Thorn in the eye of a cow: treatment and prevention

If a cow has cloudy eyes, it may indicate a medical condition or physical injury. This is a fairly common phenomenon in cattle, and both adults and calves suffer from it. If the disease is left untreated, animals experience significant visual impairment, impaired coordination, increased irritability and decreased milk yield due to the stress experienced. Treatment of almost all causes of cloudy eyes in cows takes a long time, but an eyesore in cattle is especially long-term.

Why does a cow have cloudy eyes?

Cows' eyes can become cloudy for a variety of reasons. One of the most common is keratitis or inflammation of the cornea, as a result of which the lens darkens noticeably and profuse lacrimation occurs.

The following reasons are also distinguished:

1. Mechanical damage. This refers to a scratch of the mucous membrane near the eye, an injection or bruise with work equipment or the horn of another animal.
2. Thermal damage. A cow can burn itself on something or get burned when treating an eye condition after being treated with too hot liquid.
3. Chemical damage. Cow's eyes may become cloudy after a burn caused by various drugs if higher dosages have been used.
4. Physical damage. Dull eyes in a cow are often an indication that limestone dust has entered the mucous membrane.
5. Infectious diseases. They are often the reason that a cow has an eyesore.

Clouding of the eyes is expressed primarily in the loss of corneal luster. Then it takes on a smoky shade, gradually turning into white. This symptomatology is common to a number of eye diseases, including eyesore, but it also has its own specific features.

Signs of an eyesore in a cow

As additional symptoms of eyesore in a cow, the following changes in physiology and behavior are noted:

1. Abundant tearing, which is accompanied by the onset of inflammatory processes in the nasopharynx.
2. Photophobia and capillary inflammation. The animal tries to go into the shadows, behaves rather restlessly and even aggressively, which is associated with painful sensations in the eye. When the disease starts, the cow begins to constantly bellow from the discomfort experienced.
3. A sharp decrease in visual acuity - the animal suddenly begins to orient itself poorly in space, staggers from side to side, moves slowly. A sick cow's gait becomes cautious.
4. The cow constantly shakes or simply moves her head, and in the same side - the one where the healthy eye is. This is due to the fact that the viewing angle of the animal is reduced.
5. If the eyesore is not treated in time, the disease turns into an acute stage - blood clots appear on the cornea, the mucous membranes turn red and swell. Puffiness affects, including the upper eyelid, as a result of which the cow sometimes completely closes the eye.
6. Another sign that the disease is already at an extreme stage is the appearance of serous-purulent discharge around the leucorrhoea. With severe hyperemia in a cow, the eye protrudes noticeably.

Causes of eyesore in cattle

A thorn in the eye of a cow can occur for a variety of reasons:

1. Most often, corneal scarring begins due to mechanical damage. They can be caused by any small, but sufficiently solid particles - sand, lime dust. Also, inflammation can be provoked by a scratch or prick from a small branch, which the cow stumbled upon in search of food.
2. Sometimes a thorn in the eye indicates the presence of an infectious disease in the cow's body.
3. Quite often, a cow's eyes become cloudy after suffering conjunctivitis or ulcers.
4. Human factors can also cause eyesore. This is due to improper treatment of other eye diseases, if too concentrated or hot solutions are used.
5. Another widespread cause of the disease is thelaziosis. It is expressed in infection with helminths after the flies have laid eggs at the edge of the cow's eye. Small worms soon hatch from them, which cause inflammation of the cornea.

Sometimes eyesore is a hereditary condition. In small calves, it is detected if a cow during pregnancy has experienced a helminth infection, which is transmitted to the fetus. These calves do not grow well and are often prematurely born. Timely vaccination of pregnant cows helps to reduce the risk of thorns in calves.

How to treat a cow's eyesore

If an eyesore is found in a cow, it is not recommended to engage in self-treatment of the animal. Medicines should be prescribed by a veterinarian, and traditional methods of treatment should in no case replace them entirely. They can only act as aids.

Medical treatment for cattle eyesore

Medication can include the use of the following medicines:

1. 1% Chlorophos solution. Rinsing of a sick eye is carried out according to a doctor's prescription, the recommended frequency of procedures is 3-4 times a day. If the inflammation is severe, this amount is increased up to six times a day. Sometimes, instead of rinsing, your veterinarian may prescribe injections for the third eyelid.
   
2. Tetracycline ointment. It is applied to the eyelids as an independent treatment 2-3 times a day, or the injection site is lubricated after using the Chlorophos solution.
   
3. Albendazole. The veterinarian prescribes this remedy in the event that the eyesore appears as a result of worm infestation. It is applied once at the rate of 1 ml per 10 kg of cow weight.
   
4. Iodine solution. This remedy is used against thelaziosis, which has caused the eyesore. 1 g of crystalline iodine must be mixed with 2 g of potassium iodide and diluted in a glass of boiling water. When the solution cools down, it is drawn into a special syringe or syringe and the eye is treated, while the stream should be directed to the inner corner.
   
5. 0.5% carbolic acid. To wash the leucorrhoea, a small amount of carbolic acid is diluted in 200 ml of water. The exact dosage and frequency of washes are prescribed by the veterinarian.
   
6. 3% boric acid solution. This remedy is also used against worms. The solution is taken into a syringe and the sore eye of a cow is washed.
   

Treatment should be systematic and constant, it is undesirable to skip even one procedure. It is important to follow all the doctor's prescriptions exactly, otherwise the treatment of the leucorrhoea will last for many months.

Folk remedies for eyesore in a cow

Sugar powder is very popular against eyesore, which is explained by the effectiveness and low price of this folk remedy. It is very simple to make it - just pour granulated sugar into a coffee grinder and crush it to a powder state. This will take some time, because large sugar particles can only aggravate the situation.

There are two different ways to use powdered sugar. The first is that the powder is gently blown onto the eyesore. The second involves the dilution of powdered sugar in water, but you do not need to completely dissolve it - as a result, a viscous mass should be obtained, which is applied to the sore eye as an ointment. Some farmers prefer to lay it under the lower eyelid of the cow.

It is necessary to treat the eyesore of a cow 4-5 times a day. Powdered sugar effectively copes with the symptoms of the initial stage of the disease - the thorn becomes smaller and fades on the fifth day, however, the powder cannot completely cure the inflammation. This requires a full-fledged drug treatment, sometimes surgical removal of the leucorrhoea may be required.

Preventive actions

You can significantly reduce the risk of an eyesore with a series of simple guidelines:

1. The barn must be kept clean and tidy. The bedding is regularly changed and the cows are kept aired. Also, there should be no potentially dangerous objects in the barn, due to which animals can get eye injuries and, as a result, thorns. Manure is removed in a timely manner, as it attracts flies, and these, in turn, cause thelaziosis, which is also fraught with the appearance of a thorn.
2. Pastures for grazing cows are chosen so that they are located as far as possible from forests. This will reduce the likelihood that the cow accidentally injures the eyes on small branches in search of food, and will provoke the development of a thorn.
3. Vaccination should never be neglected. All recommended seasonal vaccinations must be given, including to pregnant cows. This will reduce one possible cause of eyesore, as the likelihood of getting an infection will decrease.
4. From time to time, to prevent eyesore, parasites should be cleaned at least once a year. This is usually done in the spring or summer with drugs such as Alvet, Tetramisole and Albendazole. Antiparasitic agents are thoroughly diluted in water and added to drinkers or to feed.
   
   
5. Cow skins are periodically treated with various medicines for flies, ticks and horseflies. For these purposes, such means as "Aversect", "Entomozan" and "Sebacil" are suitable. The recommended dosage is 1 ml of the drug per 100 ml of water. The resulting solution is drawn into a spray bottle and sprayed on the cows.
   
   
   

Conclusion

Dull eyes in a cow are often an indication that a thorn has formed on the animal's cornea. The cause of the appearance can be both mechanical injury or burns, and an infectious disease. As a prevention of cloudy eyes in cows, it is recommended to carefully select pastures for the herd, periodically inspect the livestock and not neglect vaccination. These basic precautions can help avoid the large financial and time costs of treating cattle.

For more information on how to cure an eyesore in a cow, see the video below:

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