Curly coated cows? What's going on here?

[willow_girl]

I recently got my hair permed, and it looks like my cows did, too!

What's going on here?

My heifer (a Jersey/Galloway/Guensey cross) has developed a DISTINCTLY curly or wavy coat this spring!

And now one of my Holsteins, Christine, is showing some wavy hair on her neck and shoulders ...



(The other Holstein and the steer look normal.)

I'm worried this is indicative of some sort of dietary deficiency or parasite problem? I haven't wormed the girls yet this spring ... suppose I should get right on it!

Other than the wavy hair, their coats look fine (sleek, no hair loss etc.)

This is weird though! Tried Googling but didn't come up with anything ...

Anyone know what this means?

[moopups]

Get out the wormer, curly hair is a prime indicator in cattle. It usually starts in the middle of the upper back and spreads both directions.

[Horace Baker]

I can't say about the Holstein, but I would expect any animal with Galloway in it to have curly hair.

[willow_girl]

Thanks guys!!!

I had a feeling parasites were involved (either that or a mineral deficiency). Had been meaning to worm, but was afraid to do it too early (we still had patches of snow on the ground here last week!).

Will be interesting to see if the little sprite keeps her curls! My neighbor who raises beef cattle says her, ummm, lively temperament also can be attributed to her Galloway blood. I'm not familiar with the breed, but suspect they must be pretty interesting! :haha:

[willow_girl]

No, this is a recent development, hence my suspicion something unnatural was going on!

I wormed with Rumisol.