This section is on cattle internal medicine topics. These are all questions that have been submitted or that I have been inspired to talk about because of a question submitted. If you have any topics that you would like to have discussed please feel free to email me with the topic or question.
There are a range of conditions that causes a cow to become recumbent and unable to rise. The most common occurs in dairy cows following calving. Dairy cows loss an enormous amount of calcium in the milk they produce. Immediately following calving, milk production dramatically increases causing massive amounts of calcium to be lost. Calcium is critical in maintaining the proper electrolyte balance to keep the muscles functioning properly. Loss of calcium makes the muscles (including the heart) incredibly weak. Thus, the cow is unable to stand and will soon die from heart failure without the administration of calcium. There are many management techniques that minimize the risk of this occuring. Treatment is intravenous administration of calcium. Recovery is extremely rapid once calcium is replenished.
I have researched and answered these questions to the best of my ability. But I am human and make mistakes. If there is any part of my answer that you feel is incorrect, please let me know. The last thing I want is to disseminate false or incorrect information.