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Young heifers, as in heifers that are younger than 6 months of age, should NEVER be bred to calf, as this is much too young for them and too hard on their growing bodies. The youngest a heifer can be bred at is when they are 15 months old. Most heifers reach puberty by the time they are 11 or 12 months old, but shouldn't be bred until they are either 60% or 70% of the average weight of the main cowherd, or reach 15 months of age. Most of the time it is the weight that many cattle producers rely on for best calf production of the heifers, as sometimes a heifer that reaches 15 months of age is still too small to be bred.

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Is it possible for a young heifer that is in calf to go to a bull to be served?

NO!! No, no, no, no, no!! A young heifer (and I'm assuming that's a heifer that is around 6 to 12 months of age) should NOT even be in calf in the first place, nor should she even be serviced by a bull when pregnant! A pregnant should be at least 15 months of age when she is bred, and 26 months when bred again to produce another calf. Some people feel that a heifer should be 24 months of age when she is bred to have her first calf! But NEVER a young heifer, never ever ever!!Get her aborted NOW. Inject her with some Estrumate or Lutylase IMMEDIATELY. Don't waste your time on trying to get a young girl like her to be producing a calf so young, you can afford to wait a few more months or longer!


What age should a heifer be taken away from a bull?

This is the wrong question to ask, actually. You should be more concerned about the age that you should put a heifer in with a bull to be bred, not when should a heifer be taken away from a bull. See the related question below, but generally, a heifer should be at least 15 months of age to be bred and be able to grow a calf in her. Now to really answer your question, the bull should be removed after a couple months of being in with the heifer[s].


Why are calves from first calved heifers smaller?

Heifers are still growing and maturing themselves, so a lot of resources being put into the calf's growth still need to be put into the heifer to keep her growing as well.


How do you help a heifer that is in labor but is having trouble?

Get her in the head gate, glove up and reach inside to see if the calf's got something that is not in the normal position, or to feel if it's a really big calf that the heifer can't push through. If it's the latter, get the vet out ASAP. If it's anything of the former, you may be able to push the calf back in, put things right, and get the chains or the calf puller out and help pull the calf out. But it depends of what type of trouble as many things can go wong. Usually with a heifer the calf can be too big, then you gotta pull it out of her usually with a contraption called a calf puller. I would not attempt this without help from someone experienced, as you could kill one or both animals. A vet or a neighbor who's a veteran cattleman is a good source to get help from. It's more important to breed her to bull with history of siring small calves in the first place.


When do you separate calf from bulls?

This question is asked in quite an awkward manner: are you asking about separating young calves (or a young calf) from a herd of bulls, or about separating heifer calves from the bull calves in your herd? Or are you asking about something entirely which wasn't put across very clearly in this question? I'm assuming that you are referring to the middle question: separating heifer calves from the bull calves. The best time to do that is at weaning, which is around 6 to 8 months for a beef herd. When you process your heifers, make sure you give them a shot of lute (or a similar injectable hormone) to make any unknown-pregnant heifers abort, particularly if your herd is highly fertile and the heifers and bulls have hit puberty before they've been weaned, which happens more often than you might think. As for the first question, the calf should be separated from the bull herd immediately, particularly if it's a young animal and needs its dam. A bull that doesn't know what a calf is will physically abuse that calf with the intentions to do harm or even kill. Even though some herd bulls can be great with calves, this isn't true for all of them. This is partly why many producers choose to remove their herd bulls from the cow-herd before the cows start calving.

Related Questions

Is it possible for a young heifer that is in calf to go to a bull to be served?

NO!! No, no, no, no, no!! A young heifer (and I'm assuming that's a heifer that is around 6 to 12 months of age) should NOT even be in calf in the first place, nor should she even be serviced by a bull when pregnant! A pregnant should be at least 15 months of age when she is bred, and 26 months when bred again to produce another calf. Some people feel that a heifer should be 24 months of age when she is bred to have her first calf! But NEVER a young heifer, never ever ever!!Get her aborted NOW. Inject her with some Estrumate or Lutylase IMMEDIATELY. Don't waste your time on trying to get a young girl like her to be producing a calf so young, you can afford to wait a few more months or longer!


What are the names given to a calf at different stages of life?

A calf is a calf from birth to weaning. That calf is no longer a calf after weaning, but a bull (if male and intact), a steer (if castrated) or a heifer (if a female). If the calf is being used for beef, at weaning age it's called a feeder calf. A feeder become stocker steer/heifer/bull when put out on pasture, usually when it reaches around 12 months of age. The calf is called a finisher when it goes into the feedlot to be put on a "hot" ration prior to slaughter, then a slaughter bull/heifer/steer when it is sold to be slaughtered for beef. This part of the equation is primarily reserved for steers. A heifer calf is a female calf from birth. She becomes a weaned heifer when weaned, a heifer after she's gone through the weaning process, then a bred heifer when she gets pregnant for the first time. After she has had her first calf, she is called a first-calf heifer. She can also be considered a cow at this time. She will remain a cow until she dies of natural causes or illness, or is slaughtered for beef. A bull calf is a male (intact) calf from birth. He is referred to as a weanling bull when weaned, then a young bull after being weaned and is not quite a year old. He is referred to a as a yearling bull when he reaches a year old and until he turns 2 years of age. He will then be referred to as a 2-year-old bull when he reaches two. He becomes a Mature bull when he reaches full maturity by the time he's 4 to 5 years old, and remains so until he dies of natural causes or is slaughtered for beef.


What do you call a heifer after it calves?

A cow is a female bovine who has had a calf. She was a calf when she was born, became no longer a calf after she was weaned. Before being put to the bull for the first time she was a heifer and became a cow after she had her first calf.


What age should a heifer be taken away from a bull?

This is the wrong question to ask, actually. You should be more concerned about the age that you should put a heifer in with a bull to be bred, not when should a heifer be taken away from a bull. See the related question below, but generally, a heifer should be at least 15 months of age to be bred and be able to grow a calf in her. Now to really answer your question, the bull should be removed after a couple months of being in with the heifer[s].


Why are calves from first calved heifers smaller?

Heifers are still growing and maturing themselves, so a lot of resources being put into the calf's growth still need to be put into the heifer to keep her growing as well.


How do you help a heifer that is in labor but is having trouble?

Get her in the head gate, glove up and reach inside to see if the calf's got something that is not in the normal position, or to feel if it's a really big calf that the heifer can't push through. If it's the latter, get the vet out ASAP. If it's anything of the former, you may be able to push the calf back in, put things right, and get the chains or the calf puller out and help pull the calf out. But it depends of what type of trouble as many things can go wong. Usually with a heifer the calf can be too big, then you gotta pull it out of her usually with a contraption called a calf puller. I would not attempt this without help from someone experienced, as you could kill one or both animals. A vet or a neighbor who's a veteran cattleman is a good source to get help from. It's more important to breed her to bull with history of siring small calves in the first place.


What should you do for a calf that can't walk after a week?

Put hip lifters on it to get it to stand up, or put it down if the vet diagnoses the calf as unable to walk again.


Heiffer had calf 4 weeks premature. had to take the calf away to bottle feed it. it has been away from mother for 7 days and is now able to stand can we put him back and will she restart lactation?

Unfortunately, the heifer is very unlikely to accept the calf back at this point. A mother cow bonds with her calf within the first few hours after birth; if this was disrupted, the cow will reject the calf if reintroduced later. Also, if the cow has stopped lactating, she is very unlikely to restart lactation.


When do you separate calf from bulls?

This question is asked in quite an awkward manner: are you asking about separating young calves (or a young calf) from a herd of bulls, or about separating heifer calves from the bull calves in your herd? Or are you asking about something entirely which wasn't put across very clearly in this question? I'm assuming that you are referring to the middle question: separating heifer calves from the bull calves. The best time to do that is at weaning, which is around 6 to 8 months for a beef herd. When you process your heifers, make sure you give them a shot of lute (or a similar injectable hormone) to make any unknown-pregnant heifers abort, particularly if your herd is highly fertile and the heifers and bulls have hit puberty before they've been weaned, which happens more often than you might think. As for the first question, the calf should be separated from the bull herd immediately, particularly if it's a young animal and needs its dam. A bull that doesn't know what a calf is will physically abuse that calf with the intentions to do harm or even kill. Even though some herd bulls can be great with calves, this isn't true for all of them. This is partly why many producers choose to remove their herd bulls from the cow-herd before the cows start calving.


How do you get your heifer serviced?

Put a calving-ease yearling bull in with her.


Why do cows refuse to let newborn calves nurse?

He/she may have had a difficult birth and could be weak and cold, warm her up, rub her down with towels, call your vet to see if you need to give her a glucose shot. You may also have a "Dummy " or Silly" calf. They are not born with a strong suck response. I am currently tube feeding one now. Still offering the bottle, in hopes that she will make my life easier, but she still won't even suck on my finger,or the nipple at all. good luck


How long can you keep a cow and calf separate?

A cow and calf should not be separated unless you are weaning them. Thus, if you are asking about weaning a cow from her calf and vice versa, you should keep them separate for at least 6 to 8 weeks, longer if the calf tries to go back to suckling his momma again when you put them back together.