• Turner Ranch Editorial

• Just 5 Questions

• The World According
  To Hooter McCormick

On occasion a cow or heifer has something go wrong with her pregnancy and instead of aborting the dead fetus it is retained. If for some reason she does not go into labor to expel it, the fetus may become mummified within her uterus. If she does go into labor but cannot expel the fetus, bacteria can enter the open cervix and contaminate the uterus and its contents, including the dead body of the fetus. The bacteria multiply swiftly in the dead fetus and “digest it”. This process is called maceration.

MUMMIFIED FETUS - After a fetus reaches the stage of gestation in which it has developed bones, it cannot be totally resorbed by the cow’s body if it dies and for some reason is not expelled from the uterus. Mummification may occur any time between 3 and 8 months of gestation. The fetus dies and remains in the uterus, and since it is no longer capable of sending out hormone signals that interact with the cow’s body and trigger the beginning of labor, the cow may go long overdue – past her predicted due date. The CL (corpus luteum) in the ovary persists, and the cow’s body still thinks she is pregnant. This condition may not be discovered until you begin to wonder if the cow is really pregnant (because her belly does not become any larger and she doesn’t make any udder), or why she is going so long past her expected calving time. At this point you’d generally have a veterinarian check her.

After the fetus dies, the fluids around it may be totally absorbed and the fetal membranes become dry and shrivelled. The uterus contracts around the dead little body, which may become twisted and contorted. In other instances the fetal membranes become surrounded by a thick, gummy, chocolate-colored material that looks like dehydrated and coagulated blood. The longer the condition has existed, the less fluid there will be around the fetus and its membranes. The tissues of the fetus become dry and leather-like.

After the condition has been diagnosed, your veterinarian will usually give the cow an injection of hormones to induce labor, so she will abort the mummified fetus. She will usually go into labor and expel it within 2 to 4 days after the injection. You need to watch the cow, however, to make sure she does expel the fetus, or she may just develop an infection in the uterus due to the open cervix from induced labor.

Our first experience with a mummified fetus was about 30 years ago when one of our cows approached her due date and didn’t look pregnant. We have breeding dates and calving due dates on almost all our cows, and we began to wonder about “Baby Doll” because she was not developing any udder. Usually if a cow loses her pregnancy at some point she returns to heat and you’ll notice her bulling, but Baby Doll never did show signs of heat, so we had our vet check her. He told us she had a mummy in her uterus, and from the size of it he thought the fetus had probably died about 4 months earlier (at about 4.5 months of gestation). He gave her an injection and several days later the cow went into labor and we helped her deliver the tiny mummy.

Sometimes a mummified fetus is expelled spontaneously, near what would have been the end of gestation – and you may notice the dark red-brown membranes hanging from the cow’s vulva. Or you may see her in labor and try to help her calve if it doesn’t seem to be going quite right. This is what happened in our second experience with mummies. Jana was a crossbred cow who was bitten on the side of her face by a rattlesnake in late fall. She developed a high fever from the resultant infection. A snakebite is like a very dirty wound, with all the necrotic (dead and dying tissue) around the bite, and Jana developed septicemia (blood poisoning).

She was very ill and not eating, so we brought her down from our mountain pasture to the corrals, where we put her in the chute and took her temperature; it was 107 degrees. We gave her antibiotics, Banamine to reduce the pain, inflammation and fever, and gave her fluids via stomach tube since she was not eating or drinking. By the next day she was still not eating or drinking so we fed her several gallons of water containing soaked up grain pellets – mashed up in the blender to where the mix would go down our stomach tube. We gave her this mix 3 times a day by tube, for several days, until she recovered enough to start eating and drinking again.

We feared she would abort after such a high fever, and watched her closely, but she did not abort. A few months later, during calving season, she went into labor very near her due date. She was taking a little long in labor so we put her in the chute again and checked her – and helped deliver the “calf”. What emerged was not a calf, however; it was the mummified fetus that died at the time of her life-threatening septicemia and high fever.

In many cases of mummification, however, the cow never does go into labor and the mummy stays in the uterus. An exception is if she has twins. On occasion in twin pregnancies, one fetus will die and mummify. If this happens, the mummy is expelled along with the live twin when it is born.

Since there is no uterine infection involved with a mummified fetus (the cervix never opens to allow access by bacteria), the cow’s uterus is usually normal. She generally comes back into heat on schedule after getting rid of the mummy, with good chances of a successful pregnancy when bred again.

FETAL MACERATION - If a cow loses her pregnancy but can’t expel the dead fetus when she goes into labor to abort the fetus, it becomes macerated. Maceration is a term that means a rotting and digesting of the soft tissues by bacteria.

Whenever the cervix opens, bacteria can enter the uterus. This is a common scenario during breeding and calving when the cow has an open cervix, but estrogen levels in the reproductive tract are very high at those times and hinder multiplication of bacteria. The flushing action of the reproductive tract during estrus and at calving also help to “clean out” any contamination. A healthy cow generally throws off any temporary infection contracted during breeding or calving, within a very short time.

But if the fetus dies and cannot be expelled, there is no way for the uterus to flush itself, and bacteria multiply rapidly in the fetal body and tissues. The cow may not have been able to push out the dead fetus due to some problem like the cervix failing to fully dilate, lack of uterine contractions, or the fetus being in an abnormal position so it can’t come into the birth canal.

In this situation the bacteria that enter via the open cervix become established in the fetal tissues and digest them, leaving only the bones. The dead fetus at body temperature creates an ideal environment for bacteria to rapidly invade it. The initial result is swelling and putrification of the soft tissues.

You might notice the cow straining, or discharging some foul, reddish-gray material from the vulva. She may be ill, with fever and loss of appetite. If you notice a problem and check her, you will find a distended, swollen fetus, with its tissues full of gas. At this point it can usually be removed with careful, gentle traction (using lots of lubrication) if the cervix is dilated enough. The cow will need antibiotics, since this can be a serious, life-threatening condition.
 
If the cervix is not dilated enough to remove the dead fetus, the cow can be given oxytocin to help relax the cervix – after which the fetus may be safely removed in its entirety or in pieces, without so much danger of injury to the cow. You may want your vet to help with this, since great care must be taken in cutting up the rotting fetus and bringing it out, to avoid damaging the cow. If the infection can be controlled, the cow will usually recover, but she should be allowed plenty of time for full recovery (3 to 4 months) before she is rebred.

On occasion the abortion attempt is not noticed, if the cows are not being closely observed at that stage of gestation. The cow may become very ill from the infection, or she may not show any external signs of illness if the infection remains contained within the uterus and does not become systemic and affect the cow herself. There may or may not be a discharge from the vulva. If the cow is examined rectally later on, the vet may feel the fetal bones floating freely in the uterus (in globs of pus) or feel them moving against each other. In these instances, there is very little hope for the reproductive tract to recover. The uterine lining becomes thick, with severe degenerative changes and scar tissue.

If there is a lot of pus present, the cow can be treated with antibiotics and given hormones to try to induce labor to expel the pus and the bones; the bones may pass through the cervix with the pus. But if the condition has been present for a long time, the amount of pus may be small and the bones may have become embedded in the uterine lining and wall. The cervix may be very hard and will not dilate – even with hormone administration. The longer this condition has existed, the greater the damage to the uterus, and the poorer the cow’s chances are for recovery. She will probably never be able to have another calf.

Pregnancy and delivery of a live, healthy calf is always a wondrous miracle. There are many things that can go wrong, and it’s a wonder that “accidents” of gestation happen so infrequently. Mother nature has things pretty well under control, most of the time, but on occasion a cow needs help to resolve the problems that sometimes occur.

Pregnancy Losses
After a cow or heifer is bred, she should calve about 9 months plus 1 week later (283 days, on average). But sometimes accidents of gestation terminate pregnancy early, or other factors (disease or toxins) kill the developing calf. Immediately after conception, when the tiny embryo is travelling down the fallopian tube into the uterus, it is safe from harmful influences. After it reaches the uterus a few days later, however, it becomes more vulnerable to problems. The conceptus is called an embryo during the first 45 days of pregnancy; after that, all the major organs and body systems have been formed and it becomes a fetus. If loss occurs before 45 days of gestation, it is termed early embryonic death.
Many pregnancy losses in early gestation take place without being noticed, since at that stage the embryo or early fetus may be resorbed by the cow’s body, or isn’t large enough to be seen if it is expelled – simply coming out with fluid from the uterus. If the loss occurs quite early, the cow comes back into heat again and you may just think she didn’t settle. In hot weather, for instance, embryos are sometimes lost during the first week after mating; the embryo fails to attach to the uterus. If the embryo dies after it has attached to the uterine lining and the pregnancy has been recognized by the cow’s body, it may be longer before the cow comes back into heat.

The second phase in which pregnancy loss occurs is from about 45 days up to about 60 to 80 days. During this time heat stress can also cause pregnancy loss, especially if you live in a hot, humid climate. A cow bred in May or June that goes through severe heat during July or August may end up open because of early loss – due to high temperatures.
Another reason for pregnancy loss in this period is occasional miscommunication in hormonal signals between the growing embryo and the uterine tissue that will become the placenta; the CL (corpus luteum) on the ovary may not be maintained. The CL is an important key to continuation of pregnancy because it produces progesterone – the hormone that is crucial to pregnancy. If the level of this hormone drops too low, the cow will come back into heat and lose the pregnancy. Once she’s past 60 days, however, the pregnancy is considered safe from hormonal changes because the CL remains on the ovary and keeps progesterone levels high. But she is still vulnerable to other causes of pregnancy loss, the most common being some type of infection.

NON-INFECTIOUS CAUSES OF LOSS - Many things can terminate pregnancy including genetic abnormalities, malnutrition, stress, steroids, poisons. Some genetic defects kill the conceptus early on, while others create abnormalities that make it impossible for the fetus to survive outside the uterus and it dies shortly after birth.

If cows are severely underfed during early pregnancy they may resorb or abort. Malnutrition (inadequate or inbalanced diet) may also make a cow more susceptible to other problems – including any infectious diseases she is exposed to – and some of these may cause death of the embryo or fetus.

Some abortions in late pregnancy are due to injury or stress. Severe stress of any kind triggers production of cortisol, which is a natural steroid that can cause the cow to go into labor. Some people worry that injury (falling down, being jammed in the belly by another cow, etc.) might hurt the fetus and cause an abortion, but the fetus is very well protected from bumps and jolts since it is floating in the uterus in fluid. Usually if a cow aborts following an injury, it is the stress from pain, inflammation, blood loss, etc. that triggers abortion (due to the body being flooded with cortisol) rather than the injury itself.

For this reason, steroids such as dexamethasone should not be given to pregnant cows because this may cause them to go into labor and deliver the fetus prematurely.

Dexamethasone is sometimes given to cattle to help reduce swelling, inflammation and pain due to injury or disease, but should not be given to pregnant cows.

High fever can make a cow abort. If she has a fever higher than 106 degrees for very long, this makes the uterine environment too hot for the developing embryo or fetus. If a cow is sick, she might abort anyway (due to stress) but it is always worth trying to treat pain and fever, in hopes of saving the pregnancy. Treating with Banamine (which will not have adverse affects on the fetus) can help reduce pain, fever and inflammation and thus reduce the stress she’s experiencing, and reduce the risk for abortion – and is safer to give than dexamethasone.

Poisons like iodine can also be a cause of pregnancy loss, as can toxins in certain plants. Locoweed may cause abortion at any stage of pregnancy. Broomsnakeweed also contains toxins that can cause abortion. Ponderosa pine needles are a common cause of abortion during winter if cows eat them when feed is short or covered with snow. These “pine needle abortions” generally occur from 6 to 9 months of gestation (last trimester). The calf may be born alive if it’s close to full term, but is usually weak and small and may die soon after birth.
Abortion can also be caused by eating moldy hay or silage. Some molds are dangerous to the fetus during the 3rd through 7th month, whereas Aspergillus usually causes abortion in the last trimester. Molds are thought to cause between 3 to 10 percent of abortions in cattle. There are often some gray-white thickened patches (that look like ringworm) on the aborted fetus and on the placenta. Much of the placenta is discolored (gray, yellow or red-brown) and the cotyledons (“buttons”) are usually thick, wrinkled or leathery.

INFECTIOUS CAUSES - Most abortions are caused by viral or bacterial infections. Premature separation of the placenta from the uterus is sometimes caused by inflammation or placentitis, which may be viral or bacterial. But sometimes the cause is never determined. The most common cause of pregnancy loss at any stage of gestation is infection, either from bacterial contamination of the uterus or from a viral or bacterial disease in the cow at certain stages of pregnancy when the embryo or fetus is vulnerable to that disease. The cow may not be very sick, but if the disease affects her unborn calf it may die. Sometimes a disease like lepto, for instance, is so mild you don’t notice the cow being ill, but she may abort.

Under normal conditions about 1 out of every 200 cows will abort for some reason or another and these miscellaneous losses are no cause for alarm, regarding herd health. A single abortion in the herd is usually an isolated incident; something went wrong with that particular pregnancy. But if abortion rate exceeds 1 or 2 percent of your cows, there’s a chance that disease is involved. Several of the common diseases that cause abortion can be prevented by vaccination. But if a herd has not been vaccinated against a certain disease before (and the cows have no immunity), vaccination may not be effective in the short term – in the face of an outbreak.

Brucellosis is the most common cause of abortion worldwide, but has been nearly eradicated in the U.S. by herd testing/culling and vaccination of heifers. There are only 2 states still involved in control programs (Idaho and Texas). Tuberculosis (TB) was also eradicated in the U.S. but in recent years was reintroduced to cattle in several states (Michigan, Texas, California) by infected wildlife or Mexican cattle. California and Texas have resolved their problem but Michigan is still fighting TB because it became established in their deer population in several areas.

Leptospirosis is the most common cause of infectious abortion in the U.S. There are many types of lepto bacteria, but only 5 that generally cause abortion in cattle and there are vaccines that include all of these. The bacteria are spread via urine of sick and carrier animals (rodents, pigs, cats, canines, wild animals such as deer, elk, antelope, etc.) and may contaminate feed and water. Bacteria don’t have to be ingested; they can enter the cow through breaks in the skin on her feet and legs when she’s walking in contaminated water, or enter through nose, mouth or eyes if she has contact with contaminated feed, water or urine. Lepto can also be transmitted by semen from an infected bull.

Incidence of lepto abortions in an unprotected herd may vary from 5 to 40 percent or more, depending on number of susceptible cows when the disease goes through them. Cows in the second half of pregnancy will usually abort 1 to 3 weeks after having an acute case of lepto. Not all affected cows abort; some give birth to weak calves that die within a few days. Vaccination gives good protection for about 6 months. Since lepto can cause problems at any stage of pregnancy (though abortions are most common in the second half), many vets recommend vaccinating cows twice a year.

Vibrio (now called campylobacteriosis) is a veneral disease which can be transmitted to cows at time of service from infected bulls. The cow conceives, but the bacterial infection causes an inflammation of the uterus and early embryonic death. Often the embryo dies so early that the cow returns to heat very soon, but it sometimes lives a few months and is then aborted. Infection can be prevented by vaccinating cows each year before the breeding season.

Trichomoniasis is another venereal disease that causes loss of pregnancy, but is caused by a protozoan – spread to cows by infected bulls. Some states have a mandatory testing program for bulls. Trich usually results in early embryonic death and the cow returns to heat; this is a common cause of repeat breeders and infertility. Most cows clear themselves of infection after several heat cycles and losses, and finally become pregnant, but bulls usually remain infected; the protozoa live in his reproductive tract. Prevention is best accomplished by buying only virgin bulls, testing bulls every year, and making sure no cows are bred by infected bulls.
Several other diseases are caused by protozoa and result in abortion, including neosporosis (spread to cattle by canine fecal material), and sarcosystosis (also spread by predatory animals that shed the oocysts in feces). There’s no vaccines for these diseases and best prevention is to keep canines, cats, etc. from defecating in feed (such as hay).

Some abortions are caused by viral diseases, the most common being IBR and BVD, which can both be controlled by vaccination. Best prevention is use of a modified live virus vaccine once a year, given to non-pregnant cows at least 3 weeks before breeding (to ensure strong immunity by the time the cows are bred). Some stockmen also give a killed vaccine in addition (as a booster) in mid to late pregnancy. The latter is safe to use in pregnant cows. There have been abortions caused by giving live virus vaccine to pregnant susceptible cows (that have low immunity) or to their calves ahead of weaning. Working with a vet to develop a good herd health program and proper vaccination can eliminate abortion problems due to IBR and BVD.

Other causes of abortion include salmonella (these bacteria can cause abortion as well as diarrhea in cattle), listeriosis (which most often affects the nervous system but can also cause abortion), and haemophilus somnus. Many healthy cattle have the latter bacteria in their urinary/genital tract without any signs of illness, but infection with this organism can cause pneumonia, septicemia, encephalitis or inflammation of the uterine lining and vagina. It’s not a common cause of abortion, but may be a factor in infertility if cows have a uterine infection.

Chlamydia (an organism that is not a virus nor bacteria but somewhat similar to a virus) can inhabit the reproductive tract of bulls and cows and may cause sporadic pregnancy losses at 7 to 9 months’ gestation. Foothill abortion is another problem (occurring in the central-eastern foothills of California, western Nevada and southern Oregon) but the cause has not yet been identified – though some researchers think it is the spirochete that also causes Lyme disease. Abortions occur about 3 to 4 months after exposure to a certain kind of tick that is always present in these regions.

If your cow herd experiences an abortion rate higher than 1 or 2 percent, work with your vet to determine the cause. In most cases you can develop a vaccination/management program to prevent these losses. Often the cause can be determined if your vet can send a freshly aborted fetus or some of the placental membranes to a diagnostic lab, or take blood samples from the aborting cow or the fresh placenta.


Problems In Late Gestation
There are a number of things that can go wrong during the last phase of pregnancy. Some of these problems can be resolved or dealt with rather easily, and others are more serious – and can be life threatening to the cow or fetus.

EXCESS FLUID AROUND THE FETUS - On occasion, either the amnion sac surrounding the fetus or the allontioc sac (the outer “water bag”) may produce too much fluid. Extra fluid in the amnion sac is more rare (a condition called hydramnios); it occurs mainly in Dexter cattle that have “bulldog: calves – a hereditary condition which may produce extra fluid as early as the 3rd of 4rth month of gestation. More commonly, excess fluid is only produced in the outer water sac. This condition, called hydrallontois, is seen in the last trimester. The fetus is often quite small for its stage of gestation and there is a sudden increase of fluid, which becomes noticeable by about 6 to 7 months when the cow develops a huge belly. The later this happens, the better chance she’ll survive until the end of pregnancy.

The large volume of fluid puts pressure on her lungs and gut; she doesn’t have room to breathe and can’t eat very much – losing weight. She may become so weak and/or impaired by her large belly that she has trouble getting up and down. If she survives til term she usually needs help to calve because she is weak, her uterus may not contract properly (being so distended) and the cervix may not dilate fully.

Your vet may advise terminating the pregnancy early, before she becomes that compromised, or in some cases she should be humanely slaughtered. If she is near term, you may choose to have your vet do a C-section, but it must be done carefully, draining off the extra fluid slowly. If it rushes out too fast, the cow may go into shock. After the calf is removed (either by traction through the birth canal after excess fluid is drained away, or by C-section), the uterus should be checked to make sure there’s not a second calf; twins are common in cases of hydroallontois.

UTERINE TORSION - Sometimes the pregnant uterus rotates, putting a twist in the end closest to the cervix. This occurs most often at calving (during early labor) but can happen in late gestation. The lower, larger part of the uterus is supported by the floor of the abdomen, but this makes it more prone to swinging or shifting as the cow gets up and down (as she is kneeling on her front legs and standing with her hind legs). While the uterus is thus suspended in the abdominal cavity, any sudden shift due to the cow slipping or falling, or being knocked by another cow, or the fetus making a quick movement, may cause the uterus to swing and turn over. Cows that fight a lot may experience a torsion.

This problem is rare in heifers, seen more frequently in cows that have had calves before – especially cows with a deep, spacious abdomen. Cows with twins seldom develop torsions, since 2 calves more completely fill the abdominal space and create a broader base for the uterus as it rests on the floor of the abdomen.

Some torsions occur in late gestation and may be present for days or weeks without any signs, only becoming obvious when the cow goes into labor and can’t deliver the calf. If a torsion is minor (the uterus turned only 45 to 90 degrees) it may correct itself during labor.

Torsions greater than 180 degrees will completely obstruct the birth canal (the twist closes it off) and the calf can’t be born unless the torsion is corrected. Torsions greater than 180 degrees occurring before calving may create obstruction of blood vessels, interfering with blood supply to the fetus. If it dies, the cow may show signs of abdominal pain and go into shock and die, or the fetus may mummify and the cow shows few symptoms.

ABDOMINAL HERNIA - On rare occasion a cow in late pregnancy may suffer rupture in the lower portion of the abdominal wall, due to a severe blow to the belly, or weakness in muscles of the abdomen. This allows the uterus to drop through, with nothing between it and the outside world but the cow’s skin and some swelling.
The problem may first be noticed as a swelling about the size of a football (mostly fluid), then it becomes larger, drooping down to hock level. The heavy uterus and fetus within it have dropped completely out of the abdomen. The cow should be put in a safe place where she won’t be jostled by other cows, and closely watched. She’ll usually be able to have a live calf, but may need help to calve. At that point your vet can examine her and determine whether the hernia can be repaired after removal of the calf or if the cow should be butchered.

SWELLING UNDER THE BELLY - Some cows, especially heifers, develop a lot of swelling under the belly as they approach term, and at first this may be mistaken for the beginning of a hernia. Swelling is due to pressure on the mammary veins by the distended uterus. It may become so large that it extends forward almost to the elbow, and droops quite low under the belly. This is usually nothing to worry about, however, and will resolve after she calves.

VAGINAL PROLAPSE - Sometimes in late pregnancy a cow will prolapse her vagina. Some cows have a structural weakness; the vaginal tissue is not as well anchored as it should be. This can be an inherited problem, passed from mother to daughter or from sire to daughter if the bull’s mother had this weakness. It is most common in certain breeds such as Herefords, Simmental and Charolais but occurs occasionally in all breeds. Too much fat in the connective tissue around the vagina may predispose a cow to this problem; it happens more often in fat cows.

The pressure and weight of the large uterus in late pregnancy causes the vaginal tissue to protrude from the vulva when the cow is lying down, especially if her hind end is slightly downhill. Weight of the calf (and gravity) puts pressure on the rear parts of the reproductive tract and it bulges through the vulva. The problem occurs most often during the last 2 months of gestation. If the cow is still several weeks away from calving when she starts prolapsing, the worse it will get before she calves. Advancing pregnancy puts more pressure on the vaginal tissue.

At first the bulge may be the size of an orange or grapefruit – a pink ball sticking out of the vulva. It will usually go back in when the cow gets up and the pressure is relieved. But if she starts prolapsing every time she lies down, and strains while lying there, she forces more of the tissue out. A heavily pregnant cow often strains when passing manure while lying down, or even just from the presense and irritation of a mild prolapse, making a small problem into a bigger one. The exposed tissue becomes dirty, since manure flows over it when she defecates. This causes irritation and more straining. The ball of tissue becomes so large (up to volleyball size) that it can’t go back in even when the cow gets up and walks around.

Unless it’s pushed back soon after it comes out, the prolapsed tissue becomes very dirty and dried out, and may become damaged and infected. Blood circulation to these tissues is impaired, so they become swollen and vulnerable to injury and infection. The longer the inverted tissue is left outside the body, the more swelling occurs (and drying of the membranes) and the harder it is to replace it. Swelling also restricts the passage from the bladder; the cow may not be able to urinate until the prolapse is resolved. She may strain while trying to urinate, aggravating the problem. If she goes into labor while the prolapse is out, the bulge of tissue will impede the birth of her calf. Thus it is imperative to replace the prolapsed tissues if they don’t automatically go back inside when the cow gets up.

Some cows have a mild prolapse (when lying down) every time they approach calving, but it never becomes a problem. Others get worse every year. If a cow has a bigger problem the next year, and especially if you have to put it back in and stitch it, you should cull her from the herd unless you want the time commitment of putting it back in and stitching her every year (and then having to watch her closely until she calves, so you can take the stitches out when she goes into labor). Never keep a heifer nor a bull from any cow that prolapses, and if you are unlucky enough to buy a bull that sires daughters with this problem, don’t keep any more heifers from him.

To replace a prolapse, restrain the cow, wash up the prolapsed tissue and push it back in. Then take at least 3 stitches across the vulva with umbilical tape (strong cotton strips), using a curved surgical needle. Emergency stitching can be done, however, with disinfected baling twine poked through holes in the skin with a clean, sharp pocket knife. Umbilical tape is best, however, because it’s less apt to pull out than regular suture thread and less abrasive than baling twine.

HARDWARE - Cows that ingest sharp objects with their feed (nails, pieces of barbed wire or baling wire that got baled up in hay, for instance) are at risk for hardware disease, since the action of the digestive tract tends to push a sharp foreign body into or through the gut lining. Cows become more at risk during late pregnancy, because the increasing size of the uterus puts more pressure on the digestive tract. A foreign object that may have been sitting harmless in the stomach, or only partially embedded in the lining, may get pushed clear through when the gut becomes short on space due to the enlarging uterus. Cows in late gestation tend to have a higher incidence of problems, so if a heavily pregnant cow becomes dull, goes off feed, or shows other signs of illness or peritonitis, hardware should be one of the possibilities to be considered; have your vet examine her.

INABILITY TO GET UP - On rare occasion a heavily pregnant cow may become weak due to mineral deficiencies or some other dietary problem that interferes with proper metabolism and muscle function. Grass tetany sometimes occurs when pregnant cows are on green pasture (especially cereal grasses such as wheat pastures) in fall or early spring, due to deficiencies in the fast growing forage. In these instances the cow usually recovers if given calcium or magnesium. If a cow is down and unable to get up, consult your vet immediately, for proper diagnosis and treatment.

There are many things that can go wrong during pregnancy, but if you are watching the cows and discover a problem early, you generally have a good chance to do something about it – and are more likely to save the cow and/or calf.