Managing heifer calves

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mdt192

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East Mississippi
I've got a reoccurring problem with a specific family line of cows I have. The heifers from this one cow line are breeding and catching at 4-5 months old consistently. I've got a 14 month old right now from that line that should be calving by the end of the week. What would be the best way to manage the heifers going forward now that I see the correlation (3rd instance)? Lute the heifers from that line at weaning? Could that have any long term effects if they are not cycling already?

So far, I have been 50/50 on getting through getting these yearlings from this line calved. First one the Mexican Vultures got. The second one was successful and raised a dink, but she finished growing out and turned into a decent cow.

I like everything about that cow family due to always getting high breed back, holding condition, good disposition, and raising a good calf (I don't count the yearling's attempt). I run bulls for 60 days generally, and the cow that started this family was adept at crawling through a ditch to find the neighbor's bull and coming right back.
 
Is it possible to also pull the bulls earlier? In addition to the Lute/Dex? I pull my bulls at least 6 weeks prior to weaning and all the heifers get Lute. In your situation, adding the Dex is a sure thing and no long-term effects. Except! If a heifer is too far along and you initiate an abortion, she could have issues expelling the fetus. Got the t-shirt. I've only had one heifer get bred at almost 4 months and lost her trying to abort the calf.

I'm assuming you steer your bull calves, and they aren't the ones breeding that lineage of heifers? Because it can happen.
 
TCRanch said:
Is it possible to also pull the bulls earlier? In addition to the Lute/Dex? I pull my bulls at least 6 weeks prior to weaning and all the heifers get Lute. In your situation, adding the Dex is a sure thing and no long-term effects. Except! If a heifer is too far along and you initiate an abortion, she could have issues expelling the fetus. Got the t-shirt. I've only had one heifer get bred at almost 4 months and lost her trying to abort the calf.

I'm assuming you steer your bull calves, and they aren't the ones breeding that lineage of heifers? Because it can happen.
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The bulls are with the cows from roughly their 3 month to 5 month age. Then it's another 2 months on their dam before weaning, so not really any room there. Yes, all males castrated at birth, and I can count to two.

I will plan on Lute and look into Dex, I haven't used it before. They should be able to pass a 3 month fetus if it doesn't absorb.
 
mdt192 said:
I've got a reoccurring problem with a specific family line of cows I have. The heifers from this one cow line are breeding and catching at 4-5 months old consistently.

I like everything about that cow family due to always getting high breed back, holding condition, good disposition, and raising a good calf (I don't count the yearling's attempt).
Click to expand...

Well it's really a question as to whether the juice is worth the squeeze, isn't it?

Not "counting" a dink calf or other problems doesn't address the problem, it makes excuses for it. Is the high breed back, holding condition, good disposition, and raising a good calf so unusual that you can't get it in other cow families? I don't think so. So I would cull that line and not even hesitate. I certainly would not like that genetics to spread. In the natural world it would end quickly... for a reason.

As someone that made a living specializing in replacement heifers, I was very aware of how anomalies can spread through animals. We see them in herds, breeds, and species. I felt responsible for the product I delivered. I don't see early sexual maturity as valuable. If a cow breeds too early, before it has the skeletal frame to accommodate delivery or the udder development to feed a calf, then early fertility is a detriment.

These problems are easily dealt with close to the source, rather than waiting and spreading it into the rest of your neighbors herds.

You can manage this using lute or other products, but is it worth it? I say no. Find a better cow and move on. Life is already too complicated.
 
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Like @TCRanch said I’ve been there done that, got the t shirt and a dead heifer from it, from lutalysing a heifer.
People swear by Lutalyse and do it all the time, but I very seldom use it for that purpose anymore.
We have been weaning earlier for several years,
 
mdt192 said:
The bulls are with the cows from roughly their 3 month to 5 month age. Then it's another 2 months on their dam before weaning, so not really any room there. Yes, all males castrated at birth, and I can count to two.

I will plan on Lute and look into Dex, I haven't used it before. They should be able to pass a 3 month fetus if it doesn't absorb.
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"Should be" is the operative phrase. But all contingent on the heifer, bull she was bred to, stage of gestation and timing of the Lute or Lute+Dex.

I always keep a bottle of Dex on hand. Not for abortions in my case, but it does help with pneumonia in conjunction with a respiratory antibiotic (Draxxin/generic and Resflor Gold or Nuflor are my preferred) and mycoplasma, snake bites, etc. You do need a RX and I get it from my vet, but you can order it online.

Here's my copy/paste in technical terms, instead of my layman's terms.

Dexamethasine​

Dexamethasone is a synthetic glucocorticoid used in cattle to induce abortion. It is administered intramuscularly and is effective in reducing progesterone levels in the blood, which is crucial for the abortion process. The exact timing of its effect is at 75 days of pregnancy, and it can be used up to that point. Dexamethasone is associated with various limitations due to its abortive effect, and there is no exact information about the first time it had an effect on abortion in pregnant cattle.

sciresliterature.org

In a field trial, a combination of dexamethasone and prostaglandin F2α analogue was found to induce abortion at all stages of pregnancy in feedlot heifers. This combination was effective in causing abortion within two weeks of treatment.

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

The use of dexamethasone in cattle for abortion is a common practice, but it is essential to consider the potential side effects and complications, such as retained placenta and dystocia, especially in heavily pregnant heifers.

https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=d15d...yaXRpb24tb3ItYWJvcnRpb24taW4tY2F0dGxlLw&ntb=1
 
For 4 years I bought 60-70 heifers weighing 700-800 lbs to breed and sell as bred heifers. Over that time 20% of them were already bred. Some slipped the calf from the modified life vaccine. Some slipped by and had the calf. The last 2 years I went to luting them when they got vaccinated, That worked on some but not 100%. It is an issue with heifers. Probably no absolute answer.
 
ClinchValley86 said:
Ive got the t-shirt as well

Interesting. Care to hypothesize what the reasoning was?
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I don’t know the reasoning , but my vet recommended the same thing. A repeat shot of lut 11 days after the initial shot. I didn’t ask why as I only picked it up from the front office lady.
 

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