# can you give a cow Vit. C?



## Karen in Alabam (Jul 21, 2010)

My mother would always give us lots of vitamin C when we weren't feeling well.

Can you put some pills in the feed? How much would you give a cow if you could?


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## sammyd (Mar 11, 2007)

A dietary need of ascorbic acid or vitamin C is limited to man, the guinea pig, and the monkey. Other animals are able to synthesize vitamin C within their bodies so
I wouldn't worry about vitamin C.


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## bigbluegrass (Jan 11, 2011)

sammyd said:


> A dietary need of ascorbic acid or vitamin C is limited to man, the guinea pig, and the monkey. Other animals are able to synthesize vitamin C within their bodies so
> I wouldn't worry about vitamin C.



Exactly what sammyd said:goodjob:

For cows, I have tried garlic mixed in their feed with some decent success. Just use a food processor and grind up a bulb (I do a whole bulb if I am really worried) and mix that in some sweet feed or grain. A neighbor uses garlic powder, I don't think it is as effective, but she thinks it works. A little apple cider vinegar is good also. Garlic is a natural antibiotic and a natural wormer. The milk is still good. If they don't need it, it won't hurt them. It is fairly cheap. Do realize it is not a substitute for a good vet and not a real cure all. If a cow is really sick, it needs a vet. If a cow is a little sick and you feel like doing something on your own, try it out. Give it to them no more than 7 days straight. I have found that after a week it tends to make them a little loose. Maybe it was just a few bad experiments, but I try to keep it at no more than 2-3 day. If the cow stays sick for more than 2-3 days I would call a vet.

Good luck


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## springvalley (Jun 23, 2009)

sammyd said:


> A dietary need of ascorbic acid or vitamin C is limited to man, the guinea pig, and the monkey. Other animals are able to synthesize vitamin C within their bodies so
> I wouldn't worry about vitamin C.


Say what SAM ??? You have got to be kidding, I have used Vit. C in treating animals for years. And I strongly recommend it, I even get pills for my cows from a reputable company. And It works wonders for horses also, have saved alot of them from getting sick on the show curcuit. I do alot of things others don`t try, I also use herbs and other homegrown cures. > Marc


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## scholtefamily (Feb 25, 2010)

I have to agree with springvalley, I've given vit c and it does help. In fact, when I called the natural vet that has a regular column in acres magazine he recommended vit c. I buy the tablets and crush them up and mix with molasses. The vet recommended 8000mg a day. I gave my cow 4000mgs twice a day. 

Hope your cow is feeling better!


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## sammyd (Mar 11, 2007)

I didn't say you couldn't waste your money on it, I said I don't....
I have fed and cared for cattle non organically and organically and it has never been part of any ration or cure I have used


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## springvalley (Jun 23, 2009)

Sam, Have you ever heard of the Agri-King feed business? There was a Vet that worked for them by the name of Dr. Bonhoff. One year when we where showing our belgian horses, some sickness broke out in the barns. Doc went to work and got me some vit.C and told me how much to give each horse. None, None of my horses got sick, and most all the rest of them had. Now I don`t know if it was the vit. C or just dumb luck, but you can`t tell me this vet didn`t think the vit C would work. He was an old vet also , not just a kid. > Marc


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## bigbluegrass (Jan 11, 2011)

As sammyd said and I agree - according to what I have read, cows, horses, goats, chickens, etc. CAN make their own absorbic acid or Vitamin C. They have that ability. They don't need it as a supplement like humans do. Meaning that in a day to day fashion your cow does not need Vitamin C. It should NOT be given as a mineral supplement and so forth. If you are mixing Vitamin C in their feed every day, you are wasting your money. The fact is a healthy cow will make her own Vitamin C. Now a sick cow or horse, well it is possible the animal is not producing enough Vitamin C and maybe there is some benefit to feeding it (short term). I don't know. I think you need to look at the cause of the problem. If your animal is not producing Vitamin C, why not? It should be. Personally I wouldn't spend a lot of money on it. It will have other side effects, which could be OK short term. It may make the rumen more acidic for a short time, and that could kill off what is growing in there. Remember high acid feed is hard on cow or horse teeth. If you are feeding it everyday you are probably eating up your animals teeth. It is not necessary for cows like it is for people. YOU cannot make your own vitamin C and you have to digest it from the food you eat or pills you take. Your cow should be making her own. If she is not, you need to get her some better groceries.


Here is a link you can check out if you don't believe, Vitamin C is the last one listed: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ds153

With that being said, the vet who gave vitamin C may very well knew what he was doing. Just because animals can make their own, doesn't mean they have a large enough store and they won't digest it and it won't have some benefit to them.


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## mekasmom (Jan 19, 2010)

Yes, you can give them Vit C. It won't hurt them. I know some people use it for CL lumps in goats with good results of the lumps abating. 
Will it help them? I can't say, but it won't hurt them. And most will get a taste for it, and simply eat it like a treat.


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## mistletoad (Apr 17, 2003)

Ours dose themselves by eating the pine trees, but unless you know what your pines are I wouldn't risk it.


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

For those of you who give your cows Vit. C, how much do you give them and in what form? Do you just give it to them when they are stressed or ill?


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## bigbluegrass (Jan 11, 2011)

A somewhat long but very interesting article on water soluble vitamins (including Vitamin C) and dairy cows.

http://www.extension.org/pages/Water-Soluble_Vitamins_for_Dairy_Cattle


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## springvalley (Jun 23, 2009)

We do not give our cows Vit. C all the time, let me make that perfectly clear. Only when they are under stress or fighting off an illness. The company we get our C-caps from is the Impro co. out of waukon Iowa. They make several differant kind of supplement capsules that are organic, that we give our cows when they have a problem. The C-caps that we use are around 9000 mg and we give two per day, now I have no idea weather you guys think I`m wasting my money or not, but it seems to work, so I say I`m sticking with it. > Thanks Marc


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## bigbluegrass (Jan 11, 2011)

Marc,

Did you read the link right above your post? The research is inconclusive, but they do indicate that there could be some benefit to feeding water soluable vitamins (like vitamin C). See, I can keep an open mind:bouncy:

There could be something to it. I can't find any hard research that says it works for sure or doesn't. You would have to know if your particular animal is deficient in it. They shouldn't need it, but a heavy milking cow at the peak of her lactation will deplete her body of many vitamins and minerals trying to keep the milk coming. Might be something to keep in mind.


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## ozark_jewels (Oct 7, 2005)

Yes, they can make their own vitamin C, but a sick or severely stressed animals body is not working to capacity. I use vitamin C just like I use vitamin B, a sick animal gets it, period. It is a recognized booster and a help with ill animals. I use the injectable, from my vet.
Yes, it is a waste of money on a well animal, but not on an ill one.


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