Veterinarian discusses post-fire herd health
This past year will go down in history as Wyoming’s second worst wildfire year in terms of acreage burned, following the infamous Yellowstone wildfires of 1988 which scorched 1.7 million acres of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
In 2024, more than 2,000 wildfires burned over 850,000 acres, 70 percent of which were private and state lands, with a financial toll of more than $55 million.
Many producers lost countless livestock, vast stretches of fence line and massive amounts of feed right before the winter months.
Therefore, post-fire recovery was top of mind for many of the producers who gathered in Casper in early December for the annual Wyoming Stock Growers Association Winter Roundup Convention and Trade Show, where experts presented on herd and rangeland health following a devastating year of fires.
South Dakota State University Extension Veterinarian Dr. Russ Daly kicked off the morning session of the Progressive Rancher Forum with a presentation on fire-related herd health issues.
Burns
Although the last of the embers were put out months ago, Daly noted herd losses will likely continue as some fire-related health issues don’t show up immediately.
For instance, he explained it is hard to know the extent of skin and reproductive organ burns until the body starts to heal and slough damaged tissue.
“The damage might not be readily apparent,” he stated. “Bulls may have burned scrotums and sheaths while cows have burned udders and vulvas, but we might not notice the extent of the damage until later on down the line.”
The same can be said for damaged coronary bands badly burned from walking across the scorched ground.
“All of the growth from the hoof takes place in the coronary band – it is the connection between the skin and the hoof, so to speak,” Daly said. “Damage to the coronary band allows bacteria to enter and causes the body to separate the hoof from the underlying tissue. This leads to sloughed hoofs which is not something animals can recover from. This is a euthanasia type situation.”
For burns that can be treated, Daly suggested using a silver sulfadiazine ointment and working closely with a local veterinarian.
Smoke damage
While burn damage may not appear for weeks, Daly noted other issues may show up much more quickly.
He explained smoke inhalation immediately irritates the lungs and respiratory tract so the body tries to dilute the irritation with fluid, which gets into the bloodstream and pools in the alveoli in the lungs. This causes heavy, wet coughing and labored breathing.
Additionally, tubes leading to the alveoli begin to swell and snap shut, which leads to wheezing.
“Some of the treatments to try include nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like flunixin or banamine,” Daly said. “Furosemide is a diuretic that might help pull some of the fluid out of the lungs in severe cases.”
Smoke may cause some other issues as well, although it has been hard for researchers to understand the exact effects.
Daly noted there have been studies done showing dairy cows produced less milk on smoky days versus non-smoky days and racehorses consistently run slower when air quality is poor.
Smoke and heat may also cause eye damage, which can present as pinkeye but will take much longer to heal, if at all reversible. Daly noted, in most cases, producers have found eye damage from fires to be more permanent, causing scarring and blindness which can’t be reversed.
In these cases, he recommends using antibiotics to reduce the chance of secondary infections and topical NSAIDs put directly in the eye.
“It’s not that these are going to be very curative, but it might make animals more comfortable and prevent other infections from happening later on,” he said.
Emotional toll
To conclude, Daly touched on the emotional toll recovering from fire often has on producers.
“People have to euthanize their own animals – animals they have become familiar with for so many years. They lose genetics they have developed on their ranch over time. They lose pasture and money, and it’s not why we get into this business,” he said. “We like to raise animals – to see them healthy and productive. Losing them is hard.”
With this, Daly reminded producers there are multiple resources available for producers during tough times and encouraged them to lean on their families, friends, neighbors, community members, veterinarians, local Extension service and mental health providers.
Keep an eye out for more on post-fire recovery in future editions of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup.
Hannah Bugas is the managing editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.
