Cow Magnet

Cow magnets are popular with dairy farmers and veterinarians to help prevent hardware disease in their cattle. While grazing, cows eat everything from grass and dirt to nails, staples and bits of bailing wire (referred to as tramp iron).Tramp iron tends to lodge in the honeycombed walls of the reticulum, threatening the surrounding vital organs and causing irritation and inflammation, known as hardware disease. The cow loses her appetite and decreases her milk output (dairy cows), or her ability to gain weight (feeder stock). Cow magnets help prevent this disease by attracting stray metal from the folds and crevices of the rumen and reticulum.One magnet works for the life of the cow. These cow magnets also make a great addition to your science project. These magnets are powerful and are great for general experimentation with magnets.There are several kinds of cow magnets:1) Ceramic cow magnet: this rectangular cow magnet is made of ceramic 5 (strontium ferrite) magnet material; its special magnetization pattern causes nails and other sharp metal objects to line up along the length of the magnet where they are no longer a danger to the cow; the FDA-approved epoxy coating is gentle on the cow and helps protect the magnet from chipping; rounded corners ensure safe and easy passage to the reticulum2) AlNiCo 5 cow magnet: a favorite of dairymen and vets for over 30 years; this is the standard cast AlNiCo cow magnet with bright, metal finish; it is non-toxic and non-corrosive in use