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Diamond

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Messages
715
Location
CT
As with all of us sometimes you run across an issue you cant explain. I'm wondering if anyone on here has ever seen something similar?

We had a bull calf born the 15th with no issues, up, drank and happily bobbing around. At the time I found one thing strange the way he moved behind, he would cross his hind legs as he walked. I figured being a new born he was still getting use to his body or the genes didn't line up so well and he had the notorious Simmental swagger? 

he was doing fine, although I noticed he was lazier then the other calves until two days ago. Things started to get vary bazaar, to the point that the vets, yes there where a few, and they are as lost as I am. He flops over, he will walk and just fall completely to his side. At times he will walk in small circles about two feet wide, and the strangest part is he will drop to his front knees and do a complete 360 with his knees in place and his hind end circling. He will then get up, and walk completely normal, go to his front knees and walk around the pen again, hind end up and walking with his knees. sometimes when he falls over he starts acting like hes running. he Carry's his head low like a sick calf, but his ears in the normal position. At one point he was lifting his head, twisting it around and rolling over backwards. He hunches his spin at times and then normal a few minutes later. We checked to see if he was blind in the beginning as he would run into walls and as soon as he started that, he stopped, and there is no issue there. This calf has no fever, his heart and lungs are clear, blood is clear, eyes, nose clear. We have given him Bose, Nuflor, penicillin, vitamin boosts and electrolytes with no results. Nothing makes sense. He was nursing fine but now he wont,  so we have been tube feeding him. besides this strange behavior he was growing normally, and nothing seems off. He is an ET calf, and his two siblings are perfectly normal. Pure Simmental. My only guess is nerve or brain issues but I wanted to see if any members have ever come across something like this? Oh and his birthing was uneventful.
 

Diamond

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Messages
715
Location
CT
yes all of them considered this, but while he matches the walking in circles all of the symptoms come and go and there is no fever, salivation, no droop of the ears and no facial paralysis . Currently we are treating him with antibiotics on the off chance that it is related, but the vets said highly unlikely.
 

KFShorthorns

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Joined
Feb 23, 2012
Messages
64
Location
Manitoba, Canada
Sounds like it could be a cerebellum issue to me. There is known congenital cerebellum issues in angus, shorthorn, and holsteins, but can also be associated with BVD infection when the cow is pregnant. Always a chance of one-off congenital issues in any breed. If it is a brain issue like that, unfortunately there is no cure. Examining the different areas of the brain (particularly the cerebellum) after putting the calf down would hopefully give you some answers. Be interesting to follow the ET flushmates and see if they ever develop any kind of issues (not saying that they will, just curious!)
 

aj

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Joined
Jul 5, 2006
Messages
6,420
Location
western kansas
We had an issue kinda like this.......three years in a row we would have 2 or three calves a year we called wobblers. I was sure it was a genetic defect issue. I sent bllod sample to Beevers and etc. We got to doing some investigative work and all the wobbler calves were born to cows that spent the summer in the Wilkens pasture. One day in the Wilkens pasture I noticed four or five round items that turned out to be those re chimmney bricks that had been dumped in the pasture that had been licked on and chewed on. Apparently the cows were licking these bricks a something in the bricks was causing the wobbling condition of the calves when they were born in the spring. I removed the bricks and we never had the problem since. Might be something weird like this that you are experiencing.
 

HGC

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Joined
Jun 30, 2008
Messages
235
Location
Minnesota
Have you looked into neosporosis.  Most pregnancies are aborted, but some are born with severe neurological isssues.  If it is Neosporosis the cow is infected and you need to get rid of her.  It does not pass from cow to cow.  Canines are the host and if the cow eat canine infected feces they are inoculated with the infected oocyte.  Coyote poops in your hayfield and you bale it up is the most common form of transmission.

We had one 13 years ago from a recip cow we bought. Weirdest calf.  It walked sideways and rolled around on the ground.  It didn't grow past 250#, but ours did nurse.
 

Diamond

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Messages
715
Location
CT
Thanks everyone, .The calf started to go downhill fast, so I decided to end his suffering. afterwards we discovered the damage was caused by an aneurysm, there was considerable swelling in the frontal lobe. We aren't to sure if the swelling caused the aneurysm since he did have a slightly malformed head or if both where a result of his skull. unfortunately, it looks like he had the deck stacked against him from the beginning, which leads me to believe is why he walked so strangely in the beginning. Guess this is what I get for all 3 embryos so far his two full sibs, one bull and one heifer are thriving, hopefully they remain that way.
 
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