…and with it comes a somewhat easier time for this “Jersey girl” to do what needs to be done: trips to the barn to milk, trying to dress warmly enough so that I’m not frozen by the time I get back into the house, breaking up ice in the outside water troughs (thankfully my very helpful son does that most of the time), and more. Walking to the barn is a pleasure instead of a race to get out of the winter wind.
However, there are some real dangers for my cows as spring emerges from the frozen tundra. The most glaring danger is a condition called “grass tetany”, from which cows can die! I first became aware of spring dangers, when Mocha’s sister, Coco, after being out in the spring grass just for a few hours on spring afternoon, was found deceased the next morning when her farmer went out to milk her. Grass tetany, also sometimes called “grass staggers” or hypomagnesemia”, a metabolic disorder of cattle related to a deficiency of magnesium. It usually occurs when animals are grazing lush pastures in the spring, but it can occur during the fall and winter as well. The rapidly growing, lush grasses create the greatest problem after cool, cloudy and rainy weather is followed by a warm period.
Another danger is “pasture bloat” which is a digestive disorder caused by an accumulation of gas in the first two compartments of a ruminant’s stomach. Production of gas is a normal result of rumen fermentation and these gases are normally discharged by belching, but if the animal’s ability to release these gases is impaired in some way, pressure builds in the reticulum and rumen and bloat occurs. Pasture or “frothy” bloat, results from the production of a stable foam and if not relieved, the pressure created by the unreleased rumen fermented gas in the foam can lead to death by suffocation in as little as one hour or less, but there can be a lag of 24-48 hours before bloating occurs in cattle that have been placed on a bloat-producing pasture for the first time.Bloat can occur on any lush forage that is low in fiber but is most common on immature legume pastures.
There are some ways I try to guard against these dangers. First, we introduce the cows to the spring grasses gradually, beginning with just 30 minutes to an hour at a time. They are typically not happy about their pasture time being cut so short, especially after the long winter, but it is important to me to protect them if I can. After a few days on the pasture for this length of time, we gradually increase their exposure to the new grasses. After a few weeks, they can be in the pasture full-time.
There are several other ways that I try to protect them from these dangers. One way is to make sure they are not hungry when they are turned out to pasture. If they have full bellies, they will not be as likely to gorge themselves on the delicious new grasses. I also wait until after the morning frost has dissipated and dried and I do not turn them out after a rain until the grasses have dried.
Another thing that we must protect our cows from, even in spring weather is heat stroke. Cattle have high body temperatures, especially dairy cows as their bodies are extremely efficient machines for producing milk. They could have adverse reactions to warm weather, even to the potential of having a heat stroke in 70 degree weather. Making sure they have shelter and plenty of fresh water is vital to their well-being.
If you have followed my blog for very long, you realize that our cattle are more than just “milk machines” to me. They are animals that I truly love and enjoy. I want to make sure I am doing everything I can to take the best care of them possible and that can mean protecting them from something that they love when they can’t understand the dangers.
NOTE: Thank you to Ron Lemenager, Allen Bridges, Matt Claeys and neither Johnson at Purdue University Departments of Animal Sciences and Agronomy for the precise descriptions of these conditions of which cattle farmers need to be aware.
