Cow with Sores in Mouth-What is it?

[Bawndoh]

I have a cow that has open sores in her mouth.  Ons is about 2x3 inches long on her lower lip, and her lip is hanging down.  The other is on her upper left lip and is about the size of a quarter.  They could definately be from feed, as she has been moved to a new home recently where the feed could have abraised her mouth, like foxtail or something.  I am going to check her mouth better and see if there are any more sores.  She has had this for at least a month, and is now losing condition quickly.  I am going to treat her with Bio Mycin for now.  Does anybody else have experience with this?  How did you treat it?  What is it?

 

[shortyjock89]

Could be thistle or Black Hawthorne.  Not sure how I would treat it other than the Bio Mycin and if she is tame and you can get her in, maybe flush it out with saline.  If you really like her, you could feed her wet beet pulp, but she would have to be real special.

 

[cowcrazy]

My first thought was lumpy jaw. We lost a cow to this recently.  The vet said to treat her with LA 200, but we were not able to save her.

 

[BCCC]

My first thought was lumpy jaw. We lost a cow to this recently.  The vet said to treat her with LA 200, but we were not able to save her.

We have about one cow ever 3-4 years in our commercail herd get lumpy jaw and we can never save them always end up doing away with them.

 

[jbw]

With BVD they have sores, just something else to check out. good luck.

 

[beefy]

what i do with lump jaw is catch it when the jump is still soft and cut a hole in the bottom of the lump with a knife, let it drain for a few minutes and then take a 60 cc syringe full of gentle iodine and stick in incision and push the plunger. give a couple of rounds of 20cc la 200 every couple of days . thats how i treat it and i havent lost one yet. (knock on wood)  <cowboy>

 

[cdncowboy]

Not sure if its something you have in your part of the world but could it be from leafy spurge?  I haven't seen any but I know it does cause sores in the mouth.

 

[dori36]

I have a cow that has open sores in her mouth.  Ons is about 2x3 inches long on her lower lip, and her lip is hanging down.  The other is on her upper left lip and is about the size of a quarter.  They could definately be from feed, as she has been moved to a new home recently where the feed could have abraised her mouth, like foxtail or something.  I am going to check her mouth better and see if there are any more sores.  She has had this for at least a month, and is now losing condition quickly.  I am going to treat her with Bio Mycin for now.  Does anybody else have experience with this?  How did you treat it?  What is it?

How old is she and what's her vaccination history?  Where do you live?

 

[Bawndoh]

My first thought was lumpy jaw. We lost a cow to this recently.  The vet said to treat her with LA 200, but we were not able to save her.

It does not at all look like lump jaw at this point.  They are raw open sores on the inner part of her lips basically.  But some people I know get lump jaw all the time, and yes, they usually end up all making it to the same place

 

[Bawndoh]

I have a cow that has open sores in her mouth.  Ons is about 2x3 inches long on her lower lip, and her lip is hanging down.  The other is on her upper left lip and is about the size of a quarter.  They could definately be from feed, as she has been moved to a new home recently where the feed could have abraised her mouth, like foxtail or something.  I am going to check her mouth better and see if there are any more sores.  She has had this for at least a month, and is now losing condition quickly.  I am going to treat her with Bio Mycin for now.  Does anybody else have experience with this?  How did you treat it?  What is it?

How old is she and what's her vaccination history?  Where do you live?

She is 6 years old.  Never been vaccinated for anything, we never have vaccinated, dont climb down my throat about that either!!!
I live about 200 miles north of JIT!  She did lose her calf about 3 weeks ago as well.  It was a stillborn.  This abviously may, or may not have something to do with her problem too.

 

[milliron s]

Is there a possibility that she could have been burned by electricity? Either from lightening or some electric source on site. Had a neighbor a few years ago had a bred heifer start loosing weight on pasture. When he caught her to have a vet look at her, the vet determined she had been shocked by lightening while she was grazing. She had burns on her tongue and lips and down her legs.

 

[dori36]

<<She is 6 years old.  Never been vaccinated for anything, we never have vaccinated, dont climb down my throat about that either!!!
I live about 200 miles north of JIT!  She did lose her calf about 3 weeks ago as well.  It was a stillborn.  This abviously may, or may not have something to do with her problem too.>>

Not to worry, it's not my place to climb down yours or anyone elses' throats!  I would consider getting her tested for BVD, though. Sooner rather than later.  Go here for some info about BVD:  www.cattlenetwork.com/BVD_Content.asp?ContentID=299574

 

[KLLR]

Considering the fact that she has recently aborted her calf, I would agree that BVD should be at the top of your Differential Diagnosis list.  Gold standard test for diagnosis of BVD is to do a PCR on an ear punch biopsy, your vet should be able to set this up for you without any problem.

Some other things that come to mind for oral lesions in cattle would be:  malignant catarrhal fever, rinderpest, infectious bovine rhinopneumonitis, and bluetongue

P.S. has this cow been exposed to any sheep?

 

[Shady Lane]

Have to admit that BVD crossed my mind as well, I'd agree that it would be worth having an ear notch biopsied.

Did you happen to notice any irregularites with the stillborn calf?

Sometimes calves from Chronically infected BVD carriers will have abnormalities to their eyes etc.

Seeing as how this cow has a history of some different health issues (ie these sores and a stillborn) it might be worth investigating with your vet for peace of mind.

Just a sugestion.

 

[Bawndoh]

Hi all,
It is difficult to deal with this cow as she is located at my sisters farm about an hour drive from me.  I am doing my best as it is...lol.  For now I will keep her on Bio Mycin and see how she progresses.  My hope is that it is from feed or plants, but it probably isnt .  I had also thought of Bluetongue, and BVD.  She has not been exposed to sheep ever, and I am pretty positive she could not have been exposed to Bluetongue.  I will contact my vet and get her tested for BVD A.S.A.P.  There is a definate chance that could be it.  Although nobody wants that, I think that it is our closest diagnosis thus far.
Thank You for all of the help.  I will keep everyone posted on her progress.

 

[Shady Lane]

I think Bluetongue would be highly unlikely.

  Bluetongue is not a disease known to Canada.

Talking to some of the federal vets while importing cattle from the U.S, they told me that it is unlikely Bluetongue would survive here due to the climate.

I believe the disease is generally passed by mosquitoes and needs a host animal to survive any length of time.

However I'm by no means a Vet or an expert on the disease. Just what I've been told.

Good luck!

 

[KLLR]

Sorry didn't catch that you were located in Canada....Shady Lane is on the right track regarding Blue Tongue...Blue tongue is most often transmited by an insect vector (culloicoides), this vector is not native to Canada...there are other methods of transmiting the virus (the virus itself would not be affected by the cooler Canadian environment)...but all that being said given the circumstances and your location, Blue Tongue would be a lot further down on my list as opposed to someone located in Texas.