Meet Clementine

Robin Hall

Visitors to the farm may have noticed that one of our cows only has one eye. Clementine, a 10 year old milking cow, developed a carcinoma on the eyelid of her right eye. Due to the size of the growth and its proximity to the tear ducts, our vet advised that the entire structure should be removed. This is the second time a cow here has had surgery for an eye cancer and it seems to be caused by solar UV radiation. Cows with white faces and pink skin who have no pigmentation round the eyes are apparently more vulnerable to this.

The surgery was carried out at the end of May and Clementine seems to have made a full recovery. There was no secondary infection and the scar has now healed up well. It was a difficult event for us but what impressed me was how this cow seemed remarkably undisturbed by it. She came in for milking in the afternoon after the surgery and has continued to do so throughout her recovery. Her behaviour seems normal and overall she seems to be doing very well under the circumstances.

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