10 month heifer Too young

[sidtexas]

Hey everybody.
I have a quick question. Is 10 months too soon to breed a long horn heifer? It wasnt by choice. Along came a very friendly Hereford bull from a mile down the road. Did you know they can rip the heck out of a new gate when they are in the MOOOOD.
anyway she missed her last heat cycle and I think she took. She is real healthy and a good weight but I think 10 months is a little young. What do you guys think? Thanks alot Rob

 

[Anonymous]

Hey everybody.
I have a quick question. Is 10 months too soon to breed a long horn heifer? It wasnt by choice. Along came a very friendly Hereford bull from a mile down the road. Did you know they can rip the heck out of a new gate when they are in the MOOOOD.
anyway she missed her last heat cycle and I think she took. She is real healthy and a good weight but I think 10 months is a little young. What do you guys think? Thanks alot Rob

Time to break out the Estrumate or Lute - sooner the better.

Bez'

 

[Brandonm2]

I would lutalyse her. IF she had the calf, she would probably be hopelessly stunted by the experience and although Herefords are relatively calving ease he would be bigger than an immature Longhorn heifer could safely handle. Call your vet and get her the Lutalyse shot.

 

[milkmaid]

She is real healthy and a good weight

What's her actual weight?

 

[n i c c i]

A bull got into the paddock with my heifer and a few others. We wasted no time in making sure they would not have a calf.

 

[flaboy+]

I had one that got in trouble at 8 months. I didn't think the bull had gotten to her though. She was NOT really big at 8 months. She had the calf with no problem. This is when I discovered she had been fooling around at an early age. The calf was no show winner but it was ok and mom was ok. It happens some times but if you can get the drug, use it would be my suggestion.

 

[Dusty Britches]

Take her to the vet, palpate her. If she is bred, I'd recommend the shot. Depending on that Hereford bull, you could wind up with serious issues.

 

[Rustler9]

Get her to the vet and give her a shot-keep her away from a bull until she's about 15 months old, depending on her weight and size. She's too immature to calve at this age-she needs to continue to grow herself instead of having to grow a baby.

 

[S.R.R.]

Just a thought. How did it happen in the wild? Did cows not come into heat until 15 months or so? Any ideas?

 

[Brandonm2]

Just a thought. How did it happen in the wild? Did cows not come into heat until 15 months or so? Any ideas?

I think domestic cattle are significantly different from their wild ancestors (the now extinct Aurochs). We don't know; but they probably had breeding seasons. Nutrition certainly played a factor and it probably took good spring/summer grass to get a cow to cycle (since nobody was throwing hay or grain their way in winter). A wild heifer probably wasn't growthy enough to breed at 8 months and she probably wasn't big enough until a year plus. Many probably calved first as three year olds depending on forage. Of course there may have been exceptions and many of them may have died calving and been eaten by European Lions (also now extinct).

 

[S.R.R.]

Good points but you forget that it was not that long ago that the Longhorn was wild. And we are talking about a Longhorn. Has the Longhorn changed that much in our generation?

 

[Brandonm2]

Longhorns are NOT wild cows. They are domesticated Spanish cattle which went wild for about 150 years then were redomesticated. Less is known about the ancestor species of modern cattle; the Aurochs which became exitnct in 1627. There have been ongoing efforts to breed cattle that appear to look like what we know of the ancestor cattle.

http://astronaut.agoff.umn.edu/ansc3221 ... sld001.htm

 

[S.R.R.]

So we do not know why the NOT wild Longhorn that not only survived but grow into large #s is now unable to do so without human help. Maybe our bulls of today are just to big for our heifers. Is it true that heifers of the Longhorn breed did not come in heat until two or so but in only a short time living in our pastures they now come in as early as 10 months?

 

[Brandonm2]

It does not take a genius to see that 8 month old calves cycling is a by product of high levels of nutrition. It is never the dinkiest heifer in the herd who is cycling at 5 months old. It is usually the big robust heifers. Longhorns dorking around on the range with no hay, no loose mineral, no supplement don't have this problem. Of course they also are hard to get to calve by 24 months too. IF you feed your cows well and manage your forages well this is a negative side effect.

.

 

[S.R.R.]

I am sure your right Brandonm2. I have found myself over feeding in the past. They look good but it can cause problems.

 

[Brandonm2]

Just control your bulls' schedule. If he goes in with the cows 90 days after the start of the calving season and you get him out after 60 days it is highly unlikely that he has settled any 150 day old heifers. Let them run together for 6, 7, 8, or 12 months and this is probably going to happen more than once with good healthy stock.