You want me to put my hand where...?

So, today was the intro to cows lab.

We all bundled into our coveralls and boots and tromped down to the barn where Terry, the farm coordinator, had a squeeze chute and headgate set up, complete with a rather annoyed calf inside. For those who don't know what these contraptions are, they consist of a long narrow alleyway of wooden boards and metal bars (the chute) that leads to a small metal pen. This pen has bars on the side that squeeze inwards when a lever is pulled in order to keep the cow still, as well as a gate at the back that is raised to let the cow in, and then lowered to keep it from backing up. The headgate is almost exactly what it sounds like....a double gate that locks around the cow's neck once she pushes on it with her head. This keeps her from moving forwards or backwards.

We had a large animal vet and his tech as guests today to help us with the lab, mostly because there was so much for us to do. We started by learning some knots (square knot and bow line I knew, halter tie was just a variation on the quick-release knot I knew), and then practicing getting a halter on the cows. Even with the head gate, cows can thrash their heads around, making ear marking and identification very difficult, so a halter is used to immobilize the head.

After the rope work, we divided into groups. The "head" group practiced pilling the cows with a long plastic pilling gun, the "flank" group practiced giving IM and SQ injections of vitamins, vaccines and dewormers, and the "butt" group practiced doing rectals.

That's right, rectal exams.

So, I got to put on a shoulder length glove, rub my hand in some manure (it makes the best lubricant for a rectal....really) and then jam my arm up the cow's rectum, past the elbow. Once I got past the worry that the cow was going to get her tail out of my grip and thrash me in the face with it, it was actually a pretty neat experience. I was able to feel the underside of the pelvis and the sacral vertebrae, and when I turned my hand over I could feel the uterus (complete with a bulge which is apparently a 3 month old calf fetus), the pelvic canal, and the bladder. I didn't spend long at it because a cow's rectal muscles can squeeze your arm to the point of numbness, and she was starting to get a bit antsy to push me out. I was the 4th student to practice on her, so I guess I can understand her annoyance.

Anyway, the rest of the lab was fun too. Cow pills (called boluses) are gigantic things (easily 3 inches long) and getting the pilling gun down their throats is a tricky, but satisfying job. It does tend to get you covered in drool (and I do mean covered), but I liked the way a cow will wrinkle up her nose as she swallows, so you know for sure it went down. We only had one pill get launched across the barn because the cow didn't feel like taking it.

Trying to vaccinate through a cow's hide was another interesting experience. I suppose if I'd thought about it, I would have realised that a cow's skin is 1/4 inch thick, and used to make leather. We also re-use needles in large animal medicine (a combination of a cow's amazing resistance to low-grade superficial infections and a farmer's unwillingness to spend more than absolutely necessary on an animal on it's way to slaughter anyway), so by the time I was practicing my injections those needles were pretty dull. SQ injections on cows are pretty standard, but the IM technique was very cool.

Because cows don't tend to hold completely still, there is a risk of breaking a syringe when the needle is embedded in muscle. To reduce this risk, you remove the needle from the syringe, locate the injection site (one fist length caudal to the "hooks", or pelvic bones), punch that site as hard as you can 2-3 times (to distract the cow from the impending sting and to loosen the muscle) and then jam the needle up to the hilt in the muscle, all in one jab. It's a bit of a shock to those of us accustomed to small animal work, but I'll admit that it went beautifully. I mangled my first one a bit because I wasn't expecting the cowhide to be so tough and so didn't push hard enough (you really have to use a lot of force) but I got the needle in on the second try, and did it perfectly the third time. Once the needle is embedded in the muscle, you re-attach the syringe and quickly inject your drug, then remove it.

After lab, a few of us decided to go out for dinner, drinks, and an A&P study session. It was a lot of fun, and we spent almost as much time trading clinic stories as we did studying. I ended up feeling a lot more prepared for tomorrow's quiz, and also a lot more relaxed. All in all, quite a good day.

Oh...and for those who might be wondering.....yes, there are pictures of the rectal examinations. I will post them as soon as I get ahold of them.
You're welcome.