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Post by shortfencefarm on Mar 16, 2015 17:13:08 GMT -5
Hello all, I bought a pregnant cow and two heifers (one of which was hers) 3 weeks ago. The cow is due to calve in April as per the previous owner. Well as soon as her milk came in her 9 month old heifer started nursing. So, I decided to separate them this weekend for the good of the calf to come. Well after a day of balling the calf got over it. Now her pregnant mamma is on the other side of the fence balling like she is dying and her one of her udders drips constantly. I guess she needs relief. My question is should I just reunite them and let nature take its course? Or should I just let her suffer. I greatly appreciate your help with this as this is the first time this has happened to us here. Regards, Tony
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Post by hollydzie on Mar 16, 2015 19:18:24 GMT -5
I would think that you would need to keep them separate, because the new baby will need the colostrum when it is born. If you put them back together the older heifer will get it. I am sure someone much more experienced than me will chime in. I always wean my calves at about 5 months old to give the mom a rest. The noise that the mothers make is ear piercing, I have had neighbors call and ask if everything is ok. LOL.... I hate weaning time. We do fence line wean and they get over it quick enough, some quicker than others. Best of luck Holly
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Post by shortfencefarm on Mar 16, 2015 19:29:29 GMT -5
That is exactly the reason I separated them because I did not want her to get the colostrum, however as I understand it colostrum comes with the baby. My other cow just kicks them off naturally. But like I said, this cow is new to me so I don't really know how pregnant she actually is and how old her heifer from last year is. My wife gave me two choices 1.) milk her 2.) let them back together. I think I will just let nature take its course. She has good form and I have no reason to believe the calf is in any peril. Once the calf hits the ground I think the cow will run that heifer up.
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Post by shortfencefarm on Mar 16, 2015 19:36:19 GMT -5
I meant to type run that heifer off. Thank you for your reply.
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zephyrhillsusan
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Caught Dexteritis in Dec. 2009. Member of this forum since Oct. 2013.
Posts: 1,502
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Post by zephyrhillsusan on Mar 17, 2015 8:54:01 GMT -5
shortfencefarm Tony, I would explain to your wife WHY you can't reunite them and let nature take its course, because for the good of the new calf, the cow needs two things: 1) A break from nursing to build up her own reserves and grow the calf. There's a good reason farmers dry cows off 2 months before calving. 2) The ability to produce colostrum for the new calf, which it needs if it's to survive and thrive. We had a cow ready to calve in with another cow's heifer from the previous year. The calf had barely hit the ground, and that heifer was mounting the cow. She nearly stepped on the calf. I got her out so quickly she was dizzy! Others have had similar things happen, and one owner stood there and watched a steer and a young bull trample her new-born calf to death before she could stop them. New mama hormones can make a young animal behave in a crazy and unaccustomed manner. If it were me, I would definitely keep them separate and just tell myself that the noise will soon end, but it is for everyone's good. I would also use a teat dip, or at least a chlorhexadine spray, on all her teats. Her teats are dripping because the heifer's sucking removed the natural waxy plug that keeps the teats sealed until the intended newborn calf nurses. That means it is possible for infection to be introduced into her udder, with the possibility of mastitis. Be especially vigilant about manure removal in the area where she is so she won't be laying in it. The other thing is, there is no guarantee the cow will kick the heifer off when her calf is born. If she doesn't, the calf will have a hard time getting enough milk. If it were me, I'd separate that heifer for a long time to come and keep an eye on her in future to be sure she didn't do such a thing again. If she did, I'd sell her. Sorry your animals put you in this situation. They like to keep us on our toes!
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Post by dexterfarm on Mar 17, 2015 15:28:55 GMT -5
generally I let the cows wean their own calves and they almost always do it. but if they dont and it is getting to close I pull them out. I had one this year that did not wean her calf. To clarify it sounds like she was dry and was not sucking. Then the cow started coming back into milk. If that is correct it is not milk it is colostrum. A cow will not make any more colostrum. I think it stops at around the time they go into labor. If she was leaking then she is probably close to calving. I would keep them separated. Do you know the actual age of the calf if so that will give you an idea when the first possible calving date would be.
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Post by shortfencefarm on Mar 20, 2015 11:26:42 GMT -5
I was always under the perception that weaning for the sake of the unborn calf was important around the 6-8 month mark and I try to do it then. I finally got them separated again after talking to my cousin who is a large animal Vet. I guess I will just have to buy my wife a pair of earplugs, because I get to go to work and don't have to listen to the ruckus but she does. Thanks to all for the input.
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Post by shortfencefarm on Mar 3, 2016 13:03:10 GMT -5
Ladies and Gentlemen, I hate to revive such an old thread, but it pertains to the same cow so I thought it would be the proper venue. It turned out that this particular cow, now named Scarlet was not in fact pregnant just fat. The guy swore up and down he had her vet checked, but I lost a year of production and he wouldn't return my texts or emails. So, I decided to breed her with a young bull that is the half brother to my herd sire and the last of the son's of RHV Fargo hoping to get a heifer out of her. I put them together in early July of last year and within a month she was bred. Well two days ago she started acting strange and separating herself from the herd. I thought she looked like she might soon calve because she was huge. So, I segregated her and put out a roll of hay and water. I came home from work the next day and go to the area of the woods where it seems everybody likes to calve and found a little dead bull calf curled up in a ball. As far as I can figure he was more than a month premature but seemed to be fully formed. Scarlett was none the worse for wear except she was confused and would not leave him. I removed him immediately. This is the first time I have lost a calf and knew this day would come but I a just a little befuddled. It's not about the money, for me its just about he loss of life. Trying to figure out what I could have done better. Your thoughts and suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Could a moderator please move this to the breeding/calving issues forum if appropriate? I thought that is where I was when I posted this. Thanks, Tony
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Post by wagradexters on Mar 3, 2016 20:54:27 GMT -5
Sad for the mother but she will accept death easier than she will accept disappearance. If you still have access to the dead calf it would be kinder to return the carcass to where you found it and leave the mother with it for a while. She will keep going back to the carcass intermittently for a few days and then wander off to be with the herd, resigned to her fate.
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zephyrhillsusan
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Caught Dexteritis in Dec. 2009. Member of this forum since Oct. 2013.
Posts: 1,502
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Post by zephyrhillsusan on Mar 4, 2016 12:29:11 GMT -5
I'm so sorry for the loss of your calf, shortfencefarm. It's truly sad for you and your cow. I agree with Margaret to let her keep the calf till she decides to leave it, if you still have that option. I was looking at the Dexter Gestation Chart, and if your cow was bred by July 1, she would have been due April 10. That would make this calf a month premature, allowing for the natural leeway in due dates. If she was bred by Aug. 1 (you mentioned a month from putting her with the bull in early July), she would have been due May 10, making the calf over two months premature. I like to have at least an idea when a cow might calve, so I use Estrotect patches when I put her with the bull. By keeping an eye on the patch, you can tell when standing heat has likely occurred. I really like to send off a milk sample to AntelBio about 30 days later, because that confirms whether she was actually bred and gives me a more definite due date. Last year that didn't happen for various reasons, but at least I have the "presumed bred" date from observing the patch. Once I get within several weeks of that date, I like to get the cow in a pasture up close where I can keep an eye on her progress. I look for signs of impending calving like the udder filling, springing (the vulva getting soft and mushy), teats strutting, her sides changing from bulging to "slab-sided" when the calf drops, mucus stringing, pins "going," behavioral changes like going off by herself, etc. The signs happen somewhat in the order I listed them, but they may not all appear or they may come in a different order from one cow to the next or even one calving to the next. I look for the totality of signs taken together--but the pins "going" and the cow's behavior changing have been the best indicators for me. I routinely go out for middle of the night checks when calving seems close, although I know not everyone does. It's just that I know I wouldn't be able to sleep if I didn't, so I might as well! Please don't think I'm suggesting you should do that--I'm just telling you what I do. The reason I mentioned keeping track of due dates with Estrotect patches (or by close observation) is because if you notice a cow who shouldn't be due for a month yet start to isolate herself, that would be an indication to check her out more closely, especially looking for other signs. Girth alone isn't necessarily a good indication of imminent calving. I have one cow that looks like twins every year while I always wonder if the other one is really pregnant because she doesn't get big at all. You certainly took the precaution of isolating her from the herd, which was a good thing, so my thoughts above are all I have to add. The only other thing I wonder is whether her huge size might have been due to hydramnios? Do you have a vet you can talk to about it?
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Post by shortfencefarm on Mar 4, 2016 13:34:21 GMT -5
Margaret/Susan, Thank you so much for the wisdom. It was all really sort of hectic as one could imagine, so I did not consider the ramifications. I have been so spoiled with my other cow who just drops them on the ground, cleans them up and they take off running around. If I had about 5 more Betsy's I would have it made. So, the latest development is 24 hours later my wife who I refer to as both the cow-whisperer and the cow-midwife, noticed she had a retained placenta (RP) that suddenly appeared. I read on the Internet that one of the causes is possible twins. Well Scarlett was twice the size of Betsy which is my largest Dexter cow, so this made me wonder if perhaps there might be another "bun in the oven". My wife mentioned early on in the pregnancy that she thought do to her size she might be carrying twins. So, I sent a picture to my cousin who is a large animal Vet and he said that it is certainly possible. He remarked that the placenta did not looked like a normal post partum placenta, so maybe she just couldn't carry twins and one had to go. I am of the mind that nature has a way of working things out. He said monitor her for 8-10 days to ensure it detaches. Yesterday, I put all my pregnant ladies out in the same pasture one of which is her daughter so at least she has company. I guess I will be just check her throughout the weekend and let y'all know what happens. Thanks again. Tony
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 23, 2019 8:18:32 GMT -5
What are you talking about man?
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