Clean Bill of Health

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No not for me, I am about to have a second heart attack I think. No I was referring to my sheep. The State Livestock Expert came today along with the State Veterinarian Assistant and I in a nut shell they said to keep doing what I have been doing. The sheep are neither to thin, nor to fat, and they have good fleece and look alert, have energy and are eating just fine.

We discussed everything from the probiotics that I have been giving them, to hay quality and feeding supplements like cracked corn and oats. I certainly learned a lot today on sheep nutrition, and while I am generally in good shape, I got some good info to help the sheep when it comes really cold this winter. They also gave me some ideas on the upcoming lambs and what to do with the Ram.

I did have a few questions they could not answer though like Copper Toxicity in Sheep and Jonnes Disease which is prevalent in cows but they were unsure if it was passed to sheep. Since my sheep graze and get forage from cow manure spread land, this is an important health question for me.

I also had a tagging question, but it seems as if I am in compliance there too. That's because despite the bad publicity I am a firm supporter of NAIS and my sheep and this farm are registered under NAIS, Maine Farm ID and even Scrapie Program. On the later only 15 flocks in Maine are Scrapie Certified so its a big deal. (Scrapie is the Mad Cow Disease for sheep). With certification I can ship my sheep anywhere in the world...without it only within state).

All in all, my sheep got a clean bill of health. Wish I could get the same from my doctor, but then again I don't have a nutritionist, take vitamin and trace mineral supplements, have a well balanced protein and energy diet, and I certainly don't get oral injections of probiotics everyday (yogurt). Maybe if I did all that I would feel better...:huh:
 
Yes, Jonnes is more of a bovine disease. I don't know if it can be passed to sheep or other animals.
However, it is pretty rare. Not saying your area might not have it. I don't know. Your vet or county extension agent should have that information at their tongue tips. Pretty important.
If Jonnes is discovered, it is a soil borne condition and the pasture where it is detected must (MUST) be left ungrazed for a number of years. I am pretty sure this can be backed up with the force of law. Very tough since this could put a farmer/rancher out of business.
Get that vet or extension agent to give you the latest info on Jonnes in your area.
Last time I had information on this, there was only one testing lab in the country for Jonnes. That was the University of Washington.
 
Travis,
Well take some vitamin supplements & my grandmother swore by warm water enemas maybe you should try it :huh::D Sorry I couldn't help it. Vaughn made me do it.
 
Yes, Jonnes is more of a bovine disease. I don't know if it can be passed to sheep or other animals.
However, it is pretty rare. Not saying your area might not have it. I don't know. Your vet or county extension agent should have that information at their tongue tips. Pretty important.
If Jonnes is discovered, it is a soil borne condition and the pasture where it is detected must (MUST) be left ungrazed for a number of years. I am pretty sure this can be backed up with the force of law. Very tough since this could put a farmer/rancher out of business.
Get that vet or extension agent to give you the latest info on Jonnes in your area.
Last time I had information on this, there was only one testing lab in the country for Jonnes. That was the University of Washington.

Its a New England thing. They are doing testing vigorously, but its been said that its RARE to find a dairy Farm in New England that DOES NOT have Jonnes disease. (Its pronounced Yoneese by the way just in case others want to use this disease in public and not sound silly). Its also been said that if a dairy farm isn't sure if they have it or not, then it probably does.

I agree with you Frank. I am going to follow up on this by asking the State Vet to see if the farm that uses my land is known to have it. With 1000 dairy cows, it most likely does. The next step will be to see if Jonnes can be spread to sheep. They don't believe it can, but I was told that it is indeed possible. After that its pretty much figuring out a strategy to deal with it. Luckily it only hits older animals so it won't affect the lambs.
 
Travis,
Well take some vitamin supplements & my grandmother swore by warm water enemas maybe you should try it :huh::D Sorry I couldn't help it. Vaughn made me do it.

I'd try it if I thought it would work. The problem is I don't think that treatment would work for extreme fatigue, chest pains and shortness of breath. Of course I am not sure probiotics, trace minerals supplements and corn silage would help either. :)
 
The next step will be to see if Jonnes can be spread to sheep. They don't believe it can, but I was told that it is indeed possible. After that its pretty much figuring out a strategy to deal with it. Luckily it only hits older animals so it won't affect the lambs.

:huh:

Symptoms

Signs are rarely evident until two or more years after the initial infection, which usually occurs shortly after birth. Animals are most susceptible to the infection in the first year of life. Newborns most often become infected by swallowing small amounts of infected manure from the birthing environment or udder of the mother. In addition, newborns may become infected while in the uterus or by swallowing bacteria passed in milk and colostrum. Animals exposed at an older age, or exposed to a very small dose of bacteria at a young age, are not likely to develop clinical disease until they are much older than two years.
The clinical signs are similar in other ruminants. In sheep and goats, the wool is often damaged and easily shed, and diarrhea is uncommon.

Transmission and Pathogenesis

Contaminated feed, water, bedding, and soiled udders are thought to be the major routes of spread of the organism. Young animals less than six months of age are thought to be the most susceptible to infection.

Be careful if you have some "in the hanger"...
 
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Travis,
Seriously I also had extreme fatigue & would wake up with a migraine headache every day. I felt the worst after a full nights sleep. I had to go have a sleep study done & the results were I stop breathing 64 times a hour & the Dr said this could cause a heart attack, stroke & other serious health issues. A lot of it was from heavy snoring & the way my throat is designed??? I now have to wear a mask over my nose that blows air into me so when I stop breathing it forces air into my lungs. I no longer get migraine headaches when I wake up & am feeling like I finally have energy. this is a subject you may want to talk top your Dr about having a sleep study done?
 
:huh:

Symptoms

Signs are rarely evident until two or more years after the initial infection, which usually occurs shortly after birth. Animals are most susceptible to the infection in the first year of life. Newborns most often become infected by swallowing small amounts of infected manure from the birthing environment or udder of the mother. In addition, newborns may become infected while in the uterus or by swallowing bacteria passed in milk and colostrum. Animals exposed at an older age, or exposed to a very small dose of bacteria at a young age, are not likely to develop clinical disease until they are much older than two years.
The clinical signs are similar in other ruminants. In sheep and goats, the wool is often damaged and easily shed, and diarrhea is uncommon.

Transmission and Pathogenesis

Contaminated feed, water, bedding, and soiled udders are thought to be the major routes of spread of the organism. Young animals less than six months of age are thought to be the most susceptible to infection.

Be careful if you have some "in the hanger"...

Well you answered two questions there...it does infect sheep and young ones at that. You just don't notice it for a few years. Interesting, Scrapie Disease is similar, but only affects the ewes and not the rams, and for some strange reason does not affect very many white face sheep.
 
Travis,
Seriously I also had extreme fatigue & would wake up with a migraine headache every day. I felt the worst after a full nights sleep. I had to go have a sleep study done & the results were I stop breathing 64 times a hour & the Dr said this could cause a heart attack, stroke & other serious health issues. A lot of it was from heavy snoring & the way my throat is designed??? I now have to wear a mask over my nose that blows air into me so when I stop breathing it forces air into my lungs. I no longer get migraine headaches when I wake up & am feeling like I finally have energy. this is a subject you may want to talk top your Dr about having a sleep study done?

Yeah they gave me some pills for my heart but I had to quit taking them, I was never getting any sleep. I'd go to bed at 21:00 and get back up at 01:30 and not even be tired throughout the day. That isn't right and this happened for several weeks. They gave me some new stuff but I was getting sick and tired of trying different pills so I never filled the prescription, now I got the opposite problem...too much sleep. I've always gone to bed at 21:00 and got around 03:00. Now though I have been sleeping in to 04:00 and once this week did not get up until 04:30. :huh:

Last Thursday I was feeling pretty bad, tired, exhausted and my heart was really hurting. I happened to have a chiropractor appointment and I told her about it. She said my whole left side chest area was swollen. That's just plain odd as I am right handed and other then some logging I have not done anything strenuous lately. :dunno:
 
Travis,
I think it's definitely time for a full exam with all types of tests. It does sound very serious & I wouldn't want anything to happen to you so please go get checked. I will keep your hopefully continued good health in our prayers.
 
You are excellent about following recommendations to keep your sheep healthy. I respectfully suggest you do the same regarding YOUR health. Swollen area in your chest could be fluid build-up AND very serious. Talk to your doc Travis, and follow his/her recommendation............ Besides, I want to be able to give you grief in the future for dropping another tree over power lines and leaving your town in blackness:wave::D........
 
You are excellent about following recommendations to keep your sheep healthy. I respectfully suggest you do the same regarding YOUR health. Swollen area in your chest could be fluid build-up AND very serious. Talk to your doc Travis, and follow his/her recommendation............ Besides, I want to be able to give you grief in the future for dropping another tree over power lines and leaving your town in blackness:wave::D........

You know I never thought of fluid on the heart, that would explain a lot. I'll try going to the massage therapist first to see if its muscular or something else and then maybe see the Dr. I am not a big fan of them so its hard to say when that will happen.
 
Besides, I want to be able to give you grief in the future for dropping another tree over power lines and leaving your town in blackness:wave::D........

Yes it was terrible. The whole town was out of power so that effected a whopping 217 people (no joke I live in a VERY small town).

As for getting grief, I figured you guys would remember me ripping my thigh apart with my chainsaw and not a measly ole tree on a powerline story (hey who hasn't done that a time or two), or smashing into a rock after skimming thin ice on a lake with a snowmobile (again who hasn't done that)? :rofl:
 
Uh, Travis,

I gotta modify Chuck's recommendations just a wee bit. I have it on real good authority (my cousin's Uncle's father-in-law was a brother of a doctor's patient) :dunno: that what you need,,,
is a good "High Speed Ice Water enema". :thumb:

Now, it's the High Speed part that does the trick. :rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

All kidding aside my friend. Do what you have been advised. Get yourself checked, Properly and thoroughly. :)

Yeah, think of that little girl. You sure don't want to leave her, now do you?

Aloha, Tony (who's just about as bad at taking medical advice sometimes)
 
Yes it was terrible. The whole town was out of power so that effected a whopping 217 people (no joke I live in a VERY small town).

As for getting grief, I figured you guys would remember me ripping my thigh apart with my chainsaw and not a measly ole tree on a powerline story (hey who hasn't done that a time or two), or smashing into a rock after skimming thin ice on a lake with a snowmobile (again who hasn't done that)? :rofl:

I know, kinda like getting knocked into a creek by a charging bear you just killed (who hasn't done that a time or two) or capsizing your boat in gale force winds and swimming to shore (again who haasn't done that)?:rofl:

What'd the doctor say????????????? You gonna live or be turned into glue?:dunno:
 
What'd the doctor say????????????? You gonna live or be turned into glue?:dunno:

No glue, she said I'm pregnant! :eek: That explains the fatigue and swollen ankles :)

Actually its pretty funny because I have been emailing the woman that I got the sheep from and I think she is tough jealous. Now her situation was different, more of a homestead with an acre or two rather then a farm like mine so her options were limited as far as feed goes. She basically gave them 2nd crop hay year around.

I emailed her to let her know that her sheep were fine and in good health and I got this email back saying that the state vets were not very knowledgeable about animal health. This kind of shows you the tiff between state vets and USDA vets (which she was a part of). At the same time she has this acute hatred for feeding corn. Myself I love feeding corn. They call this county the Iowa of Maine because we can really grow some nice corn. 14 feet tall, 19 tons to the acre...what a shame not to grow it. I also got the equipment to plant and harvest corn, but not hay. Its really in my best fiscal interest to feed out as much corn as I can.

I do agree with here that I will have to supplement with hay or haylage up to 50% which I have been doing. Between the trace minerals, probiotics and pasture, the sheep seem quite healthy. I just got to figure out a good feeding plan for them for next year and figure out how to make it work nutritionally and economically.
 
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