Opinions please...

[jdcarnathan]

I have a Dexter zebu cross heifer that is by far my wife's favorite heifer. Here is the problem, she is 23 months old and I have never seen a heat from her. She has been with a bull for months. And nothing. Still open as verified via blood test. Vet said try to jump start her with 2 doses of lutalyse 10 days apart. Nothing still, she is in good condition, and no ailments known. Anyone else had this problem. She is bout to go to the vet and get palpated to see if she is cystic maybe. Bug I would still think we would at least see a heat.

[wvdexters]

Is there a chance she could be a free martin?

[zephyrhillsusan]

I'd ask the vet to draw blood to run a freemartin test, but it occurred to me that coming from a different part of the world, maybe zebus mature differently.  Here's what I found:

In comparison to conventional breeds of cattle, Miniature Zebu cattle are slow to mature. It appears that the smaller the animals, the older they are when they first breed. It is normal for a heifer to give birth to her first calf at around 30 to 36 months of age. This is one of the reasons that they are relatively rare in the United States.
www.imza.name/article.html

Maybe she's just more zebu than Dexter in her maturity rate.

[jdcarnathan]

Not positive but that's the next test I was thinking too. Momma was full blood Dexter. Daddy was a Dexter/Zebu cross. As long as she isn't a free Martin, I'm sure we will get it figured out. She is probably the sweetest and most gentle cow I have. She is even sweeter than our full blood we milk. Plus the wife is very stuck on her. I'll post back with results. In a month or so. I'm gonna draw blood again to verify open, and get free Martin test.

[Pinevalleydexters]

I have a friend that raises crossbred cattle, she owns two Zebu Bulls. She isn't on this proboard, I think she would be a good resource.

[zephyrhillsusan]

If she does turn out to be a freemartin, it doesn't have to be the end of the world. I have a good friend whose freemartin is the light of her life. She's training her to drive and be ridden, and that cow is so smart and willing. Another gal I know has a freemartin who pulls a cart.

[Magmom]

Keep us posted.

[Cascade Meadows Farm - Kirk]

Make certain she is getting COMPLETE minerals, especially Phosphorus

"A lot of research has been performed on the role phosphorus plays in reproductive activity. One of the main effects phosphorus has is on energy metabolism. Phosphorus is a component of several compounds in the reactions that transfer energy through out the tissues. If this phosphorus is not available, this energy transfer becomes less efficient therefore slowing down or inhibiting normal functioning. This(low phosphorus) therefore reduces reproductive activity in the animal."

www.cattletoday.com/archive/2001/February/Cattle_Today127.shtml

Purina makes a couple of versions of "Wind&Rain Cattle Mineral mix" with lots of phosphorus and everything else. The formula may vary from area to area depending selenium in your area and time of year.

Here's what's in the mix that I feed.... they also make a high magnesium version to be used during lush spring grass growth.


GUARANTEED ANALYSIS
Calcium (Ca) (min)
12.0%
Phosphorus (P) (min)
12.0%
Salt (NaCl) (min)
21.0%
Magnesium (Mg) (min)
1.0%
Potassium (K) (min)
1.0%
Zinc (Zn) (min)
4,935ppm
Manganese (Mn) (min)
2,820ppm
Copper (Cu) (min)
1,467ppm
Cobalt (Co) (min)
67ppm
Iodine (I) (min)
155ppm
Selenium (Se) (min)
27ppm
Vitamin A (min)
150,000 IU/lb
Vitamin D (min)
15,000 IU/lb
Vitmain E (min)
150 IU/lb

[zephyrhillsusan]

Cascade Meadows Farm - Kirk, do yours actually eat the hi-mag mineral?  Mine wouldn't touch it.  I have to mix it one part to two parts of the regular mineral to even get them to eat it.

[Fran]

How do you guys get yours to eat the free choice minerals at all? Mine won't touch them. If I put them in feed, they won't touch the feed.... How do you do it?

[zephyrhillsusan]

Fran, I buy Sweetlix loose minerals which are specially formulated for Appalachia (I wouldn't have called us Appalachia, but apparently we are) and formulated to be palatable (thus the "sweet" in the name, I presume).  When I first switched to that brand, they ate a lot.   Now they eat less, but still eat it.  Generally, my understanding is that they naturally go for the minerals according to how much they need.  However, my vet did warn me that magnesium tastes bad, so they tend to not go for the hi-mag mineral, which is exactly what I've found.  I think I won't buy it in future because it seems they eat the minerals better without it.  

[Pinevalleydexters]

We use the Purina Wind and rain, we just started them on the one with the fly control. I also have a beef block we feed next to the loose minerals. Once I a while I sprinkle a few Apple Treats over the loose minerals, they love them so when they eat the treats they get some of the mineral salt. We have ours under a roof so it doesn't get wet.

[zephyrhillsusan]

Good idea on the treats! Most of mine love the apple treats, too.

[Fran]

We use the "feed in a tub" mineral tubs that they lick on - sometimes more so than others. I have put out several different brands of loose minerals and they won't touch them.

The only treats they seem to like are the alfalfa or alfalfa/oat cubes - except for my bull, and he also likes carrots and apples. I also keep out a hard mineral block and a regular white salt block.

[zephyrhillsusan]

Do you mean you use protein tubs? I have one out for our boys, but the specs for the tubs say you have to keep loose minerals available as the tub doesn't contain enough minerals. The protein tubs contain molasses, which is why they like them. Ours is the baked kind that they can only lick.