afternoon, the roads were plowed enough to make a veterinary call to Terry's farm. Number 39 was deteriorating rapidly, almost too painful to stand, her heart rate was very rapid and her eyes were depressed and sunken. Dr. Betsy determined that #38 had an intestinal obstruction that would require emergency surgery to attempt to save her life. Pain medications were administered so that surgery could be performed with #39 standing as Dr. Betsy opened her abdomen to fix the problem.

After surgical preparation, an incision was make behind the ribs of the cow so Dr. Betsy could insert her arm into the cow's belly and determine the problem. The news was very bad. Number 39 had a twisted cecum, which is like an appendicitis attack in people. The cow's cecum is between 2-3 feet long and aids in the absorption of water from the gut. 39's cecum was severely deteriorated and almost ruptured. The color of the tissues was purple and the blood supply was poor. The only way to attempt to save her life was to remove the giant section of intestine that was dying from poor circulation and reconnect the health section. Dr. Betsy explained to Terry that this was a procedure known as "typhlectomy." in the cow. She had seen it done in veterinary school, but had never been presented with a case like this in the farm setting. Careful suturing of the intestine was important to insure that no leakage of intestinal contents would occur. Antibiotics were administered and intravenous fluids to help #38 fight any potential infection postoperatively.

Great news is that 39 is alive and doing well a month after surgery. Terry reports that her milk production is currently 56 pounds per day on the last test and she is performing at the upper end of his herd for production! Dr. Betsy says that for some strange reason, when big storm fronts approach, there always seems to be unusual outbreaks of sickness in animals. Perhaps there is some underlying influence of the weather! Regardless, cows get sick no matter what type of weather or day of the week.
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