2 yr old cow with very little milk... her future?

[Alan]

I have already received one response via PM, but would like to hear other opinions and experiences as well.

I bought a well bred, nice looking yearling heifer a couple of year ago, got her bred and her first calf was a little heifer, 72lbs. As time went on she never developed any real udder and the calf just didn't gain weight. The calf was never weak and always full of vigor. She ended up with a 205 ww of 310 and I shipped her (the calf). I worm the herd twice a year, but got to wondering about worm young calves, I have ready received enough info on that part and will worm calves at about 6 weeks. I just was thinking parasites may have added to the low ww. My question is, do any of you folks have any experience or knowledge of a first calf heifer not milking but turning into a better or good milker the next calf or down the line? The heifer is a Moler daughter and is bred back Ribeye.... I hope, if not she's bred back to my clean up bull.

Thanks,
Alan

 

[dun]

I have already received one response via PM, but would like to hear other opinions and experiences as well.

I bought a well bred, nice looking yearling heifer a couple of year ago, got her bred and her first calf was a little heifer, 72lbs. As time went on she never developed any real udder and the calf just didn't gain weight. The calf was never weak and always full of vigor. She ended up with a 205 ww of 310 and I shipped her (the calf). I worm the herd twice a year, but got to wondering about worm young calves, I have ready received enough info on that part and will worm calves at about 6 weeks. I just was thinking parasites may have added to the low ww. My question is, do any of you folks have any experience or knowledge of a first calf heifer not milking but turning into a better or good milker the next calf or down the line? The heifer is a Moler daughter and is bred back Ribeye.... I hope, if not she's bred back to my clean up bull.

Thanks,
Alan

Unless the heifer calved very young or was nutritionally deprived (saw that once) they never really become productive cows.

 

[Alan]

Thanks Dun, I should add the cow in question was on good grass during calving and through raising the calf, the rest of the herd turned out decent calves with avg. ww weights. She just never developed any kind of udder at all, but did have some milk, enough to raise the calf.

Alan

 

[Herefords.US]

She's probably going to be a disappointment. If I remember correctly, you bought her in a sale. It is possible that it's from the manner that they fed her getting her ready for that sale - feeding her too much, filling the developing udder with fat, etc.. But most likely it's because the genetics just didn't line up.

I had a single daughter of my Keynote bull do the very same thing. Every other daughter I've had has been a very good milker, but this one just never developed much of an udder. I was so perplexed about it that I kept her another year just to see what would happen - wondering if it was a hormonal thing. The result was largely a repeat of her first year with very little improvement. She's hamburger now.

On the other hand, one of the worst milking cows I've had on the place had a heifer that I ended up keeping who is now one of the best milking cows I own (another daughter from my Keynote bull).

One of those things that make you scratch your head. You can get "outliers" in either direction.

George

 

[cypressfarms]

I just was thinking parasites may have added to the low ww. My question is, do any of you folks have any experience or knowledge of a first calf heifer not milking but turning into a better or good milker the next calf or down the line? The heifer is a Moler daughter and is bred back Ribeye.... I hope, if not she's bred back to my clean up bull.

Thanks,
Alan

Did your other calves have that low of a 205 weight? If not, why would you assume parasites had a part in the low WW?

I bought a beefmaster cow that was bred too young, and her growth was stunted - she had a calf several months after I bought her. Her first calf was small, but her second was very nice. Since then she's proven to be a good cow, but she's still small framed. Sounds like you have a dink, unfortunately.

 

[dun]

Some cows don;t pass the desirable growth traits to their calves. Had an angus cow that raised dandy calves, kept 2 of her daughters. The first daughter had plenty of milk but her calf was the samllest at weaning, bred her to a different bull with the same results. Kpet another daughter sired by a high milking bull. Hr calves have weaned off the lightest. In the spring she'll find a new home, either walking or riding down a slaughter line.

 

[Alan]

Did your other calves have that low of a 205 weight? If not, why would you assume parasites had a part in the low WW?

I have enough years in now, that the cows I have all wean 500 to 600 lb calves (205), except for the new virgin heifers I bring in. I was thinking parasites because of her size and coat condition, but she had plenty of vigor and looked good other than the "wormy" looking coat and no size. The important thing to remember is mom had no udder development. The calf did not look that bad other than small and no real growth and she was not stunted. I did buy the Heifer at a sale and she looked pretty good, and was a Moler daughter ($500 per straw), she was about 14 months at the time. She was bred by my bull, calved easy and seemed to do well, except she had no udder.... as stated, she had milk, because the calf did get the the sale yard after weaning, nursed and was never a weak looking calf.

Thanks for all the comments so far,
Alan

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

You say she was not STUNTED, but a calf 1/2 the weight of your other calves would be conidered stunted. Her unthrifty haircoat may very well have been from lack of enough milk to provide the easily digestible protein calves need. Calves can "get by" with very little milk & good grazing - but they are far from "thrifty".
As mentioned, if the dam was in good condition at the time of calving, she probably won't ever be a good milker. When OPEN heifers are fed enough that they start laying fat in the udder - each udder cell that is "occupied" by fat NEVER produces milk - the rest of her life.
That's a real bummer!

 

[Tod Dague]

Personally I'd say sell her, unless you have more than enough grass and you love her no matter what then keep her. ;-)

 

[I luv herfrds]

Better plan on shipping her. Pretty bad thing when you buy an animal and they don't raise a decent calf. Yes I know first year heifers normally raise small calves.
Had a similar heifer in some share cows. Had her for 2 years and she never developed a bag nor brought a live calf home.

Alan if you want to give her another chance, then go ahead. But if she still raises a small calf then ship her.

 

[Aaron]

Someone will likely say I am crazy, but look at her udder. Good square udders with 4 level teats have a chance at picking up milk production in the 2nd, 3rd, etc. lactation. Crooked udders with sloping teats (higher in front than back) are duds for heifers. :cowboy: