A first time for everything….

….Traditional Devon’s™ Churchill presented us with a new problem the other day.  He had been dehorned several years ago but for some reason the “stump” had splintered and we found him in the pasture this way…an ugly sight but he didn’t seem particularly disturbed.

We first thought one of two younger bulls had gotten into a “head-to-head” with him, testing his strength.  But they seemed properly differential.  It was also possible he had been scratching his head on a tree, and broke what was left of his horn.  In any event, the wound was too serious to leave untreated.

So veterinarian Monica O’Brien clipped off the broken ends and then cauterized the site.  Again, not pretty….we’ll write if you want the details…but Churchill took it calmly.

We’ve put him in a pen by himself now….hoping that he won’t reopen the wound in a jousting match with one of the other cows.  But we can’t be sure that, if the site starts to itch, he won’t rub it against a tree or a post.  Wonder if they make larger versions of those hoods they put on dogs and cats to keep them away from sores.