How do you know when the time is right to pull?

Once the water bag appears, I give them 45 minutes-an hour to progress to having feet showing. This is where you are at now. Once feet appear another 30-45 minutes to make progress towards the head coming out. At that point the rest of the calf should come quickly.

If the feet have been showing for awhile (hard to tell, but looks like they are somewhat dry) then you probably need to provide some assistance.

Looks like hooves pointed down ( I think ), but they look dry. I would check her now. If the hooves are pointed up the calf is breach and would need help now.

When you see a hoof exposed and it's not on the way out. It's time.

Pull it

Now is the time.

They are pulling now. I think its probably too late since it looks so dry. Hand noticed it this morning and sent that to his boss (friend of mine).

Thanks for the replies. I told him if they start pulling and she isn't in labor to stop and call the vet.

No matter how many times I experience this I am always in awe of a new life coming into the world. Hope all ends well.

Yep. Pull it. Sell the cow.

How did it turn out ?
I've had to assist two cows in the past 10 years. Haven't had to pull one in 30 years. Calving ease bulls.

84AGEC said:

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Haven't had to pull one in 30 years. Calving ease bulls.

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Say it again for those in the back

Pulling a calf is painful.

Pulling a hamstring is even worse.

And don't even mention Achilles

Gunny456 said:

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No matter how many times I experience this I am always in awe of a new life coming into the world. Hope all ends well.

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The pulling sucks eggs. Birthing is pretty neat thing.

Aggie Class of 2026 said:

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84AGEC said:

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Haven't had to pull one in 30 years. Calving ease bulls.

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Say it again for those in the back

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the bull is half of the equation

84AGEC said:

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How did it turn out ?
I've had to assist two cows in the past 10 years. Haven't had to pull one in 30 years. Calving ease bulls.

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Vet said Calf was dead, head was turned back and it couldn't be pulled. Owner put the cow down. Older cow and he didn't want to spend the money on the surgery. ****ty day for those involved.

Damn. Not a good ending....but that's life sometimes.

gwellis said:

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84AGEC said:

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How did it turn out ?
I've had to assist two cows in the past 10 years. Haven't had to pull one in 30 years. Calving ease bulls.

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Vet said Calf was dead, head was turned back and it couldn't be pulled. Owner put the cow down. Older cow and he didn't want to spend the money on the surgery. ****ty day for those involved.

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Damn. I've been a part of cutting up a dead calf with a wire saw to remove when it couldn't be pulled (a fetotomy). That wasn't fun.

AgEng06 said:

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gwellis said:

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84AGEC said:

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How did it turn out ?
I've had to assist two cows in the past 10 years. Haven't had to pull one in 30 years. Calving ease bulls.

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Vet said Calf was dead, head was turned back and it couldn't be pulled. Owner put the cow down. Older cow and he didn't want to spend the money on the surgery. ****ty day for those involved.

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Damn. I've been a part of cutting up a dead calf with a wire saw to remove when it couldn't be pulled (a fetotomy). That wasn't fun.

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I performed a fetotomy one time that had been dead for 5 days. NEVER again! I couldn't get the stench off me for days!! Threw away my clothes.

natvet said:

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Looks like hooves pointed down ( I think ), but they look dry. I would check her now. If the hooves are pointed up the calf is breach and would need help now.

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This ^

As said earlier, easy calving bulls. I always bought Brangus cross bulls with low birth weights.

As a HS boy one of my most vivid memories was pulling a calf. Pop had 3 Charolais bulls with big shoulders we pulled and lost a lot of calves until he quickly switched to Brangus bulls.

It was February, drizzling cold rain. Small frame cow. I'm sixteen years old, in blue jeans tshirt and rubber boots, arm deep inside cow's lady parts trying to straighten out a calf.

Cow fills my boots with green ryegrass crap and just soaks me. I didn't let go of the calf and kept working, at least it warmed me up. Very vivid memory.

Calf died.

When a teenager, I helped my veterinarian Dad pull a calf. It came out lifeless. Dad yelled "swing it". I had no idea what he meant. He said pick it up by the back legs and swing it, so I did. After being coached to swing it much harder, the calf started breathing. I was dumbfounded. He said the natural birthing process squeezes the fluids out of the calf and pulling the calf sometimes does not. The calf lived and I will never forget that feeling - amazing.

Back in early 90s bought some heifers. Turns out neighbor bull had bred them. Two calved before I put bulls on them. Pulling 100 plus pound calves out 800 pound heifers. I was dragging them in a circle. Worn out I pulled them with my suburban. Prolapsed both.
One died right there. The other i hauled water and feed to for a week and finally got up. Unbelievably she calved normally a year later.

No pulling until check to be sure the nose/head is right there in correct position. If head and neck not lined up properly, pulling will make matters much worse.

DVM97 said:

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AgEng06 said:

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gwellis said:

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84AGEC said:

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How did it turn out ?
I've had to assist two cows in the past 10 years. Haven't had to pull one in 30 years. Calving ease bulls.

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Vet said Calf was dead, head was turned back and it couldn't be pulled. Owner put the cow down. Older cow and he didn't want to spend the money on the surgery. ****ty day for those involved.

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Damn. I've been a part of cutting up a dead calf with a wire saw to remove when it couldn't be pulled (a fetotomy). That wasn't fun.

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I performed a fetotomy one time that had been dead for 5 days. NEVER again! I couldn't get the stench off me for days!! Threw away my clothes.

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Been apart of helping with a couple of these. You never forget it.

I did a c-section on a cow when I was 18 years old. Calf didn't live but the cow did. Rancher was going to put the cow down but gave me a chance to try. I had a book on "feedlot surgeries" that my mom bought me since I was wanting to go to vet school. We kept a great deal of drugs and supplies on the ranch (we did our own AI, basic surgical things like prolapse repairs, etc).

Ranchers helped hold stuff (cow was leg tied between two trucks), used plastic garbage bags on the ground.

I puked my guts out behind the barn when I was finished because my nerves were so worn.

Told the story during my interview for vet school. Board denied my admission because of this (they said). Never became a vet. Sort of glad because that's just plain hard work for little pay. Tons of respect for them though.

They're all different but I had one like that. Calf was dead so circular cut through the skin on each foreleg and pull the legs off. Then hook your OB chains to the head and pull. Got it out but the calves hips wouldn't come through the pelvic canal so I cut the front half of the calf off. Turned the back half around and put my chain on the back feet and got it out. I felt sorry for the heifer. I'm too old for that kind of thing now.