Retained or.....

[MurraysMutts]

She calved early this morning. I tagged her calf this evening and took this pic because it struck me as odd.
First one I've seen like this. Usually it always looks like the string. It almost looks like a second sac. She is fairly gentle but I cant check her in the field.
I will check her again in the morning and look for a calf with no tag I guess.
I think my only other choice is to get her to a chute (dont have one here) and go in and check her right?

 

[kenny thomas]

Leave her alone. It's nothing to worry about

 

[MurraysMutts]

Thanks!
I hope shes all clear in the morning myself.
Would rather it be a bit of retained placenta than twins really.

Guess I could add a pic of calf huh?
Medium sized bull calf. Unassisted out of a heifer.
Love that! :banana: :banana:

 

[kenny thomas]

I see the problem now. Too much flat land. Here if a cow starts up the hill it falls right out..

 

[Nesikep]

yeah, that's RP, leave it alone for a while.. if in 5 days or so she still hasn't cleaned, insert 3 uterine boluses. My last heifer to calf had RP as well, lost MOST of it after about 5 days.. but I know it wasn't all.. she stinks like heck, but she's got a good appetite so I'm just monitoring for now

 

[Dsth]

agree with previous post. To me it looks like she did not clean completely. If she is quiet enough to walk up behind her, I would wait for about three days and if she has cleanings out yet, I sleeve up and pull on what is visible. It takes a few days to release from the uterus wall. Uterine boluses would be helpful if you get her in a chute. I would also give her a shot of lut about 2 weeks before breeding season starts to help clean out the uterus.

 

[Redgully]

I just leave them, turns into a soup and cleans itself out, just stay up wind. I find they are hard to A.I. after rp but bulls have no trouble settling them. I do agree a shot of lutylise before breeding gives them a good clean out.

 

[MurraysMutts]

Thanks guys.
I figured she was retaining.
1st time I've ever seen what looked like a seperate water bag tho.
She was laying with her baby this morning so I couldn't get a great look at her. I'll post back again this evening.

O! Cows dont care about daylight savings time btw...

 

[VaCowman]

I had a cow do that this past fall. After 48 hours I called the vet and he gave me Oxytocin, I THINK! Either way, I walked up to her in the field and gave her the shot before she ran off...she's extremely docile. The next morning, all was cleared up. She took to AI as well, and is carrying a bull calf due in Sept 2020. Would've preferred a heifer out of her, but she's got a stomp down good heifer nursing now, so I guess we can't have it all. Hope your cow clears up!

 

[W.B.]

I would say placenta broke apart or tore apart before she cleaned completely. I would say most of time they still will clean on their own in the first 24 hours. Most vets do not recommend doing anything about a true retained placenta unless the cow looks feverish or goes off feed.

 

[Nesikep]

I would say placenta broke apart or tore apart before she cleaned completely. I would say most of time they still will clean on their own in the first 24 hours. Most vets do not recommend doing anything about a true retained placenta unless the cow looks feverish or goes off feed.

I think something should be done just before she goes off feed,.. once she's off feed you have a second battle to deal with!

 

[MurraysMutts]

Yep
Shes retaining.
No extra calf out there.
I will keep my eye on her.
The last one had do that cleaned eventually.

 

[Buck Randall]

I would say placenta broke apart or tore apart before she cleaned completely. I would say most of time they still will clean on their own in the first 24 hours. Most vets do not recommend doing anything about a true retained placenta unless the cow looks feverish or goes off feed.

I think something should be done just before she goes off feed,.. once she's off feed you have a second battle to deal with!

Most cows with an RP never go off feed. Those that do almost always come around with antibiotic treatment (injected into the cow, not the uterus!). Uterine boluses and flushes are outdated quackery.

 

[Nesikep]

I would say placenta broke apart or tore apart before she cleaned completely. I would say most of time they still will clean on their own in the first 24 hours. Most vets do not recommend doing anything about a true retained placenta unless the cow looks feverish or goes off feed.

I think something should be done just before she goes off feed,.. once she's off feed you have a second battle to deal with!

Most cows with an RP never go off feed. Those that do almost always come around with antibiotic treatment (injected into the cow, not the uterus!). Uterine boluses and flushes are outdated quackery.

Like #%$% they don't go off feed, I've lost two to it by waiting too long..
a sulfa bolus has proteolytic stuff added to it to help it loosen off, and being a strong antibacterial it can help prevent a serious infection... I usually do them at about 1 week of RP now.

The stinky heifer I had seems to not stink today, which makes her much more pleasant to be around!

 

[MurraysMutts]

The last one I had do this, I actually just sold.
She took about a week to clean out. But she got sick, or unwell, whatever ya wanna call it. Pinkeye terrible in both eyes. Lost condition badly. Milk production fell to almost nothing. Never really put it back on. After 6 months she was open too!

She never went off feed. Ate well. Got around good.
I just chalked it up to a heifer that wasn't worth keeping for whatever reason.

Looking back on it now, I'm wondering if that whole RP thing is what started it all.

Thank you all for the good information. Sure appreciate it!

 

[W.B.]

We calf several hundred cows a year. We have never lost a cow to it that I remember but we do feed a good chelated mineral and keep our cows in good body condition so if we have a retained placenta they have the immune system to handle it. Nutrition plays a huge role in immune response.

 

[MurraysMutts]

Woohoo!
She cleared it today.

 

[Nesikep]

We calf several hundred cows a year. We have never lost a cow to it that I remember but we do feed a good chelated mineral and keep our cows in good body condition so if we have a retained placenta they have the immune system to handle it. Nutrition plays a huge role in immune response.

My cows are pretty darned well fed, and I do feed good mineral as well.. at $40 a bag it better be!

These are the two I lost to it