Bagging Up

[OwnedByTheCow]

Alright so I sent my cow to a breeder to catch her in heat and breed her with some decent semen that I had bought. She was with him for 4 months. This is a completely AI herd that's shared with the man's cousin. She was confirmed bred in the fall. And at some point while she was there the last two months the cousin brought in a very aggressive bull. I watched him toss her around a couple times. They got rid of him very quickly.

She should be due within the next two months if she got bred by the semen, but I'm seeing nothing. No udder, or anything that would tell me she's bred.
It's entirely my bad I'm sure, I really just need to be patient. But my fear is that she got bred to the bull instead. Which would make her not due for another three months.

Now she's my show cow. Which is why I've been so anxious about it. This is her second calf. We had her dry for this last year

 

[bird dog]

Some will show for a long period before they calve. Some won't show until a few days before. You can't tell nothing from the picture if she isn't due for two months. Patience is a virtue.

 

[SBMF 2015]

Bird Dog's right. Just be patient. If your super worried have her palpated.

 

[Dsth]

judging by the cow pic and your profile pic, I am assuming that she is a Holstein. I milked Holsteins for 40 years before switching to beef. I would dry them up at 60 days prior to their calving due date. If she is due within 2 months, it is likely that she would not be filling out yet. Hopefully your breeder kept you updated on number of times she was serviced and they have a good heat detection program. If she was bred AI and settled, I would not think the aggressive behavior from the bull would cause her to abort especially if she was only a few months bred. I know it seemed like it took forever for my first AI calf to get here so I understand your anxiety. Like previous post, a palpate by your vet would tell you what stage of pregnancy she is in. Good luck

 

[WFfarm]

Two months is still a ways off for calving. Not unusual that she's not showing much yet. We have some that surprise us because they don't start showing a bag until a few days before they calve. I know it's aggravating waiting for that special calf to arrive.

 

[VaCowman]

Wait a month and start watching. If she's a heifer, she could start showing anytime between now and when the calf hits the ground. That's one downfall to calving heifers, some show, some don't. Another reason to get them preg checked (as you did, kudos!) so you know when to start expecting some action.

 

[CG1]

All my cows (all Holstein X) don't bag up until days or at most a week or two away. They are all on their second calf this year and that's how its gone. Their first calf they bagged up almost overnight. This second one calf a few of them were bagging up a week before. Then the day before the calf came all the sudden they have a big udder.

I don't watch their udder I watch their back end. Once they start to look all loose and I see mucous I know we are a week or two away.

 

[TCRanch]

Bingo on watching the back end instead of the udder. Which, of course, is also not always accurate. But when she starts losing the mucus plug, springing, swishing her tail &/or holding it out and acting a little antsy it's generally game on.

As far as the bull tossing her around, were there other cows? Because if she was in heat they'd be on her as well.