Short Gestation

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Jake

Jake

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Dec 20, 2003
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North Central Kansas
First calf hit the ground today. Second calver calved a month early with a healthy heifer calf. How about that for breed back?! :cowboy:
 
The last 3 years in my AI group ,my first calve(s) have been born 2+ weeks early and were twins . Looks like it is going to continue again this year . One of my dam of merit gals MFL, is ready to pop any day now and is not due until the 9th.

I had a heifer calve last year ,from bull exposure, 26 days early. She had a eautiful 78lb heifer calf that hit the ground running.
 
Jake,

#31 had her first calf 3/8/2010. Her 2nd calf 1/18/2011. That has to be a record for my bunch. Or else I got an entry wrong but don't believe that to be the case. Generally heifers have that first calf then they go a full year to the second calf. Yesterday she looked like she was about to bust with her third. So she going to be slightly over a year this time. The calf is probably on the ground today.

#6 had her first on 1/22/2011. She had her second yesterday which was 1/22/2012. One year to the day. I don't know if this has ever happened before. I don't remember one being exacting on a year interval.
 
backhoeboogie":2znfzszp said:
Jake,

#31 had her first calf 3/8/2010. Her 2nd calf 1/18/2011. That has to be a record for my bunch. Or else I got an entry wrong but don't believe that to be the case. Generally heifers have that first calf then they go a full year to the second calf. Yesterday she looked like she was about to bust with her third. So she going to be slightly over a year this time. The calf is probably on the ground today.

#6 had her first on 1/22/2011. She had her second yesterday which was 1/22/2012. One year to the day. I don't know if this has ever happened before. I don't remember one being exacting on a year interval.
Click to expand...

Was that from a short gestation or did you bull expose them earlier ?
 
Probably a little of both in #31's case. They are with a bull year round. I sale calves about every month if prices are good. It keeps me from putting all my eggs in one basket so to speak and it works in this climate.
 
#31 Calved. Grandsons got to watch the miracle. From wet to dry to nursing. Heifer who is probably just as fertile. Great great dam was an F1 brindle. Sires have been brangus. Everything out of that line has been fertile.
 
AAA doesn't have a gestation EPD like the Australian Angus and other breeds do- but when you see a really low birthweight/calving ease bull- you can often expect short gestation times...
N Bar Prime Time D806 is a good example- a +14 CED and a -1.7 BW--- and from my experience with him you can look for calves as much as 20+ days early...Good healthy calves that are reaching for the teat before they hit the ground- and are up in minutes running around like jackrabbits... But be prepared they will come early.....
 
I had a heifer calve about 2 weeks early a few years back and that was great. The next year she was about 6 weeks earlier and calf was still born with very little hair and "premi" looking.
Glad to hear you guys haven't had this problem.
 
Our cows seem to have long gestation times for the most part, a couple seem to like calving aroudn 278 days, but most seem to be at 288ish, with my old cow taking 295 if she is carrying a bull calf... Last year she calved on May 5th, and this year 288 days would bring her in at Mar 28th, though knowing her I think Apr 5th is more likely.

I had one cow calf about 3 weeks early about 2 years ago, they were still in the field, and she was a Walmart Mother, took a lot of TLC for that steer calf but he sure turned out nice in the fall time at 740 lbs
 
There wasn't a bull for miles of this cow so our case was purely gestation length. But the warmer winter seems to be affecting the herd in this way as we had a heifer have a calf probably 3 weeks early that got eaten by predators and there are probably 15-20 other cattle that are springing up early.
 

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