What’s Normal or Not — Detecting Signs of Illness in Cattle
fi rst drives into a pasture, your fi rst impression can often give a clue whether any of the animals are not feeling well. If an individual is sick it may not be exhibiting typi- cal behavior. “If you notice cattle grazing at
an abnormal time of day or not eating when you expect them to be eating, this might be a tip-off that something is wrong. If they are eating or grazing when they would normally be resting, it may be a nutritional issue. There may not be enough grass or enough hay
provided,” he explains. According to Dr. Tom Hairgrove,
Texas AgriLife Extension animal science veterinarian, it’s also help- ful to assess body condition. “When looking at a group of animals to assess health or signs of sickness, the things we need to look at in- clude current nutritional status. If there are 20 cows and 2 of them look poor and 18 of them are in good condition, this may be a clue. Sometimes we’ll see weight loss as- sociated with certain problems as one of the fi rst signs.”
Alert or dull? The healthy cow or calf is bright,
alert, has good appetite, comes ea- gerly to the feed at feeding time, or is grazing with the herd during times of day the cattle are foraging. During grazing season cattle
generally forage during the morn- ings, late afternoon and evening, lying down during the middle of the day — especially during hot weather — to chew the cud, says Dominguez. If an animal is slow to come to feed, or spends more time than its herdmates lying around
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August 2013 The Cattleman 87
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