Taking the hurt out of inflammation at calving
Several thousand years ago, humans worked out that reducing the pain of inflammation was a really good way of recovering from injury and illness.
Admittedly, they used some unusual active ingredients (chopped bat, wasp dung, electric eels, mice).
Nonetheless, those ancient civilisations hit on a fundamental truth which is still 100% valid today: Inflammation and pain put the body on a go-slow, whether it’s from a sprained ankle, a torn hamstring, a broken arm, disease, surgery or the aftermath of a difficult childbirth.
As with humans, so with cows and calves. Their natural inflammation response kicks in just like ours when they’re sick or injured.
Sometimes it’s obvious, in the form of red, swollen, tender tissue, resulting from the likes of an assisted calving. Sometimes it’s not – calf scours, for example, causes internal inflammation and can be so painful that calves cease drinking milk.
Either way, the results are usually the same. Inflammatory pain puts even ‘tough’ and stoic animals – like cows – off their game. They eat less, they don’t move so well, and they stop producing or growing as well as they should.
No disrespect to ancient civilisations, but chopped bat or wasp dung in your calving kit probably won’t be much use in these situations. What will make a big difference, however, is an injectable painkiller and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) with a nil milk with-holding period.
It’s all about speeding up the recovery process, and for some farmers, stocking the calving kit with a NSAID pain killer is now the new normal, because they’ve seen for themselves how quickly animals can bounce back when pain, inflammation, and fever is reduced.
Whether it’s an assisted calving, a down cow or an animal that’s just off colour, proactive pain relief helps give your girls the best chance of a healthy, productive season.
One farmer who uses “KetoMax” in his cows for pain relief put it best: “A cow in our herd gives $10 a day worth of milk. So it’s important to us that every cow is back grazing and in full production as quickly as possible.”
Calves likewise benefit from pain relief – that’s why we always recommend a long-acting injection like Melovem for disbudding, and for prompt recovery from calf scours.
Call the clinic today to find out how easy it is to take the hurt out of pain and inflammation for your cows and calves this spring.
They’ll be better off, and so will you.