New heifer

[turnerstar31]

If you look at a normal hefiers vuvlva and a free martins you can sometimes see a difference. More than likely a free martin will not breed but I have heard of them having calves before but very rare.

 

[Katy]

It seems to me they just have a certain look to them....don't know how to explain it. Kind of like a high, thinner hindquarters. Does that make sense?

 

[sara]

Quote:
Thanks, I just wondered. At the auction they check the dairy calves before they go through the ring and mark them. I just wondered how you just look at them and know.

 

[BrahmaMama]

Ok, I have to butt in and ask a question

I'm assuming free martin is referring to sterile heifers, now what causes them to be sterile? Does it happen in cattle more for some reason? We have two heifer calves, that I hope to keep from the butcher, and raise some calves...

 

[greyfields]

They must be twins with a bull calf for it even to be a possibility. The testosterone the bull calf produces prior to birth can cause the heifer to form no ovaries (or sometimes only a single one) or not form a euterus.

I got us a little off subject here. Nice heifer.

 

[sara]

I don't mind that we got off topic, its actually something I was curious about myself.

 

[BrahmaMama]

Quote:
I see, thank you

 

[greyfields]

If you buy cows at auction you probably want to be very familiar with the phenomenom. I'm sure many many people have bought heifers for breeding and have found it out later when the heifer wouldn't settle.

Another reason I personally don't shop at auctions and buy livestock from locals. They tend to answer the phone at 2 am when everything goes wrong, too.

 

[valerie]

There is a website you can send a blood sample in and they can tell if she is a freemartin. I just did that with twin (bull/heifer) jerseys. She came back NOT a freemartin

The website is www.genmarkag.com (they also have other tests)
I thought it was well worth the money. Just a thought!
Valerie

 

[greyfields]

Now that is a nice link! Sticky!