How quickly should you should take action when cows are calving? This question comes up regularly.

On some farms, there is a tendency to panic and intervene too early when a cow is calving.

Starting to pull the calf too early before the cervix has fully opened can create calving problems.

Early intervention can sometimes also occur late at night as it may ease management to have the cow calved and the calf sucked before bedtime.

However, starting to pull the calf too early before the cervix has fully opened can create calving problems.

Also, the calf may not be in the correct position and pulling too early can place stress on the cow and calf.

Excessive pulling of the calf can lead to further problems with suckling once the calf is born, with some calves unable to stand for days.

Water bag

Generally speaking, once the water bag has burst, you should observe on 30-minute intervals to check progress but do not disturb the cow. If calving is progressing well, you should not intervene.

If the calf has not been born within two hours of the water bag bursting, you should then intervene to check for malpresentation or if veterinary assistance is required.

Safety

Always be extremely careful when entering a pen with a cow calving. With a heifer, allow one hour to calve after the water bag bursts before intervening. If she is making progress, leave her be.

Good minerals are essential when feeding low-protein forages such as hay.

When progress stops or the calf becomes distressed, then step in and assist.

With cows in good body condition, restricting silage intake or moving on to a hay diet for two to three weeks pre-calving may reduce calving difficulty.

Good minerals are essential when feeding low-protein forages such as hay.

Feeding 0.5kg soya bean meal daily per cow two to three weeks before calving can help boost colostrum production.

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