LuLu's in Stress

LuLu calved in what might be the worst possible time.  It's hot as Death Valley and there is a high pressure sitting over us that has not allowed it to rain in a long time.  The heat index daily hits "feels like 107."  There appears to be no end in sight.  The pasture, which is normally green looks like this:

The heat, drought, and calf delivery has put LuLu in heat stress.  Although we have administered CMPK gel (Calcium, Phosphorus, Magnesium, and Potassium) we don't think it is full on Milk Fever.  However, her appetite is not good and she completely stopped eating hay for a few days.  We're concerned about her.

We have been mixing sweet feed with alfalfa pellets to feed her.  She SLOWLY eats it.  We watch to ensure she's drinking water.  She has begun, once again, to eat hay, albeit slowly.

It is important to keep her rumen working and help her to get things balanced.  We've been mixing up molasses, apple cider vinegar and epsom salt drenches and then, three times a day, holding her head up and getting that mixture down her throat.

To take a little strain off of her, we've been supplementing LuLu's colostrum for little Nicky with bottles of Jersey cow milk we are buying from a neighbor.  Tricia and I mix up bottles twice a day to give him.  Nicky would rather nurse from his mother, but he's getting enough down where he's hydrated.  We see him peeing and also see him jumping around with energy.  That's evidence that he's getting what he needs.

Each day we're picking sweet potato vines from the garden and feeding LuLu.  It's her favorite thing.  When she won't eat anything else, she'll eat this.

LuLu sits in the shade mostly all day and gets out to graze on the pasture at night when it is a cool 80-something degrees.  She's making limited progress, but Tricia and I have settled in for a long road of nursing her back to health and we'll do what it takes.  If we could just get a break from the heat and if it would only rain, we could experience healing in our animals and land.  At night we've resorted to running a water sprinkler in the pasture where we have LuLu isolated so that at least some green Bermuda grass will grow.  We're doing everything we can and hope and pray we'll be able to save her.