How far off can Vet be on preg check?

ufo_chris · #1 07/02/10, 01:17 PM

Hello,I had my cow preg checked (palp.) 3/25 and my Vet said she was 2 month . She has a 12 month old calf that still nurses on her occasionally .
I know I will have to separate them soon if he keeps doing it, but how far off could a good vet be?
I put her due date around 10/31 ,when do I HAVE to separate them?
She's Highland,Beef.
Thanks,Chris

matt_man · #2 07/02/10, 01:35 PM

I would separate no later than the beginning of August just to be sure.

tinknal · #3 07/02/10, 02:22 PM

No real reason NOT to separate them right now. The calf is way past the age that it needs milk and it is just going to keep pulling condition out of the cow.

oneokie · #4 07/02/10, 02:53 PM

His call could be off by 2 months.

Ronney · #5 07/02/10, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinknal

No real reason NOT to separate them right now. The calf is way past the age that it needs milk and it is just going to keep pulling condition out of the cow.

That's the advice I would run with too Chris, and for those reasons.

Cheers,
Ronnie

ufo_chris · #6 07/03/10, 12:01 AM

Thanks,really 2 month off?, I better do something quick then!
I'm not worried about condition,he very seldom nurses on her, I'm more worried about the new calfs Milk and colostrum ,like if she'll make any colostrum if he still nurses on her ,even occasionally.
I really didn't want to separate them yet because I just put them in a new pasture with all kinds of good forage.I was thinking that that might help stop him too,but it's only been a couple of days.
What if I wait another month and she has it a month later,so only being dry for 1 month,would she still produce colostrum?
Thanks,Chris

agmantoo · #7 07/03/10, 09:04 AM

Lets see. Vet checked 3 months after breeding. Heifer is supposedly barren. Six months later she has calf. Vet is off 6 months.

tinknal · #8 07/03/10, 12:03 PM

Chris, you don't have to separate them permanently, just long enough to dry the cow off, unless the calf has become a habitual nurser.

tinknal · #9 07/03/10, 12:04 PM

You could put an anti nursing ring in the calf's nose.

ufo_chris · #10 07/05/10, 12:29 AM

I have the rings but he is 'wild' and about 600 lbs and no chute!
Been in the new pasture a few days now and I have not seen him nurse,but i HAVE NOT BEEN WITH THEM THAT MUCH EITHER.
If he only nurses for a bit occasionally,would she still produce colostrum for her new calf?
This is more of a hypothetical question,I will separate them if the nursing doesn't quit soon. But just in case the vet is way off.
Thanks,Chris
PS;wasn't the vet off by 3 month?

haypoint · #11 07/05/10, 05:11 AM

I've never seen or heard of a calf wean itself. 5 or 6 months is plenty, beyond that is either foolish or irresponsible. But I've seen 3 year old children unbutton mom's blouse and get a drink. Takes all kinds, I guess.

springvalley · #12 07/05/10, 07:13 AM

Your cow will still have colostrum if she is only dry 30 days, now that is not giving you permision to leave the calf with her that much longer. Get the calf weaned now, he is only going to get bigger and harder to wean.>Thanks Marc

Texas Papaw · #13 07/05/10, 09:07 PM

Just a thought to ponder on. How were calves weaned many years ago when there was free-range and cattle roamed free?

Not saying it is the best way but I have neighbors who leave the bulls in year around and calve all year. Each year they have some cows that have a new calf with a yearling still not weaned. Neighbor says cow will kick off the yearling to let the baby nurse. BTW their calves do well.

Went to a cattle seminar a few years ago and the speaker said that when you are presented with an issue that you don't know how to handle just ask "what would have happened in the same situation 300 years ago before man showed up with fences and fire. That is natures answer and over time the best answer."

Needless to say he is a very profitable low-input rancher.

Just a little food for thought.

randiliana · #14 07/05/10, 10:54 PM

Love this arguement. Big problem is that MOST cows won't wean their calf, cow's nowdays are a long way from their ancestors 300 years ago. The minute you start managing any part of the cow's life, you have kinda disrupted nature.......

It's kinda hard for a newborn to compete with a yearling, let alone the fact that he won't likely get much colostrum if the yearling is sucking at all.

ufo_chris · #15 07/06/10, 12:16 PM

hmm,yeah,I have heard a few times to just let them wean themselves,that's why I left him .Does make sense when you think as them as in the wild. Actually some of these highlands are still send up in the wild Highlands in Scotland and left there for long periods of time (or till they need some meat???) so they would wean and have new calves while there.
I would definatly separate them once there is another calf, and I will do it before if I see him still nursing (have not in the last few days).
The heifer she had before I weaned at 6 month and put with my horse, I wanted her tame ,that was my big reason then.
Thanks,Chris

haypoint · #16 07/07/10, 03:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Texas Papaw

Just a thought to ponder on. How were calves weaned many years ago when there was free-range and cattle roamed free?

Not saying it is the best way but I have neighbors who leave the bulls in year around and calve all year. Each year they have some cows that have a new calf with a yearling still not weaned. Neighbor says cow will kick off the yearling to let the baby nurse. BTW their calves do well.

Went to a cattle seminar a few years ago and the speaker said that when you are presented with an issue that you don't know how to handle just ask "what would have happened in the same situation 300 years ago before man showed up with fences and fire. That is natures answer and over time the best answer."

Needless to say he is a very profitable low-input rancher.

Just a little food for thought.

I’m not sure you’d like the way Nature ranches. In Michigan hunters control the deer population. If they didn’t, Nature would do it. Mass starvation seems to be Nature’s preferred method. I can do selective timber harvests and manage my woodlot. Nature manages too. Old trees topple down on young ones and wildfires wipe out thousands of acres.
“Many years ago, when cattle roamed free” Please tell me you aren’t thinking of the Wild West, Texas Papaw. Those late night TV Western movies seem to favor calf roping and branding and leave out the less exciting part where the calves are separated from the rest of the herd. But it was done. Conquistadors taught those European settlers a lot about the cattle business.

Cows have been selectively bred for thousands of years. I doubt the ability to kick her calf in the head at 6 months ranked high in the selection process.

I’m not saying that every calf will die because its colostrum was sucked out by big brother. But, I’ll bet some do. Turn ‘em loose and see what you get might be your management plan, but if you want to make the most of what you have, you’ll buck up and do what you know you should have done awhile ago.