Cow with mucous discharge

[Texas PaPaw]

About 2 months ago bought some old thin feeder cows to fatten up for slaughter. Cows were not palpated. This morning as saw one cow get up and she had a string of clear mucous hanging from her rearend. When the string fell off, she turned around and licked it up off the ground. My question is this a sign of approaching birth of a calf or can it happen to open cows. FWIW-her vulva looks kind of loose also but haven't paid much attention to it previously. Udder hasn't bagged up. Kind of hoping she will spit out a bonus soon. What is your experience when this happens?

 

[dun]

If it's stringy and clear and the lick it up usually they're within a couple of hours to a half day of calving

 

[Texas PaPaw]

Clear and strung out about a foot long. That was around 8:30 this am. Saw her about an hour ago up and eating. Will be nice bonus if she has a baby.

 

[shadyhollownj]

I'm not mr 38,000 LOL but I have seen my cows have it in mid gestation and it was nothing. I would be more worried about the thin cow that was bred by god knows what than a nice bonus calf. Might be a disaster. Good luck either way.

 

[branguscowgirl]

I'm not mr 38,000 LOL but I have seen my cows have it in mid gestation and it was nothing. I would be more worried about the thin cow that was bred be nice knows what than a nice bonus calf. Might be a disaster. Good luck either way.

Agree. I have seen mucous earlier in gestation also. But I might add that I have seen mucous with cows in heat also.
Can you check her rectally? Then you would know for sure!

 

[dun]

I'm not mr 38,000 LOL but I have seen my cows have it in mid gestation and it was nothing. I would be more worried about the thin cow that was bred be nice knows what than a nice bonus calf. Might be a disaster. Good luck either way.

Agree. I have seen mucous earlier in gestation also. But I might add that I have seen mucous with cows in heat also.
Can you check her rectally? Then you would know for sure!

The key to my thinking is the licking it up. Never have seen a cow do that with normal discharges. I hope I'm wrong, won;t be the first time

 

[Backbone Ranch]

The cow is within a week of calving. The earliest we have had a cow have a mucus discharge was 3 weeks before calving, but the majority will calve within a week of showing discharge.