Normal, or cruel???

Dusty87

A farmer up the road from me (not known for being the sweetest), has a cow in a field at least the last week. Hay being brought to it.
Basically it has a broken hip, and they are feeding it to fatten it as 'you get more money from the factory' and 'she's not in pain anyway'.
(convo between the younger brother and farmers son.)
Is that normal? First time iv seen it. She's right beside a main road.
Seems a bit cruel to me, but iv never come across it before.

Jack C

Is she standing? Maybe I'm wrong but I don't think a factory will take her if she can't walk in.

Dusty87

Jack C wrote: »

Is she standing? Maybe I'm wrong but I don't think a factory will take her if she can't walk in.

No, shes lying there as normal, but cant get up. I not sure on the factory thing, but thats what the young lad said

Humans eh!

Hope the c**t ends up in a field alone with a broken hip himself someday.
Really, ignorant arseholes who put a few measly dirty euro before humanity and compassion by ignoring suffering are beneath contempt.

I'd shoot the poor creature at night and put it out of its pain and f*ck him and his money. :mad:

Dusty87

Humans eh! wrote: »

Really, ignorant arseholes who put a few measly dirty euro before anything and compassion by ignoring suffering are beneath contempt.

That would be him'
a few yr ago a lad with a jcb refused to bury anymore cattle for him. I think it was after 4 in a about a yr. JCb man wrong in the first place, i know.

I'd shoot the poor creature at night and put it out of its pain and f*ck him and his money. :mad:

Cant.

AtillaTheHun

will need to be vet certified for the factory to take an animal that cant walk in.

it also sounds like a lot of work for no reward. she's not exactly going to put on weight/condition

animal should be brought to the factory 1st/next killing day.

had a 14month hiefer break a leg. vet certified and taken to factory next day. luckily it was start of the week. its a bastard when an incident like this happens on a friday.

alderdeer

Humans eh! wrote: »

Hope the c**t ends up in a field alone with a broken hip himself someday.
Really, ignorant arseholes who put a few measly dirty euro before humanity and compassion by ignoring suffering are beneath contempt.

I'd shoot the poor creature at night and put it out of its pain and f*ck him and his money. :mad:

Lets not get too carried away here maybe hip isnt broken and the cow is down after calving or something and needs time to recover, I dont know any farmer that thinks they can put condition on a beast with hay if there down like that, Young lads get the info a bit mixed up sometimes

Dusty87

alderdeer wrote: »

Lets not get too carried away here maybe hip isnt broken and the cow is down after calving or something and needs time to recover, I dont know any farmer that thinks they can put condition on a beast with hay if there down like that, Young lads get the info a bit mixed up sometimes

Never heard of a cow down for at least a week after calving. Not the first time this happened.

ihatetractors

alderdeer wrote: »

Lets not get too carried away here maybe hip isnt broken and the cow is down after calving or something and needs time to recover, I dont know any farmer that thinks they can put condition on a beast with hay if there down like that, Young lads get the info a bit mixed up sometimes

Any farmer knows a cow down for a week is down for a reason, she isn't getting up unassisted after that lenght as she'd have lost her strenght, and even at that the odds are against her at this stage even if she hasn't a broken hip.

alderdeer

Dusty87 wrote: »

Never heard of a cow down for at least a week after calving. Not the first time this happened.

Im not condoning any sort of cruelty but it is common for a cow to be down for some time after a diffacult calving, I suppose its usually moved some way to a less conspicous place and helped to recover. Of course if this cows hip is broken there is no chance of recovery there and it would be more humain to have her dealt with in the proper manner ie Factory or Knackery

AtillaTheHun

maybe its more like damaged nerve post very difficult calving?
hip looks fecked.

these can come right but takes a hell of a lot of TLC. rolling them once or twice a day.

keep going

let me assure you playing around with a downer cow is not a money making biz, trust me i speak from experience .all you are trying to do is get back to where you started and get her on her feet.sometimes i accept farmers are very slow to accept that she is finished but if a cow is eating and drinking they are usally not in serious pain.granted i dont know this particular farmer, maybe he has poor stockmanship skills but i dont think you have experience in this area to make a judgement

bob charles

I have seen animals walk after being down for over 3 weeks, Depending on what the vets assessment of the animal was re the injury maybe this guy is only trying his best,looking after animals properly means everything to most farmers. If this guy comes with a history then thats a whole different kettle of fish.

Re getting a Vet cert for injured animals - Even though I kill allot of animals at local slaughter house there isnt a hope and hell of anyone allowed to slaughter an animal that cant walk off the trailer. I had a grand beef cow that broke her leg while loading for her journey to the slaughter house last month and I asked had I any option of slaughtering this perfect animal but was told no way so just went for the rifle

whelan1

the factory will not take a down cow.... we often give them a week, lifting them 2 or 3 times a day , you know after a day or 2 if it is worth the effort, if the hip is broken i get the knacker asap as the animal will obviously be in pain

Dusty87

keep going wrote: »

but i dont think you have experience in this area to make a judgement

and what judgement did i make? To me leaving a downed cow outside 24/7 seemed a bit cruel. But i asked was it?

dar31

as cold and wet as it may seem some days, outside in a field is the best place for a downer, once it is not a bog hole of a field.
less chance of re injury, away from and disease or sources of infection that may be in a house or shed.

even if they make a recovery in a straw bedded shed, most places have to cross concrete to get them out again, and this is when they will slip again.

you can only save about 50% of downers, no matter what anyone says, but them few make the effort worth while.
after a week hauling water feed meal, lifting a few time a day, the best you can hope to do is break even, so it aint for any finicial gain.

in fairness some people wont except they are at a loss, until the animal is hoofs to the air

reilig

Dusty87 wrote: »

and what judgement did i make? To me leaving a downed cow outside 24/7 seemed a bit cruel. But i asked was it?

I'm not being judgemental here, but in my experience it is much more humane for to leave a down cow out in the field than in a bedded pen. Outside, she will have the best chance of getting up. Its common enough for a cow to go down after calving and not get up for a week or 2.

Other than that, the cow may have a damaged hip as you suggested but she may have been treated with an injection which has a meat withdrawal period and the farmer in question may have to keep her until this withdrawal period is over before he can slaughter her.

AtillaTheHun

yes far better for animal to be outside.
animal in this condition on concrete would be very cruel!!!

djmc

I had a first calver down for two weeks this year before she got up and slowly learnt to walk again I would hope someone wouldnt think I was cruel
The amount of work drawing feed and water and picking her up and roling her 4 or 5 times a day
Other years I had a downed cow shot or put down after a few days all depends on there fight or will to live some old cows just give up and will never stand
To answer the op question
Once he is feeding and looking after it he isnt cruel and hes just giving the animal a fighting chance to live

Figerty

Dusty87 wrote: »

Never heard of a cow down for at least a week after calving. Not the first time this happened.

We had one years ago, Paralysis on a back leg. It took a month of lifting her, turning her and minding her but she came around. Always had a slight limp but calved every year for about 10 years afterwards.

whelan1

my friend had a cow down they lifted her everyday for a week and the cow crawled in to a drain during the night and drowned:mad:

moy83

whelan1 wrote: »

my friend had a cow down they lifted her everyday for a week and the cow crawled in to a drain during the night and drowned:mad:

The poor devils always end up in the lowest part of the field when they try to move around no matter how you try to prop them up . There is nothing more disheartning than to prop up the cow with bales last thing at night , throw a rug on her and by the time you're at the gate she is rolled over on her back:(

keep going

Dusty87 wrote: »

and what judgement did i make? To me leaving a downed cow outside 24/7 seemed a bit cruel. But i asked was it?

no leaving a down cow outside 24/7 is not cruel its better than having them on concrete floor because its softer and cleaner. depending on the weather sometimes you provide shelter.you have down cows on even the best managed farms,its not a pleasant experience for either the cow or the farmer but it is a fact of life.to answer your question it is normal and not cruel to have a cow down out in a field.it could be the best option in difficult circumstances as regards this case maybe he has poor stock skills and he is making the wrong call i dont know,but if the cow was in serious trouble she would be dead by now. farming is not easy and not always pleasant

Dusty87

keep going wrote: »

no leaving a down cow outside 24/7 is not cruel its better than having them on concrete floor because its softer and cleaner. depending on the weather sometimes you provide shelter.you have down cows on even the best managed farms,its not a pleasant experience for either the cow or the farmer but it is a fact of life.to answer your question it is normal and not cruel to have a cow down out in a field.it could be the best option in difficult circumstances as regards this case maybe he has poor stock skills and he is making the wrong call i dont know,but if the cow was in serious trouble she would be dead by now. farming is not easy and not always pleasant

I know its not easy, im from a farming background. I helped a lot with my late uncles cattle and now have some land myself (lying idle as not sure what to do:rolleyes:). I was only asking as iv never come across it before. Is it common enough when calving? He is not known for being the sweetest regards stock skills and cleanliness (got a warning about it before) but if the cow is not in pain and he doing his best for it then fair enough. I only asked as i had never come across it before

keep going

no bother it just looked like there was a few jumping on the band wagon for a while

djmc

Its not too often it happens thank god I reckon about 1 in ten cows will need
help calving with a leg down or calf coming backwards an odd cow might even try calving against a wall
When a calf get stuck on the way out and no one is there to help usually between midnight and 8 am the cow will become paralyzed and cannot stand
I try to check cows close to calving morning mid day and before I go to bed at night and the middle of the night if I think one will calf and I still miss an odd one
About two weeks I got up at 4 am and had a heifer with calf coming backwards
spent 2 hours to get calf straight and out with a broken hand just done when another one started with same problem when I had her sorted it was time to start work:(
Thank god there was none the next night cause I sleeped like a log

5live

Dusty, animals are for the most part better off outside when injured. There is less danger of slipping and infection as previous posters have said.

A broken bone and she should probably be put down as she wont be accepted in a factory afaik.

Once she is protected from rain, she is happy outside. Waste heat from her rumen will keep her warm and once turned regularly and fed and watered, she will need little care but time. I had a cow down 2 years ago for 3 months after having a paralysed leg. She stood once helped with a hip hoist and walked after about a month, just in time to come in heat:rolleyes:. She is still going strong.

Time time and time are the three most important things