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Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 2,546
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 2,546 |
Guys, I lost her. She slipped back into shock, weak, completely exhausted and started shutting down. The hard weather -- rain and wind today didn't help. True Grit, she gave me that look. Butcher just left here with her. It's a kick in the nuts after trying like hell to save her over the last 36 hours. Thanks for the thoughts and insights here, it's all very appreciated. I've learned a ton going forward. Sorry to hear this! I’m not a cattle farmer but both my neighbors are and one of them is a veterinarian even he will lose one like you did once in awhile.
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Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 19,511
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 19,511 |
broomd, sorry about the cow and the calf. I always thought they were neat looking critters. I've never had anything hands on with them, just seen them in pasture.
Do you milk yours as well as butchering?
MAGA
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 1,414
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 1,414 |
There is a great deal of wisdom and experience in Cowdoc's posts here. Save and read again next February.
You did what you could, she did what she could; go forward from there with the knowledge you gained for the long-term and the sadness that will be with you always, in the memory background, I hope. Do what you can to put it behind you. This is what doers do.
Large animal veterinarians are (or can be) a good partner in your livestock business. We mostly work with herd health management and preventive measures, including reproductive issues, trying to avoid the problem you described and dealt with. We are in business to keep your agricultural enterprise economically vigorous and rewarding. The decision your niece's employer made is a personal one, but becoming more common for a host of reasons. I won't try to list all of them, but the work is physically and mentally challenging and the older we get, the greater the struggle to find good help or to get a decent night's sleep. Graduating young veterinarians often have crushing student loan debt and are not as attracted to a rural area and a traditionally modest income. Farm experience is less common in the incoming classes and these students have grown up with more technical innovation than previous generations, which points them towards small animal or pet practice.
One of my sons accompanied me on ranch calls and expressed interest in becoming a veterinarian. Scary smart, physically fit, enthusiastic and tech savvy. I didn't try to talk him out of it, but he chose otherwise and earned an MD and a PhD on scholarships, worked at MN Mayo and is now teaching at Nebraska U Medical School. Good income, no night calls, no back-breaking loans for establishing a hospital and no HR problems. Seems sensible to me also.
“You must endeavour to enjoy the pleasure of doing good. That is all that makes life valuable.” Robert E. Lee, in a letter to his invalid wife.
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Joined: May 2011
Posts: 7,511
Campfire Outfitter
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OP
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 7,511 |
Some uplifting news after last weekend's tough outcome..... Heifer Tinker had her first calf this morning, a little jet black heifer. A first black highlander for us. Momma did great work--calved easily. Baby is working the colostrum like a pro and is feisty on this brisk morning.
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Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 69,616
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 69,616 |
Excellent!
Molɔ̀ːn Labé Skýla!
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Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 4,227
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 4,227 |
Nice looking black Highlander. Good luck with the little one and Be Well, RZ
Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy. Its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery. Winston Churchill.
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