Latestarter's ramblings/musings/gripes and grumbles.

[Bruce]

Completely understand the night owl syndrome, suffer from it myself.

Gee we couldn't tell by the time on many of your posts

 

[Latestarter]

So when I went to feed the goats at dusk, I noticed that CM was holding his front right leg up and would not put pressure on it to stand while eating. Wasn't it just the other day I said he is always getting into grief? When he moved he wouldn't put any weight on it and was limping. I finally got into head scratching range and grabbed his collar. He doesn't like it but once I get him he settles down. Anyway, somehow he stabbed the front of one hoof with a small stick or thorn, right above the top of the hoof. Just the smallest bit of it was sticking out and I was able to get hold of it and remove it. Left a hole about the size of the business end of a ballpoint pen. No idea where ot how he managed it.

So I let him go and came back to the house for a medical kit. Went back down and got hold of him and clipped him to the fence where I normally milk. Then I used my beard trimmer to trim the hair off his hoof up to the puncture hole. Blood was flowing, so I know I got all of the object out. Then doused it with Hydrogen peroxide, waited a bit, wiped it away and loaded it with triple antibiotic ointment. While I had him, I trimmed his hooves as well. They needed it. After eating a little he was walking much less tenderly. Figuring he'll be OK. Goats... seems they're always looking for ways to hurt themselves...

So I went online to pay my DirecTV bill which is due tomorrow and they "ended the promotion" (after 1 yr when they promised me would be there for the entire 2 yr agreement) and raised my bill $50. Needless to say, royally pissed. After a service rep, his supervisor, a transfer to customer loyalty and another transfer to Legacy, I finally got a credit to the bill back to close to what it was before this, (then paid it for this month to zero out the balance) and a second credit added for next month. I was told after that I should be able to call back and get new promotional offers (or additional credits). Why do companies pull this crap? I mean it's just frustrating BS. Grrrrrrrrrrrr. The termination penalty would have been a little more than what I was about to be being billed for monthly. So pay that once, or that for 12 more months... you decide.

Next I need to contact my internet provider (Exede). I'm paying almost $90+/mo for 12 gig speed and 15 meg of data/mo. Hughes net next gen is offering me 25 gig service and 20 meg a month for half that (~$45/mo). Depending on cost to cancel, if they can't come close to matching it, I may be getting a new internet provider as well. Worth it to pay a $200 cancellation fee to save $600 over the next year. Still works out to a $400 savings... and for faster/better/more service.

Road trip Thursday. Need some road time.

 

[CntryBoy777]

That is 1 reason I dropped Directv....another was...I wasn't going to keep paying for so many channels of reruns and crap shows....when I gave up sports, there wasn't any reason to keep it....it is even worse today.
Ya heading to any place imparticular or just going for a ride? Be careful....make sure All the lights are burning....and check those tires....

 

[Bruce]

Why do companies pull this crap?

Because they can. Lots of people don't pay attention to the fact they are being screwed and just pay. The only way to not get screwed is to pay attention and BITCH when they pull a fast one. No it should NOT be that way. If they said the introductory price was good for the 2 year contract, it should be.

Call Excede and tell them that you can get HughesNet for half price and faster service, more data. They may do something to keep your business. Of course, I ASSUME the HughesNet price is also a limited time, must contract offer just like your DirectTv.

Sure glad you noticed CM's problem so fast. No time to get real bad.

 

[Bruce]

Ya heading to any place imparticular or just going for a ride?

He knows where you live

 

[Latestarter]

OK, so I was browsing and ran across this: https://easttexas.craigslist.org/grd/d/animal-immobilizer/6302604481.html
So after looking at the pictures, I'm going to ping @greybeard and @farmerjan or any other large animal owner... Have you any experience with this item?

 

[Pastor Dave]

Hmmm, interesting.

 

[farmerjan]

I'm with Pastor Dave .... interesting. Have never seen it, have no experience with it. Would really like to see it work in the field so to speak. Seems like it somehow immobilizes the nerves???? Since that guy says he is a distributor, may be interesting to see if they do any sort of demonstrations at a fair or something.

 

[greybeard]

OK, so I was browsing and ran across this: https://easttexas.craigslist.org/grd/d/animal-immobilizer/6302604481.html
So after looking at the pictures, I'm going to ping @greybeard and @farmerjan or any other large animal owner... Have you any experience with this item?

I haven't used one but have seen a vet use one. They do work, tho many here at BYH would likely coil back in horror at 'how' they work. It is inserted in the rectum, and produces a low electric current in the nervous system and causes the major muscles to constrict, rendering the animal temporarily immobile. Been tested thoroughly and many producers safely use them, even on pregnant animals. If I have one that is that difficult to work, it can can just work it's cantankerous rear end up on a trailer and go to slaughter. Having said that tho, I have no real opposition to their use..just don't have a need for it.

There is a similar device (electro-ejaculator) used in semen collection, and I have not seen it used but did read a detailed post by a bull owner that said he had a bull go thru a BSE where it was used and would never again put one of his bull's thru that.

 

[farmerjan]

The vet used the electro-ejaculator on our bull when he did a BSE exam and the bull barely twitched. The vet said he did fantastic and we were very pleased by the results because we were afraid this bull would be no good after last years' disaster at the pasture where we lost 12 cows and he and 4 others survived but took a long time to recover from that supposed ABEE from the lush grass when we moved them in rotation. So I was rather hesitant because I have heard that manual stimulation is better, but it was not a horror story for us or the bull. He never bellowed, kicked, got mad, nothing, and walked out of the chute in no big hurry when we were done.

Thanks @greybeard for the info as I figured it was something like that. I am in agreement that if I need to use one of them on an animal, for the most part they can go somewhere else. However, if an animal is in extreme pain, it might be the way to safely treat it in some circumstances, so I also don't have any real objection to it. When we dehorn, a retired vet friend does nerve block for the pain, so that they don't feel it and he does a fantastic job. It mostly only comes up with my dairy calves, and using some semen from polled jersey bulls has also stopped some of that. I think it is only fair to the animal to do a nerve block, it isn't that big a deal. Since I cannot take the electric disbudding, makes me very sick to smell and listen to them, I would rather do the other. Never used the paste. Since most all out beef animals are bred to angus, naturally polled, we seldom get any calves with horns. The half angus half dairy will carry the horned gene, but the polled is dominant, so only if I use another horned animal for breeding, I don't see the horns coming out.
Will be interesting to see what I get out of some of these cows I have bred to Aubrac.... they have horns and some of the cows & heifers I bred have some dairy in them. Suspect I will see some horns. Will preg check later on and see if they settled, they are with the angus bulls for cleanup breeding now.