And she does it again....

[Taurus]

Holy moly that's a productive cow. Good job going in for the 2nd.
Now the million dollar question since they're heifers....are you going to keep them with the twinning being an issue?

Not sure, we will see how they develop. I do not think it is a genetic thing, since no other cow in her family has ever twinned. They are purebred heifers, and if they are half as good as their sire and dam, they should be fantastic! So time will tell.

I do believe that its a genetic thing based on this particular cow's birth history. I wondered if the bull can pass a twinning gene to his daughters.

 

[MO_cows]

Congrats! You did really good to save that 2nd one.

 

[branguscowgirl]

Nice story! Glad all turned out well and I hope you got warmed up. Burr!

 

[Nesikep]

Taurus, with non-identical twins, I think it is certainly hereditary (6 of our 9 sets of twins were from one family of cows), but identical twins are formed in a different fashion, and I don't think that's hereditary.

 

[FlyingLSimmentals]

Great Job Firesweep by you and the cow. They really look nice. I don't think we have had twin heifers ever here. We've had twin bulls several times more than the bull and a heifer combo. I'm just so happy that I finally got a single from a cow of mine that had 2 sets of bulls back to back. They were 1 solid and 1 baldy each time. Her single this time is a solid but a bull therefore, I was worried there for a little while she were gonna do it again really happy she didn't. Twins can be beneficial money wise but a single is so much nicer meaning easier to take care of for her and a lot less supplement and work for me to help them out. Good luck with them, it's a nice looking threesome.

 

[cowgirl8]

Good deal, glad both are healthy and alive. This reminded me i had no twins this last go round. Very odd for us. We have cows who are know to twin multiple times. Maybe i'll get hit hard this next season to make up for none this year.

 

[slick4591]

Good job on getting them out! Glad they are doing well.

 

[Fire Sweep Ranch]

I thought I would update this thread with some pictures. The twins are now about 70 days old, and doing fantastic. Summer has passed over her cycle by 7 days now, so I am pretty sure she is bred. We backed her up 30 days, since she will be due the first part of October and these twins were born in November. We decided to put an embryo in her to give her a year off, so to speak! Twins three years in a row can be hard on a girl!
Anyway, here goes:

Back view of her girls grubbing

Front view of her girls grubbing.
I think she is doing a pretty good job, again. No grain in the calves, but I am giving the cow some DDG's every night. I think I will continue until we hit 42 days post her last cycle, and then wean her off (about 2 pounds dry).

 

[Nesikep]

They look like they're doing well!, and she seems to be holding up ok too.

Twins are always cute when they work out!

 

[cowgirl8]

In todays market, good deal!!! I have a few cows who look like they will twin. This year i hope to at least have a couple sets..

 

[M5farm]

There Were twins in the bull sale yesterday. I was amazed that both done so well in the test.

 

[highgrit]

I was surprised that folks would by bulls that were twins. And one of the twins was at the top of the ADG test and the other close to the bottom. Who the heck would want their cows to have twins? To the commercial cattleman twins are not a desired trait.

 

[Fire Sweep Ranch]

I was surprised that folks would by bulls that were twins. And one of the twins was at the top of the ADG test and the other close to the bottom. Who the heck would want their cows to have twins? To the commercial cattleman twins are not a desired trait.

Bulls do not throw twins, cows do. A twin is caused by either two eggs being released from the ovary at ovulation, or an egg spit after conception. Neither is caused by the bull, he just contributes the sperm to fertilize said egg!

Now, some say there is a genetic link. In our case, we have sold a twin bull (twin to a heifer) and a set of identical twin bulls. In both cases, none of the bulls have had twins themselves yet. Small sample size, and I would be curious to follow any heifers kept from those bulls to see if they twin.
However, with this cow, I called the breeder (we are good friends), and he assures me that NONE of the cows from that family (basically, Drake Summer Sister) have twinned that he knows of. The sire is Macho, a very well used simmental sire. I have not heard, nor seen, any high instance of his daughters twinning. I think she is just a fluke, and super fertile! The good thing is she can raise them. Twice the paycheck!

 

[M5farm]

Hg, I know the guy that bought one of the twins. Maybe I can remember in a couple years to see how he is doing and if he kept heifers.

 

[Nesikep]

I think in the case of non identical twins, the bull's DAUGHTERS would be more likely... his direct descendants would of not be more likely to be twins

What's funny in our herd is that 10 years ago, just about all the twins were in one maternal line (3 in a year, 5 in 3 years!).. haven't had any from them since, but a different maternal line a pair of full sisters had twins, one following the other.. That line had never had twins before, nor since.
From the first line of cows, we kept one cow that was a non-identical twin (the other twin was raised by another cow).. she's never (yet) had twins herself and she's had 5 calves so far.

 

[highgrit]

Twice the paycheck is always nice. And with y'alls operation she can get the job done, that's icing on the cake. I would of thought that maybe the bull could pass the twin gene along to some his calves. And yes I'am fully aware that the cow furnishes the egg or in the case of twins. Jezz I'm a little green but come on.

 

[Drzr]

Congratulations! Had a set Saturday but lost one- the heifer but bull survived.

 

[Son of Butch]

Yes, we are lucky and God is good to us! This cow has had 7 calves and is only 5 years old.

They always sure do look a lot better when standing than laying! Congrats :tiphat: