What to do if a cow kicks during milking: how to confuse and create an anti-kick

Own fresh milk is an environmentally friendly, he althy product. But sometimes a situation arises when a cow does not allow herself to be milked. Some farmers don't know what to do if a beloved cow kicks while being milked. It is necessary to "persuade" the obstinate animal. Otherwise, the cow will have to be slaughtered, which is especially undesirable if she is young.

Basic milking rules

Causes of cow bucking can be due to improper milking. Therefore, you must strictly follow all the rules of milking. The main positions are as follows:

Milking should take place according to the schedule, strictly at a certain time.Usually milked 2-3 times a day. If the cow has just calved, then the procedure is repeated up to 6 times a day. This will help increase milk yield. After a month, you can switch to a 4-time schedule, and after another 30 days - to a regular one.
Wash your hands thoroughly before starting the procedure. Put on gloves. Personal hygiene must be observed so that unpleasant odors do not come from the milker. If there are several cows to be milked, wash your hands after each.
Udder massage 30 seconds before start. Clean it of dirt and wipe dry. Check the udder for injuries, scratches. If they are, then you need to start treatment.
Young cows are milked first, then old ones. Milk from sick animals is taken last. At the beginning of milking, 2-3 streams are decanted from each teat into a clean container. This reduces the chance of the animal getting sick by 7-18%.

The first heifer must be prepared before she calves. From the fifth month of pregnancy, you need to start touching her udder, stomach during feeding. The chick will eat and will not pay attention to strokes. Thus, getting used to the procedure is achieved.

Nipples must be disinfected after milking. The table shows the most common disinfectants.

Reasons for kicking

There may be several reasons why a cow kicks and does not allow to be milked. Eliminating them is easy. The main factors are as follows:

If the cattle was recently bought, then the new habitat can cause a lot of stress. Therefore, a cow can kick and not be milked.
Udder diseases such as mastitis. Also, if the animal has injuries and abrasions on the nipples, then they cause pain. Therefore, it is important to inspect the udder before milking.
If milking occurs "out of order", not according to the schedule, then this can cause irritability of the animal.
Bright lights, loud sounds, strong smells, the presence of strangers - all this can provoke aggression in a cow.
If milking is done poorly, it hurts the cattle, and they may kick.

In addition to the above factors, the cause of aggression can be cow fatigue. Milking is also a tiring process for her, so the extra workload can lead to kicking.

How to solve the problem

People have been engaged in animal husbandry since time immemorial. Therefore, a lot of folk advice has accumulated that you can use. You also need to listen to the opinion of veterinarians.

Vet Tips

First of all, veterinarians recommend checking the udder. If it has hematomas, hidden mastitis, internal injuries, then the cow will experience pain during milking. There may be small cracks, insect bites, invisible bruises.

Therefore, the udder must first be carefully examined and treated if necessary.

Vets recommend various sedatives. For example, decoctions of oregano or valerian. 30 grams of grass should be poured with 500 milliliters of boiling water. Then wait 20-40 minutes. Mix the finished broth with 10 liters of water and give the animals to drink. With prolonged use, milk may be bitter.

Corvalol creates another soothing blend. To do this, for every 50 kg of cow weight, 1 milliliter of the product is added to drinking water. A similar mixture is used for convulsions and twitching in the muscles, with spasms of the gastrointestinal tract.

Another sedative is potassium, ammonium or sodium bromide. A powder weighing 60 grams is stirred in water and given to a cow to drink.

You can simply confuse your legs - one of the common ways.To do this, they make a knot in the form of a figure eight and put it on their feet. Then the knot is tightened. A cow constrained in this way will not be able to kick. Another option is to tie your front leg up to a support.

Folk methods

Cow gets irritated in bright light and can hurt the milker with her hoof. Therefore, you need to reduce the lighting in the barn or throw a blanket or blanket over her head. If the room is hot, then put a wet cloth on the back of the cow. This will cool the animal and keep insects away.

Many farmers tie their tails to their feet. If the cow likes some food or she is hungry, then with the help of an assistant, you can try to milk her. One person feeds the cattle, while the second milks it. If all the methods described did not work, then you can use special devices called anti-bounce.

Making an anti-bounce with our own hands

The action of the device is based on the forced lifting of the rear or front leg of the cow. To do this, one end of the anti-kick clings to the crease on the thigh, and the other - behind the back. By adjusting the degree of tension, it will be possible to immobilize the animal.

The following elements are used in the manufacture of anti-kick:

2 identical pipes of small diameter, such as 25 mm with curved ends and holes along the length, "A";
large diameter pipe, e.g. 32 mm, concave in the middle, "B";
rubber ferrules for smaller pipes, "C".
angle springs for fixation, “D”.

The device is assembled according to the following algorithm:

Springs are inserted into holes in pipes of smaller diameters.
Small ones are inserted into each end of a wide pipe and fixed with a spring.
Put soft tips on the ends of small pipes.

The final design looks like the figure below. The method of installing an anti-bounce is also schematically drawn there.

If a cow kicks, there are many effective ways to subdue it. The main thing is to determine the cause of the animal's anxiety as accurately as possible and apply the correct method of calming.