Newborn calf with a twisted tail

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ticomalo

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I had a newborn heifer born this evening with a twisted tail. It appears to be broken, and twisted upward. The top two inches are fine, but when she switches it, the rest does not seem to respond. It is hard, and won't straighten when I tug on it (I didn't want to tug too hard). She is an embryo calf with important genetics, and I planned on showing her. Is there anything that can be done to fix her tail? (This is my very first forum post, so please forgive any blunders :cboy: )
 
I would contact a vet that does work on show cattle, I would think the sooner the better.

Larry
 
If it is that bad, I would call a vet. But we had a calf last year who's tail was twisted to the side. She grew out of it after a couple months and was just fine. And she too couldn't move her tail. But like I said, call the vet and see what he/she thinks.
 
Thanks guys. My regular vet thinks that nothing can be done, but I was hoping someone would have another, better opinion :D ! No outragous ideas? (kidding, I wouldn't want to do any more damage!)
 
I will try to post a picture tomorrow. It was too dark to take one tonight. Our vets are lucky if they are certified, much less show vets, but they do put in the hours and have seen many a strange situation.
 
ticomalo":3kwurr1h said:
Thanks guys. My regular vet thinks that nothing can be done, but I was hoping someone would have another, better opinion :D ! No outragous ideas? (kidding, I wouldn't want to do any more damage!)
I'd wait it out and see. We kept our calf in the shed and moved the tail around, kind of like calf physical therapy. Couldn't tell you if that made much difference tho.
 
If the tail was fractured in utero, and has healed, it is likely not salvagable/fixable with massage or physiotherapy. It could always be refractured, set etc but it may not work, would be painful and it sounds like where you are, you're using laypeople as vets. I personally wouldn't recommend it, not worth the risk.
 
Thanks everyone. I appreciate the quick responses. We had a Brahman bull calf a few years ago with the same thing, and his tail never grew out straight. That's why I was hoping for some good suggestions.
So I can show her with a broken tail? She's a really special looking calf. Of course you have to wait a couple of months to see which way she's going to grow, but from my experience, she's special. Most of our Simmental judges are from the US, Mexico, or Brazil.
I will get up there this afternoon to make sure she milked, and get that picture.
 
Well... None of it matters anymore. Apparently Mama laid right on top of the calf and killed her. Third heifer calf we lost this month. First one never pooped, and was too late by the time the vet got up there. The second was born dead, so we brought this cow out of the farm to make sure the calf was born alive, only for the Mama to squash her. Don't that beat all. Thanks anyway...
 

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