Help..

[jcarkie]

due dates are not very reliable with cows. they can go 2 week early or 2 weeks over. i had one last night 13 days early and one last year 13 days over.
if it is mucos looking i wouldn't worry it is normal, if it looks like a membrane then you need to have it checked. if she has went off and showed signs of labor then you need to have it checked. otherwise don't panic yet.
it takes time and experience, most guys on here have been doing this awhile and leaving them alone is the best way to handle most situations. if they are in trouble you will know it soon enough but don't look for trouble.

 

[just learnin]

Hopefully all is well. I am on close watch after losing a calf last month.
I want to learn, what is normal and what is not.

Thanks to all.

 

[Beefy]

Just Learnin, has this cow even started bagging up yet?

discharge never really concerns me prior to calving unless its bloody.

 

[milkmaid]

Looks normal to me.

 

[just learnin]

Cow has not bagged up.
What worried me most was when I found a saucer size glob with two long strands on it.
Vet said it was the mucous plug.

I hope that I am just seeing more than I usually do. I never seen mucous, plug, or the water bag with the others. I could tell when they were close. They bagged up and had the calf on their own.

 

[macaroanie]

Get the calf out...it may already be to late. If this cow has been hangin' by herself for 2 - 3 days it's either a breech (butt first) or twins with the first one sideways. A cow will not go into full labor (delivery phase) until the calf has entered the pelvis. normal presentation is front feet first then nose. as more of the calf gets into the passage, the harder the cow works to get him through.

You can wait until the discharge is yellow and stinky, have a dead calf and septic cow that may never breed back, or call the vet.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Lets back up. You posted:

We examined her and there is a calf inside.

Did you mean, you palpated her or the vet did??

No matter who did it, you would know if the calf was "stuck" coming out backwards or tangled set of twins.

What you are showing in the pics looks perfectly normal and can show up a month OR LONGER prior to calving.

Vet is misleading you a little, because the cervical plug CAN be discharged a lot sooner than 1-5 days. NORMALLY, maybe 1-5 days is right.
But, this may just be normal discharge - clear stringy mucous.
I definately would be worried if I saw ANY sign of BLOOD. That means there is STRESS and she needs help.

 

[J&T Farm]

You just need patients, not a vet.

 

[Carnivore]

Anything new?

 

[just learnin]

Nothing new.
I check on her twice a day.

I asked the vet about her and he said we could bring her in and have her gloved, but I have given him so much of my money lately.

She isn't bagged up. She is still eating and drinking. She is with the herd.

She is still having a little bit of stringy stuff.

 

[*Cowgirl*]

Lets back up. You posted:

We examined her and there is a calf inside.

Did you mean, you palpated her or the vet did??

No matter who did it, you would know if the calf was "stuck" coming out backwards or tangled set of twins.

What you are showing in the pics looks perfectly normal and can show up a month OR LONGER prior to calving.

Vet is misleading you a little, because the cervical plug CAN be discharged a lot sooner than 1-5 days. NORMALLY, maybe 1-5 days is right.
But, this may just be normal discharge - clear stringy mucous.
I definately would be worried if I saw ANY sign of BLOOD. That means there is STRESS and she needs help.

Jeanne is right. I've gotten all hyped before cause of a slimy backside and then the cow went for another couple weeks. You can keep checking, but let her do her job.

 

[just learnin]

I took the advice. "Be patient"
Calf was born today.
Two days after her due date.
Yoo hoo

 

[Beefy]

JL, that is a nice calf! good things come to those who wait.

hope you got back to your 4wheeler okay.

 

[just learnin]

Thanks
Yea, I got back to it alright.
I was alittle concerned, because calf was coming to me and momma was on her heels.

 

[Beefy]

better be careful messing with them babies. (or even not messing with them).

 

[Workinonit Farm]

Glad everything worked out well.

Katherine

 

[donnaIL]

Glad it is a happy ending... good looking calf, i'm partial to the white faces..
Bet you lost alot of sleep the last 6 weeks, now you can relax and enjoy watching (bull or heifer?) grow.

;-) donna

 

[just learnin]

Thanks
Yes I did alot of worrying the last month. I guess it was all for nothing.
The calf is doing good. It is a little heifer.

 

[preston39]

Can tell by mom's stance..she didn't like the intrusion...be careful.

I would have had the ATV between me and mom.

 

[farmerjohn]

Due dates are not set in stone. Just as different breeds have different gestation periods, different cows do too. If she lays down and starts straining and nothing happens, then start worrying.