Yearling having a calf!!

[novaman]

Yesterday I went out to feed my yearling heifers when I discovered feet hanging out of one of the girls. Ended up taking her to the vet to get a c-section because she wasn't dialated and the calf was dead. I would have to look back in my records to be certain but she must have been right at 2 and a half months old when she got bred in order to have a calf at her current age. I was just wondering if anyone else has ever had this happen. I didn't think it was possible for a heifer calf to start cycling this early.

 

[Beefy]

i had one last year that the ADULT bulls were following at 2 months. i actually saw one mountain dew her. luckily, she didnt get bred, but i was worried. freak things like that happen.

 

[msscamp]

Yesterday I went out to feed my yearling heifers when I discovered feet hanging out of one of the girls. Ended up taking her to the vet to get a c-section because she wasn't dialated and the calf was dead. I would have to look back in my records to be certain but she must have been right at 2 and a half months old when she got bred in order to have a calf at her current age. I was just wondering if anyone else has ever had this happen. I didn't think it was possible for a heifer calf to start cycling this early.

It's possible - we had two yearlings calve spring before last. Both of them delivered live calves with help and raised pretty decent babies considering they were babies themselves.

 

[Beef11]

Usually the calves are premature but how much depends but you can count on a couple few weeks anyway thats still awfully dang young. What breed was she? If i ever go get my PHD I'd like to put a herd of critters together that calved before 15 months of age to do work on. See how heritable it is.

 

[novaman]

Usually the calves are premature but how much depends but you can count on a couple few weeks anyway thats still awfully dang young. What breed was she? If i ever go get my PHD I'd like to put a herd of critters together that calved before 15 months of age to do work on. See how heritable it is.

She is 3/4 Gelb and 1/4 Red Angus.

 

[Beef11]

I have heard stories about guys setting up their heifers on a synchro program and inducing their heifers into labor.

 

[cypressfarms]

Two days ago we had to pull a dead calf from a heifer at my dad's place. She was ~15 months old and weighed about 750 lbs. My dad had bought a group of heifers from a local farmer; none had ever seen a bull according to the guy. Interesting conversation my dad had with him after we spent all day working to save that heifer.

 

[dun]

My dad had bought a group of heifers from a local farmer; none had ever seen a bull according to the guy.

Did you name her Mary?

dun

 

[cypressfarms]

My dad had bought a group of heifers from a local farmer; none had ever seen a bull according to the guy.

Did you name her Mary?

dun

Nothing immaculate about her. The dead calf was a son :shock: I will say that the discussion between my dad and the seller would not have made Mary's son proud.

It's really pitiful. She's just at breeding age now, let alone calving. My dad has been helping me grow my herd by selling me his nicest heifers, and I had already picked her out.

 

[Dap]

The gelbvieh calves seem to be really early maturing, at least the ones I've had. I was a little shocked to see some 4 and 5 month old heifers and bull calves riding each other around. I ended up with one getting bred and she calved at 15 months, and did ok. Now I castrate those bulls a little earlier, and every heifer gets lutalyse at weaning, just in case.

 

[jcarkie]

this is my calf out of a 16 month old heifer i bought,at 8 months old. i put the bull in to breed them and while i feed them i walk around behind them and noticed an udder on this heifer. i noticed a month before she calved, i took her to the house and watched her day and night. she is glebvieh and angus cross. the man does not cut any of his boys either. [/img]

 

[rgv]

What is the avearge age that a heifer will start cycling?

RGV

 

[jcarkie]

angus are very early 8-10 months. i guess it happens in all breeds.

 

[NewCowboy]

We bought three 5 month old heifers. We kept the heifers up until they were 15 months old.....two weeks after letting them out, one of them had a calf! It was late May and it was hot and the horseflies were out. The young girl was doing the best she could but the calf died after two days. Didn't look premature and the heifer didn't have trouble. She is now bred about six months. She seems to have fared well and hopefully this time will prove positive.

:cboy:

 

[Dana Kopp]

We have had several heifers bred between 4-6 months and calve out successfully full term. We helped one out (not a hard pull but an awkward one since she stood up and the calf was way longer than she was tall!) but they did it all on their own from birth to weaning. They all caught right away again and calved out with the rest of the herd no extra supplements, just good green grass. We started pulling the bulls earlier so we, hopefully won't have this problem again. These heifers were out of cows that are usually in a strong heat 30 days after calving so I think the fertility runs in the family!

 

[TheBullLady]

I can't help but comment that sometimes when you buy young heifers at the auction barn, that's the reason they are there. I've heard many stories of that, and they were all bought at the auction barn. Doesn't mean it can't happen at a private treaty sale, but probably a good reason someone would haul a heifer to the auction to sell.

 

[J and L]

A number of years ago Hoards Dairyman had a story about a dairy herd (500 Holsteins) in the east and mentioned that the farmer was breeding heifers for freshening at 16 months. I called him to get the details-- his premise was that the earlier the milk arrived the better the lifetime profitability and he that they did breed back a little later than a 22 month freshener did. He said that a well grown heifer would be in heat by 4 months and that he had done this successfully for a couple of years---- however he was in the process of serious rethinking because that year's "easy calving" bulls produced a large number of calving problems, thus injured and c-section heifers and dead calves.

We also had a neighbor with Jersey heifers at a custom raiser. She decided to bring them home because she didn't think the raiser was doing a good job. First one tried to calve at 13 months and when she had the group checked 7 were full term. Turned out that the raiser's Holstein cleanup bull had gotten loose but they never considered the possibility of these little girls getting pregnant. The raisers insurance company paid for all 8 and only 3 bred back.

 

[milkmaid]

A number of years ago Hoards Dairyman had a story about a dairy herd (500 Holsteins) in the east and mentioned that the farmer was breeding heifers for freshening at 16 months. I called him to get the details-- his premise was that the earlier the milk arrived the better the lifetime profitability and he that they did breed back a little later than a 22 month freshener did. He said that a well grown heifer would be in heat by 4 months and that he had done this successfully for a couple of years

That's certainly a good logic on getting them to make you money sooner by breeding earlier - but - I know it won't always work. And I'd sure question his saying that a well grown heifer will cycle by 4 months. Either that or he has some superior calf-raising practices and extremely fertile animals. LOL. I've seen heifers raised on really good feed - one running with the milking herd, raised on a cow and TMR ration - that "still" didn't start cycling until 9 months. As a general rule, age and weight determine puberty.

 

[rkm]

16 months for a heifer is really pushing it, even 18 or 20. How much profitablity in a dead or paralized heifer.

 

[Rod]

I know this guy that raises longhorns and he just lets his heifers breed as soon as they cycle. He claims he's never had a problem out of any of them.