Taking Care of Cows Like Their Own Children

Only with patience, farmers are able to heal their sick cows. Farmers are taking care of cows that are infected by foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) like their own children.

KOMPAS/ANDY RIZA HIDAYAT

Two cows in Pendi's stable (32), in Kesamben Kulon Village, Wringin Anom District, Gresik Regency, East Java. All livestock here are exposed to foot and mouth disease, Thursday (16/6/2022).

Farmers are taking care of cows that are infected by foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) like their own children. The farmers try to calm down the cows, which feel restless, and feed them. With limited drugs and vaccines, they also take every means to cure their sick animals, including using intravenous fluids and body preservative fluids or even formalin.

On Thursday evening (16/6/2022), Pendi, 32, was working at the pen of his cows in Kesamben Kulon village, Wringin Anom district, Gresik, East Java, when Kompas met him. Pendi, accompanied by his wife, checked the condition of his cows and goats, which had been very weak for the last few days. Worried that the condition of the animals would worsen, he called a veterinary nurse to come to his house.

Mantri (veterinary nurse) came to give the animals injections. The mantri had visited the cows several times. Some of the cows have begun to recover but two others are still weak.

Pendi's cattle pen, which has a tile roof and wooden wall, is located at the back of the house. On the side of the pen, there are two bamboo seats, which Pendi often uses to accompany his cattle at night. Like waiting for a sick person, he is always ready whenever his cows need help.

"If they look restless, I pat their bodies and I also feed them," he said.

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Of his four livestock, three are limousine cows and one is a cross-breed goat. After receiving treatment, the cattle could stand up but they still had no appetite. The wound on the feet has also begun to recover.

Pendi's extra activities have been going on for more than a month. At the peak of the severity of his cows’ illness, he could not sleep well. From time to time, he takes care of his cattle and occasionally feeds the animals. He always ensures that the animals are not hungry. One more thing he always takes care of is the cleanliness of the pen.

There are about 100 cattle farmers in Kesamben Kulon village. Almost all the livestock there have contracted FMD. The Idul Adha (Day of Sacrifice) celebration is usually harvest time for cows and goat breeders. But this year, they cannot sell their livestock.

Infusion to formalin

ALBERDI DITTO PERMADI

Pujo Santoso's cows infected with FMD, Boyolali, Saturday (18/6/2022)

In Ampel district, Boyolali, Central Java, Pujo Santosa, 44, has started to breathe a little easier. Three of his four cows have been able to stand. Only one, Si Merah, the long-haired bull, is still limply kneeling in the corner of the pen.

"Now, the problems are almost over. Only Si Merah still looks weak, even though he is usually the most agile," he said.

In mid-June, an FMD outbreak attacked livestock in Pujo village. Hundreds of sick cows were infected with the disease. The biggest fear of farmers is when the animals’ hooves fall off. Without their hooves, they will not be able to stand up and are susceptible to other diseases. This condition usually kills them.

That afternoon, Pujo used his office lunch hour to go home and tend to his cows. The distance from his office to his house is about 10 kilometers. Still in his office uniform, he entered the pen, examining the hooves of the cows one by one. The normally tough hooves of the cow looked as soft as meat when they were pressed. The feet of the two cows were still bleeding from their wounds.

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Pujo then cleaned the pen, spraying it with lots of water. Once clean, he reached for an infusion bag lying on a couch in the pen. Pujo washed his cow's legs with sodium chloride (NaCl) liquid. He once read that NaCl liquid was good for cleaning wounds to prevent infection.

In addition to infusion bags containing NaCl, Pujo also provided formalin or preservatives. He bought the chemicals from traders in his village. He heard that formalin liquid could cure wounds and harden the soft hooves.

"I bought this but I was deceived; it turned out that this one had been diluted and the color was light blue. I don't have the original one, but the veterinary nurse told me the color should be dark blue," he said disappointedly.

Pujo also gave his animals antiseptic and chlorine medicine. He was trying the various ways he heard about preventing the cow's hooves from falling off. His cows had been sick for a month and he had spent around Rp 1 million (US$66.41) to buy wound-cleansing medicine and vitamin injections for the livestock.

KOMPAS/NINO CITRA ANUGRAHANTO

An animal health officer checks the condition of sick cattle in Mojosongo District, Boyolali Regency, Central Java, Friday (13/5/2022).

In Mojosongo, Boyolali regency, Haryono, 45, fed his cows who had FMD with pure honey and duck eggs regularly. He also fed them when they did not want to eat.

"It should be pure honey and has to be fed to the cows because they did not want to eat," he said.

Haryono's cows were among the first FMD cases reported in Boyolali regency. All the 13 cows in his pen were infected by the two cows he bought from Pracimantoro, Wonogori, Central Java. Currently, 15 of Haryono's cows look healthy. Including his pregnant dairy cows, which have been able to stand and eat voraciously.

Powerless

Only with patience, farmers are able to heal their sick cows. However, persistence and patience are often not enough especially when dealing with more than 20 cows. If all of the cows are sick, they don’t have enough energy to take care of their other livestock.

A farmer in Susukan, Boyolali, Juki, 68, was forced to sell cows that had lost their hooves at a low price. He sold his cow for only Rp 3 million, far lower than Rp 25 million on normal days. Juki has 25 cows that he manages with his son.

"Well, I can't afford to take care of all the sick cows," he said.

In Sleman, Yogyakarta, Tugiman, 64, was also forced to sell his cow for only Rp 8 million, a sharp drop from Rp 21 million on normal days. He felt he had no other choice but to sell the cows whose hooves had fallen off.

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The head of the Food, Agriculture and Fisheries Office of Wonosobo Regency, Dwiyama Satyani Budyayu, said the cattle farmers suffered a huge loss due to the FMD outbreak because they could not take advantage of the surge in the demand ahead of Idul Adha. Although the mortality rate of FMD is low, which is only 2 percent, the economic losses are high.

Because their weight is reduced, farmers have to delay selling them and spend more money to maintain them until they reach the ideal weight again. In fact, Idul Fitri is the time that farmers are waiting for because the price of livestock is normally the best all year.

For example, a cow in Wonosobo weighing 1.2 tons can normally fetch a price of Rp 90 million. However, if the cow is infected with FMD, it should be slaughtered and can earn only Rp 40 million.

"It means there is a loss of around Rp 50 million. That's just for one cow," Dwiyami said.

For farmers, Idul Adha, which is usually a harvest season for them, had instead turned into a time of bad harvest. Most of the cattle farmers could not sell their cows during this year’s Idul Adha, a time of year they had long anticipated.

This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi.