Passing Away of Draupadi

[Guest guest]

This is

 

Dear Mary,

 

You are already aware that Draupadi has taken ill. When the vet came to check

on her he could see that externally her lymph glands were swollen and also to

the side of her right eye there was a lump about the size of a swollen 1/2

dollar which he indicated was also common for her condition. He did an

internal exam and said that a number of her organs were also infected with

cancer. Among them were her lungs, uterus, heart, to name a few. Because her

lungs and heart were infected it was causing her to have a hard time in her

breathing.

 

The first evening ( Monday) when she wasn't able to stand up we managed to get

her on a low sled and convey her to a flat area below the barn where she would

be safe for the night. The hope was that after resting through the cool

evening she would have the strength to again rise up in the morning and rejoin

her herd mates. Unfortunately, in the morning she still was without the

strength to get to her feet. At this time we got the tractor and with 5 men we

got her back onto the sled and slowly took her up the hill to the barn. We

have an area in the barn that we use for a hospital area. It is under roof and

has large doors that open to allow for fresh air and sunshine. If the weather

turns bad we close the doors for the comfort of the cows.

 

Each day the rest of the herd came to the barn and sat with Draupadi for

several hours during the heat of the day. Draupadi kept trying to get up but

was not able to as she was quite weak. I would check her every 3 or 4 hours

during the day. The last check in the evening was at 10pm and the 1st check in

the morning was 6am. She was getting a tablet called BHUTT every 12 hours

which is like an aspirin and it helps with taking the edge off of pain without

being a narcotic or heavy pain killer. On each visit she was offered water and

hay. Sometimes she would eat and the hay was always left in easy reach so she

could nibble whenever she wanted. Sometimes she would drink between 3 and 6

gallens of water. However she would usually only take a sip or two which is a

concern as we didnt want her to get dehydrated. We played Srila Prabhupada

chanting the Maha Mantra for her 24/7 during this time as well. During these

visits we would clean up the area and when all the chores were done we would

spend time with her, sometimes petting and stroking her and always talking to

her and rubbing her head. She still had the strength to remain in a sitting

position as oppossed to laying down. Sometimes I would kneel by the back of

her neck and hug her and she would turn her head towards me and hug me next to

her neck in return.

 

Yesterday (Friday) when I checked on her at 2:30pm she didnt drink any water

and she wasn't eating any hay either. We hugged again and when I came back at

5:30pm her head was down as if she was sleeping but she had passed away. The

vet said that there was a good chance that her heart would just give out as it

was very infected with the cancer and she was having a hard time keeping up

with maintaining her body's needs. I was very grateful that she had a quick

and easy passing. She will be buried on the farm on Monday afternoon when the

neighbor can bring his back hoe over.

 

When I used to milk Draupadi there were a number of families who would buy her

milk. She was a favorite cow of all who knew her and well appreciated and

loved. She would be classified as an" honest cow". This term means that

whatever she ate was turned into milk and not fat. Whatever she took for her

sustanance she kept only what she needed to maintain herself and the rest was

given back in milk. Even when she wasn't milking she never was a fat cow but

maintained a slender figure and pleasant loving demeanor. I looked forward to

milking her in the afternoons. I would go and get her from pasture and bring

her to the house or barn . She would get her grain and give her milk. It was

a time of reflection for me as it would take about 20 minutes to hand milk her.

I would be sitting next to her with my head resting on her side. No matter

what time of year she always had such a wonderful fragrance,sweet and fresh as

an early spring morning or what the air smells like during hay season.

 

Draupadi was a great soul and she will be greatly missed.

 

We are hoping that despite the passing away of your adopted cow that you will

still want to come to the harvest workshop and meet the rest of the cows and

oxen and possible adopt another cow or ox. Your adoption of Draupadi was

greatly apprecited. We look forward to hearing from you and hopefully to meet

you in the not so distance future.

 

With great appreciation for your help in protecting the cows,

 

William (Balabhadra)

Visit us at: www.iscowp.org