Signs that Hereford heifers are getting close to calving?

glenolam

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We have three Hereford heifers and all were in with a bull from November 1 - January 1 (or so, basically 2 mos). My husband and his grandfather thinks that only two of the three are bred, but I really don't see a difference among them.

What should I be seeing if they have a month to go (assuming they were all bred during 1st heat cycle)? What about 2 mos to go assuming they didn't take on 1st cycle and took on 2nd?

I've looked at their udders and they don't seem to have grown at all, but their teats do look a little longer/fuller, but I mean a little.

Do beef cows have smaller udders than dairy cows?
 

aggieterpkatie

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You've got more than a month. If they were bred on Nov 1, they wouldn't be due until around August 10. If they were bred Jan 1, they'd be due Oct. 10th.

All livestock have pretty similar signs of impending labor. Definitely look for udder growth (yes, dairy cows have larger udders, but beef cows have fairly large udders). Look for significant changes when they bag up. They'll be fairly isolated from the herd, their tailhead will relax and usually their tail will be held out from their body a bit. Look for discharge from the vulva, etc.
 

WildRoseBeef

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Well, the teats on beef cows and dairy cows are really the same. I wouldn't go by how they are bagging up in terms of if they are bred or getting close or not. But yes, beef cows will have much smaller udders than dairy cows.

Physically they should look like their pregnant, with big bellies and all. But the best way to be sure is to restrain them in a headgate, glove up and reach inside (thru the rectum) to feel for a calf. If you or any of your folks feel they're not up to the task, get a vet out to do it for you. He/she will even tell you how far along they are.
 

jhm47

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Virgin heifers tend to bag up much earlier than mature cows. You will definitely know about two months prior to calving that they are bred due to their udder development. As cows age, they tend to show much less udder development before calving. I have quite a few 8 - 10 year old cows that show absolutely no swelling or development till the day before they calve. The most effective way that I use to tell when calving is imminent, is that their vulva will swell up and begin to be "floppy" when they walk. Their tail heads will also seem to raise up a bit, and cause a depression alongside their tails.

It has been my experience that vets are not always the best ones to palpate cows and estimate due dates. Many of today's vets are well skilled in small animal work, and rarely have much call for preg checking cattle. We have a professional preg checker in our neighborhood who checks nearly 50,000 cows each year, and he's very accurate. Our vet can barely tell if they are pregnant or not, but he's great on dogs and cats.

I have been preg checking our own herd for several decades, and have gotten better, but still need a lot more practice.
 

glenolam

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Thanks! I think I made a mistake in the dates they were with the bull (runs and calls DH to make sure.....) Yep - they were in with the bull from Oct - Dec, which is why we were thinking July/Aug.

They are virgin heifers, but, to me, their udders haven't gotten much bigger. Guess we still have a few months to go.

We haven't seen them come into heat...well, there was 1 time when one tried to mate with another, which is also why my husband and his grandfather think she's not bred. To me, they all look the same, although the bellies on two of them do look a little lower/fuller, but not much.

I hate the waiting game - I feel like they just stare at me saying "what - you want to know if I'm pregnant? Too bad!" :frow
 

aggieterpkatie

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glenolam said:
Thanks! I think I made a mistake in the dates they were with the bull (runs and calls DH to make sure.....) Yep - they were in with the bull from Oct - Dec, which is why we were thinking July/Aug.

They are virgin heifers, but, to me, their udders haven't gotten much bigger. Guess we still have a few months to go.

We haven't seen them come into heat...well, there was 1 time when one tried to mate with another, which is also why my husband and his grandfather think she's not bred. To me, they all look the same, although the bellies on two of them do look a little lower/fuller, but not much.

I hate the waiting game - I feel like they just stare at me saying "what - you want to know if I'm pregnant? Too bad!" :frow
Do you have facilities to handle them? If so, send in a blood sample to Biotracking. It's cheaper than paying someone to come out. Although, you'd only be able to tell if they're preg or not, not how far along they are. It beats waiting!
 

glenolam

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Unfortunately, we don't have the facilities at our little farm to do a blood sample. We have a local farmer who helps us if/when we are in need, but luckily we haven't had to call him for any emergencies.

As I said...guess it's just the waiting game...
 

Arock

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How old are the heifers?
What kind of bull did you use?

Are they springing yet?
 

herfrds

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Figure 40 1/2 weeks.

Too bad you do not have a squeeze chute I would just tell you to put on a shoulder glove and take a feel rectally.

We have had heifers show no sign of bagging up until right before they calve and have had a couple that did not bag until after they calved so do not count on that being a sign.
 

glenolam

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Arock said:
How old are the heifers?
They are about two years old. We got them in Aug 2008 and were told they were 9 mos old. We waited to breed them until last year because we weren't confident they were 9 mos and figured it might be safer just to wait another year.

What kind of bull did you use?
We used a polled hereford bull, the same breed. He belongs to our friend; I'm unsure of the bulls age, but know he has bred cows for a few years. We saw several of his calves last year when we dropped our cows off - they all were healthy.

Are they springing yet?
I'm not sure what you mean....

It's really hard to determine how much bigger they have gotten. It's kind of like watching your children grow...you don't realize how tall/big they actually are until one day you realize they aren't at your knee anymore, they reach your shoulder! Our girls have definitely grown since we first got them, and my husband said he was watching two of them laying down the other day and couldn't believe the size of their bellies as they were laying. I asked if he saw anything moving but he said he wasn't watching for that... :rolleyes:

Got to say I'm much more excited about this than he is!
 
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