duration of calving paralysis

[J Baxter]

I have a eighteen month old Brangus cross heifer that was on the ground for eight days after trying to have a 90lb Charolaise bull calf. Several friends tried to convince me to shoot her after the third day, but I told them as long as she had high spirits and was alert I was going to give her a while. The eighth day she was down I had another heifer that was calving about 75 yards from her. I (along with about have a dozen other cows)was standing over the other heifer watching her closely for any complication when out of nowhere I looked and she was standing there beside me. She couldn't stand not seeing what I and all the other cows were interested in.

It has now been 4 weeks and you can't tell she was ever on the ground and she just completed a cycle. I have some dissapointed friends who have shot several cows in as little two to four days.

Is it normal for the paralysis to hang on this long?

PS This heifer was accidentally bred.

 

[dun]

It can go on for at least 6 weeks, that's the longest I've ever seen. My rule of thumb is I don't recommend wacking her unless she starts acting like she just doesn't care anymore or starts to have eating problems.

dun

I have a eighteen month old Brangus cross heifer that was on the ground for eight days after trying to have a 90lb Charolaise bull calf. Several friends tried to convince me to shoot her after the third day, but I told them as long as she had high spirits and was alert I was going to give her a while. The eighth day she was down I had another heifer that was calving about 75 yards from her. I (along with about have a dozen other cows)was standing over the other heifer watching her closely for any complication when out of nowhere I looked and she was standing there beside me. She couldn't stand not seeing what I and all the other cows were interested in.

It has now been 4 weeks and you can't tell she was ever on the ground and she just completed a cycle. I have some dissapointed friends who have shot several cows in as little two to four days.

Is it normal for the paralysis to hang on this long?

PS This heifer was accidentally bred.

 

[J Baxter]

That's pretty much the rule I was following. As long as she was alert, happy, eating and making an effort I was going to keep trying. I just can't see digging a hole and throwing $7-800 dollars in it until every opportunity is completely exhausted.

Six weeks is a terribly long time. I don't know many producers that would have had that much patience. I'll have to share that with my neighbors.

Did you keep her after you got her on her feet?
If so, how long did it take to her to breed back?

 

[dun]

When she went back into production she was only milking around 50-60 lbs a day, her normal is closer to 90-100. She bred back on time and this year is milking back to the 90-100 lb mark. BTW, it was Holstein at a neighboring dairy. The rolled her from side to side a couple of times a day. The morning they had decided to dig a hole and plant her she greeted them at the door wanting into the parlor. The standard joke was that they should have done that a month sooner so she would have gotten up sooner.

dun

That's pretty much the rule I was following. As long as she was alert, happy, eating and making an effort I was going to keep trying. I just can't see digging a hole and throwing $7-800 dollars in it until every opportunity is completely exhausted.

Six weeks is a terribly long time. I don't know many producers that would have had that much patience. I'll have to share that with my neighbors.

Did you keep her after you got her on her feet?
If so, how long did it take to her to breed back?