One of our beef/dairy cross milk cows, Candy, appears to be in early labor. She’s separated herself from the (tiny 5-cow) herd, and was pacing/looking towards her back end a lot. Currently she is lying down with her neck stretched out before her.
If she was a goat, I’d think this behavior is just typical doe code - but cows are kinder in that they don’t make believe that they are in labor (in my experience)!
She’s had 2 bulls and a heifer so far, and this time she’s bred to a Guernsey so we’re hoping for a heifer - with a better personality - to replace her. She was due on the 8th, but decided to make us wait at least a few days longer...
Nope, not yet! She'll eat hay for a little while and then go back to that certain spot for about an hour - then repeat the process. I'd really like her to calve before it gets dark, but that probably isn't going to happen!
Thanks y'all!
She had a perfect little heifer sometime early this morning. She is just what my Mom (owner of Candy) wanted, color- (all of our and our friends' Guernsey crosses have been nearly completely solid in color - barely any white) and gender-wise. Thank you Jesus, for a live and healthy calf!
Awww congrats!! She's adorable!
LOVE the cow behind her in the middle picture-- Jersey/Normande?? Probably a terrible guess, just throwing it out there b/c of the color
Yep! Great guess! She's 50/50 Jersey X Normande, and she's bred to an Ayrshire and due on February 23rd. We are SO excited to see this calf (hoping for a heifer)!
We kept her 1/2 Red Angus heifer from her last calving, but unfortunately a foster calf nursed on her (the heifer) many, many times I'm guessing before we caught on to it, and she will probably not produce milk in at least one, possibly all of her quarters. We're not sure whether we should just butcher her, or give her a chance.
Anyway, so yeah, again we are rooting for the heifer fairy!
Thanks! The 1/2 Red Angus was nursed on many times by a younger heifer, which is very bad and can somehow ruin their udder, and they most likely won't produce milk once freshened. Lilly actually got a very bad infection in one of her teats (it got huge and very hard) from it and we had to have a vet out.
We had this same thing happen a few years ago - a heifer that had been nursed on by a pasture mate calved and had no milk, and it never came in. Her calf, unfortunately, was full term, but stillborn. We butchered the cow a month later.
When I first got into goats, one doe began nursing on her sister and I was very worried, but when I asked on a forum, everyone said that they'd never heard of that type of thing ruining a goat's udder, which is kind of perplexing. :/
We need prayers for our pregnant (due 02-23-18) Jersey/Normande, Sasha.
Last week we noticed that she was looking pretty thin, so began slowly transitioning her to grain.
This morning she is down and can't get up. She tried to twice and couldn't even get up on two legs. [emoji17]
Our vet is coming any minute now.
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