Update: We have a calf!!!!
May 28, 2020 15:43:29 GMT -5
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talithathecow15, farmer, and 1 more like this
Post by andreas on May 28, 2020 15:43:29 GMT -5
Two newbie questions for you guys today...
1. How long before calving should a cows udder get absolutely huge and start constantly dripping?
2. Is it possible that a full month after a dry off with no complications that a cow could suddenly go into full on production again?
All the details:
Jinglebell (we thought) was due to calve in the last week of June. We had a bull dropped off last fall. When he arrived, it should have been right after a heat cycle. The owners (the husband is a bovine vet) picked her up in Dec and he confirmed that she was 2 months pregnant by feel.
We dried Jinglebell off on April 20th. She never dripped and never got uncomfortable. We kept her dry lotted for 2 weeks and then gradually introduced her to pasture after that. We reduced her grain and started feeding beet pulp morning and night. She gained condition beautifully. She's been getting only mixed grass hay, no alfalfa.
So last Tuesday morning my husband noticed that seemingly overnight her milk bag got huge and there was a small string of goo hanging out of her vulva. That area also looked more red than usual.
We ran the date the bull was dropped off with us through a birthing calculator and sure enough, the timing would be exactly right if perhaps she was still in heat the day he was dropped off. We assumed the vet was off by a month, that she was actually three months pregnant when they picked her up in Dec.
So, we got all of our supplies together and all of the anxious middle of the night checking began.
Now, over a week later we are still in the same position except that her bag is far bigger than I ever thought possible and it is constantly dripping. Occasionally she will have a string of goo hanging out of her bottom, but it has not increased.
She seems to feel fine, has a normal appetite, etc. I do feel like since her body has turned to milk production that we have lost every bit we had gained in condition and then some. She's looking much thinner.
Is it normal for them to get thinner so quickly when their milk comes in?
What on Earth is going on? Is this the beginning of labor or is she producing again for some reason?
I feel like I am in totally over my head and am really worried.
I'm attaching pictures of the morning my husband noticed her bag getting full (the muddy ones), 2 days later, 3 days after that (in the stall). I'll have to get more current pictures soon. It has been raining a lot, but literally when she walks every step milk is squirting out.
1. How long before calving should a cows udder get absolutely huge and start constantly dripping?
2. Is it possible that a full month after a dry off with no complications that a cow could suddenly go into full on production again?
All the details:
Jinglebell (we thought) was due to calve in the last week of June. We had a bull dropped off last fall. When he arrived, it should have been right after a heat cycle. The owners (the husband is a bovine vet) picked her up in Dec and he confirmed that she was 2 months pregnant by feel.
We dried Jinglebell off on April 20th. She never dripped and never got uncomfortable. We kept her dry lotted for 2 weeks and then gradually introduced her to pasture after that. We reduced her grain and started feeding beet pulp morning and night. She gained condition beautifully. She's been getting only mixed grass hay, no alfalfa.
So last Tuesday morning my husband noticed that seemingly overnight her milk bag got huge and there was a small string of goo hanging out of her vulva. That area also looked more red than usual.
We ran the date the bull was dropped off with us through a birthing calculator and sure enough, the timing would be exactly right if perhaps she was still in heat the day he was dropped off. We assumed the vet was off by a month, that she was actually three months pregnant when they picked her up in Dec.
So, we got all of our supplies together and all of the anxious middle of the night checking began.
Now, over a week later we are still in the same position except that her bag is far bigger than I ever thought possible and it is constantly dripping. Occasionally she will have a string of goo hanging out of her bottom, but it has not increased.
She seems to feel fine, has a normal appetite, etc. I do feel like since her body has turned to milk production that we have lost every bit we had gained in condition and then some. She's looking much thinner.
Is it normal for them to get thinner so quickly when their milk comes in?
What on Earth is going on? Is this the beginning of labor or is she producing again for some reason?
I feel like I am in totally over my head and am really worried.
I'm attaching pictures of the morning my husband noticed her bag getting full (the muddy ones), 2 days later, 3 days after that (in the stall). I'll have to get more current pictures soon. It has been raining a lot, but literally when she walks every step milk is squirting out.