Stress & Late Term Abortions ?

[Stocker Steve]

Just found about a 25# calf with fuzzy "hair" on it. I have lost one third trimester calf per winter during each of the past 3 years. Yes, we booster the herd of about 100 cows annually.

Two of the abortions occurred after multi day storms. Have you herd of weather stress effecting or triggering abortions?

 

[bball]

This is interesting. I had my first 3rd trimester abortion ever this Jan during the middle of a brutal cold snap. The cow in question is one of my oldest and least 'fleshy' cows. Calf was well formed with no apparent abnormalities.

 

[Dempster]

I would consider it pretty standard to have a 1% abortion rate in a beef herd. In my opinion, feedstuffs and feeding protocols are to blame for the majority of these isolated cases. However, public opinion would likely tell you to be most concerned about cows falling on the ice and then aborting. I am a little skeptical of that explanation.

 

[Stocker Steve]

I had a mold issue with purchased hay some years ago. Several cows aborted over a 48 hour period. This is different.

The one off cows that aborted here were either small or thin, and being bale grazed in the arctic vortex. I am betting on too much stress and not enough feed... I can agree with feeding protocol being one of the causes.

 

[Silver]

I had one the other day, I would agree with Dempster that 1% is not unusual at all.