Cass has dealt with health issues the whole time she’s been with us, which will be two years in March. This summer was spent trying to figure out her hormonal issues and if she does or doesn’t have a tumor on her ovary. We still don’t have a definite answer but the Chinese herbs have kicked in and are keeping her hormones and behavior in check. Since the beginning of November we’ve been dealing with her mammary glands being infected. Of course, she couldn’t have just everyday, run of the mill, normal mastitis. She had a strange bacteria that had all the doctors perplexed. She’s been on heavy duty antibiotics for weeks and weeks. We got news today that the strange bacteria (rhodococcus) is clear but now she’s developed three other types of bacteria in her mammary glands! It’s all about opportunity.

Because of her years spent as a broodmare, having baby after baby, her body is now paying the price. Her mammary glands have permanent scarring and keep a residual amount of edema (swelling) in them. This is a perfect, warm breeding ground for bacteria to grow. If her immune system and mammary glands were normal the bacteria wouldn’t have the opportunity to take hold. But, because they’re not, the bad stuff can grow and thrive. An additional monkey wrench thrown into this is she’s also developed severely itchy skin. She’s practically scratched her mane completely off. My poor girl is miserable. I’m miserable right along with her.

These pics are from early November when all this began.

Cass is sedated so we can strip the bad stuff out of her mammary glands. Without sedation we would have been kicked to high Heaven to even try to touch them as sore and swollen as they were.

Dr. Fowinkle and Terri are trying to get a good look at things.

Have to milk her to get the sample to send off for testing.

Watch out! Pus was flying everywhere!

The cows ask, “why is this horse being milked?”

She had to strip as much out of the glands as possible. Then she actually injected antibiotics up into her mammary glands.

Cass is glad she doesn’t really know what’s going on.

Then my girl had to get two types of antibiotics injected into her neck.

Billy decides to take cover in case we were getting any crazy ideas about him!

Is she just the best girl, or what?

We will get this thing beat. Those ranchers had years to misuse her body and it’s not going to get better overnight either.

Billy and the rest of his goat family are glad when the doctor leaves.

That’s our new baby goat. He’s very cute and strong.