Dead calf ? Suggestions?

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Lrj505":ea3u367q said:
Bought a young 4ish old cow 3 months ago from sale barn for $750 3rd trimester pregnant. Cow was skinny , she gained weight and had the calf. Calf seemed weak and had sucken blueish eyes. Today the calf died , 2nd day. I am unsure if I should sell her? Give her antibiotics and re breed her? Also noticed her teats were large. I have included pics. Any advice ?








Large spiggots to me means that the calve died of mal-nutrition both during the embrio stage and after delivery as it couldn't suckle properly. They also signal me as an old cow, no way 4 years old, well past her prime.
 
I sold her for .70 and bought a heifer black pair with bull calf for $950
 
With a few exceptions, bred sale barn cows and especially young ones are there for a reason. Unacceptably large teats isn't necessarily a tell tale sign of advanced age but it most certainly gets worse as time goes by. That aside, I'd wager she likely lost her previous calf for that reason and consequently was shipped. FWIW, teats like hers are easy to spot on dry udders. Mouthing and/or reading the bangs tattoo will assist in aging cows with unknown history.
 
True Grit Farms":12ypg61m said:
Lrj505":12ypg61m said:
The mail nutrition wasn't from me. I have unlimited hay.
New born calves don't eat hay.

And unlimited hay does not mean it is quality. You can have all the hay in the world, but if it is not good, cows can starve on it.
 
greatgert - just what I was going to say.
I know a lot of you guys buy & sell from sale barn, but buying a skinny cow close to calving is a problem waiting to happen IMHO.
Jan - I know you have calves in and out of your farm, but for the general beef farm, bringing in a foster calf can be disastrous. Calf can be healthy, but be exposed to lots of bugs your own herd is not immune to potentially making all YOUR OWN calves get sick.
 

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