Geting cow pregnant faster
The essence of how to make a cow get pregnant quickly is to make right away the cow to lust (estrus). Because mating starts with lust, and cows can get pregnant if they start mating first.
There are no cows who can get pregnant without mating first. And it’s useless if a cow doesn’t being lust.
How to make a cow get pregnant faster is one effort to get calves every year. Because cow-calf is the advantage of raising broodstock.
Then, how long can we get these calves (calves)?
The time required is the total length of pregnancy, nursing cow, preparation of lust for broodstock, mating, and pregnancy.
Pregnant cows need 9 months. 3 months of milk calf feeding. Preparation of lust for 1 month. The process of remating and pregnancy.
At least, the time needed is 13-14 months. More than a year.
This process will take longer if during the preparation of lust and the mating process does not proceed as planned.
It could be, after the calf is weaned, the broodstock never asks for remating. When asking for marriage, it didn’t work either.
This is a common problem and is often encountered by farmers. Then, cattle are considered infertile and sold so that farmers do not get the benefits as expected.
These problems usually occur because:
- Lack of knowledge about cow lust.
- Determine when the right time for mating the broodstock.
- Potluck feed.
- Reproductive disorders and viral, bacterial or fungal infections.
How we know if cow getting estrus
We must know how the signs – if a female cow is lust.
We can easily see the signs of cattle being estrus as follows.
- Cows often groaning.
- Restless.
- Decreased appetite.
- If its ride by another cow, it is willing.
- Its vagina became redder, enlarged and warm when held.
- Secrete clear mucus from the vagina.
If you already see signs like the one above, then the cow must be mated immediately.
What needs to be known by breeders is the age at which cattle ask for first mating. Because many breeders who keep female cows since the age of calf.
Each type of cow is different. There is an age for first mating at the age of 14 months and some are more than 2 years.
This term is for puberty. Completely, it can be seen in the table below.
Type of cows | Puberty age (months) |
Simmental x Ongole cross | 14 – 18 |
Limousin x Ongole Cross | 16 – 20 |
Ongole cross | 22 – 27 |
Bali Cows | 20 – 24 |
Madura Cows | 22 – 23 |
Sumba Ongole cows | 20 – 26 |
You can search for yourself, if the type of cattle is not in the table above.
The data above is for cows which are now widely raised in my area.
Please research on the type of cattle you want and you will get very useful data for your farm.
So like that.
If you raise Ongole Cross, Bali or Madura cows, when they are 1.5 years old, they do not ask for bulls, do not immediately judge them as infertile cows.
Because it’s not time to ask mating.
Vice versa, if the broodstock limousin or simmental cross, at the age of 1.5 years but has not asked for marriage, then it needs to be checked.
Determine when the right time for mating
This sometimes hinders the success of mating. Determining the right time not only knows the signs of lust. But it also has to mark when the farmer sees these signs appear and set the time of mating.
We must understand very well the length of lust or the length of estrus of the cows that we keep for.
The duration of estrus is around 18 hours (at most). But there is also a long time varies between 12-26 hours.
If cows fail to get pregnant, they will lust again after 21 days later. If it fails again, wait again 21 days later.
If you see the sign of lust, the appropriate time guide for mating (IB) is as follows.
If lust occurs before 9 am, cows are mated in the afternoon.
Between 9 am to 12 am (midday), mate cows in the afternoon or evening.
If the lust is above midday, the cow can be mated tomorrow morning.
It is necessary to have more than one inseminator contact. Anticipate that when the cows are lust, but the inseminator is having an out-of-town event.
Inseminators who arrive late too long from the time of lust, don’t pay. Just tell him to go home immediately. Don’t risk money for an opportunity that has very little success.
Potluck feed
In order cows can estrus quickly, cows need adequate nutrition. Its body condition must be right. Too thin or too fat can inhibit the process of lust.
The adequacy of these nutrients can be seen from the condition of the cow’s body score or BCS (Body Condition Scores).
Cattle with BCS 2.6 – 3, pregnancy rate 50% higher than cattle with a lower BCS score. [1]
Therefore, adequate feed and good quality are needed.
No need for complicated guidance. As long as the condition of the cow is not like the picture below, God willing, there is no problem with productivity. As long as the cow is healthy and not sick.
At a minimum, a good appearance of the body of a cow is like this.
Reproductive disorders and viral, bacterial or fungal infections
There are many types of disorders associated with the reproduction of female cows.
Later will be discussed in the section on the causes of cows failing to get pregnant and difficult to lust.
How to make a cow get pregnant fast
These steps will be sequential later. So after the first sequence is completed, we can review on step 2.
Starting from believing that the cow is healthy, Improving the intake of nutrients in the cow, stimulating with bull, flushing and synchronizing lust.
1 . Broodstock must be in good health
Either the cow is thin or fat, the cow must be in a healthy condition. Not experiencing parasitic, bacterial or viral infections.
If it turns out there are parasites, it must be removed first.
For example, intestinal worms can be treated with albendazole or wormectin injection according to the recommended dose.
Eliminating this parasite is very necessary. Because when a cow is pregnant, almost all treatments must be avoided.
Because it can be harmful to the fetus.
Parasitic infections like worms are still easy to handle.
Apart from parasitic infections, breeders also do not experience interference or there are defects in the reproductive organs.
Problems that already involve internal organs like this are heavy enough to be handled. These more severe disorders can make farmers less enthusiastic.
My advice is to sell it. Then look for new brooders whose conditions are better.
Many good broodstock candidates. Why should we focus on caring for the handicapped if we can focus on being more productive? Moreover, the number of brooders is only 1-2 heads.
Focusing on this will only cost a lot of time and money.
Ok, after the parasites are gone, we proceed to step 2.
2. Regulates the nutrition that cows eat
Skinny cows mean malnutrition. Lack of nutrition in female cows, lust will be problematic.
Likewise, overweight female cows. Too much fat reserves everywhere. The success of pregnancy will decrease.
This is because the reproductive organs will be covered by fat. So, it is difficult to get pregnant.
The condition of productive female cows is moderate. Not too thin and not too fat.
Nutritional deficiencies that are too long will cause problems at the hormonal level. At a later stage, it can cause abnormalities in the reproductive organs.
If the female cow is obese, it should be sold. The selling price can be higher. Then, the money is made to buy prospective broodstock whose condition is moderate.
Ideal conditions for cows can be seen from the condition of the body score. Some call it BCS (Body condition score) and SKT (body condition score). Both are the same.
This body score scoring system is twofold. The American system makes the range of body scores ranging from 1-9. While the Scottish and Canadian systems make a range of body scores between 1-5.
The ideal female cow is at number 3 for the Scottish system. And ranks 5-7 for the American BCS system.
Examples of images of an ideal female cow is like this.
From this picture, we can simply see that the ideal female cow is:
The ribs aren’t visible. Still covered by fat, even though the amount is small. This thin fat will be felt when touched. But if you just look at it, the rib cage doesn’t appear.
In addition to the ribs that are not visible, the protrusions of the hip bones are still visible. If the hip bones are not visible, it means that a lot of fat covering it. This shows that the cow is fat.
Examples of images of fat and very thin cows are as follows.
The pattern of feeding that is still running can be continued. It does not matter as long as the body condition of the cow is still ideal.
Especially for meiden heifers which are about to mate for the first time.
If the effort to accelerate the lust of cows that have been breeding, we must look at the next step.
3 . Bringing bull gadfly (biostimulation)
Bringing bulls around a cow can make them lust faster.
This method is called a biostimulation. Because stimulation is done by presenting a bull, this is a natural way.
This is not a magic show. How can just bringing in bull can trigger cows to lust?
Naturally, all animals can secrete substances that can attract the opposite sex. This chemical name is pheromone.
In cattle, this pheromone is excreted in urine, feces and skin glands so that it will be received or smelled by cows.
This pheromone substance can stimulate cows to be aroused and can lust faster. (Moreover, if the bulls are handsome and sexy).
This method can be applied to heifers or cows that have already given birth.
In heifers, it can make lust visible because there are often cases of heifers experiencing silent estrus.
Whereas for cows that are milk feeding, this can speed up the broodstock so they want to remate immediately.
But there are conditions, the points in number 1 and 2 above must be fulfilled. So, if the cow is thin and lacking nutrition it is difficult to bring out lust.
According to the study, from 27 cows that stimulated by the presence of bulls, more than half of them can appear lust within a month. [2]
The stimulation process by bulls is only done in the morning and evening. The trick is to get the bull closer to the cows that have been lined up for several minutes.
Later, bulls will know which cows are lust and which are not.
Signs that a bull detects a female cow being lust are:
- His lips were grinning, you must have seen them.
- Erection.
- Sniff the cow and lick it.
Then it can be cross-checked to the cow, whether it shows the presence of lust or not. Signs – lust cows are already above. It can be naturally mated or AI.
The problem that usually occurs with breeders is that they do not have males that can trigger this lust. If you have, the problem is solved.
The solution is to borrow a bull belonging to a friend or neighbor.
Or, entrust our cows to a neighbor’s cage that has a bull. Don’t forget that the feed is borne by yourself.
So, we entrust our cow to a friend’s farm. This is just to make lust faster. Later when it’s already lust, mate using artificial insemination.
4 . How to make a cow get pregnant quickly with Flushing
Flushing or surge feeding is to feed cattle with an excessive amount of cows after giving birth.
Excessive in terms of energy content of feed and nutrients. Not to give straw with the amount 3-4 times than usual.
An example is when ordinary feed uses straw, elephant grass or other grass when the flushing program is carried out, the feed is added by concentrate.
This flushing program can be done at 7 months of pregnancy and 2 months after giving birth. In other words, 2 months before cows give birth and 2 months afterward.
According to research, the results are very different indeed. Breed cows given a flushing program can lust again after 55 days of calving.
Cows that are not flushed only appear in lust after 124 days of calving.
In addition to accelerating the lust of cows, flushing can also increase the success rate of pregnancy.
Why is Flushing necessary?
When cows become pregnant, they need more nutrients than cows that are not pregnant.
Because these nutrients are in addition to the parent itself, also for the development of their fetus. Especially two months before giving birth.
Likewise, after giving birth, cows need to produce more milk as the main calf feed.
If nutrients from outside the body are not fulfilled, then the nutrients will be taken from the body’s reserves.
This can make the parent’s body weight reduced every day. So that the condition of his body score will worsen.
From one study, cows that were fed as usual two months before and had given birth experienced an average body shrinkage of 0.47 kg/head/day. [3]
And if flushed, this shrinkage can be reduced by half.
Simple way to do flushing
It all depends on how the pattern of breeding cows so far. If the cow’s performance is still ok and okay, just keep the cow’s feed formula.
But, if the broodstock feed is only grass, flushing will need to be planned. That is at 2 months before and after the cow gives birth.
You do this by simply adding a minimum of 2 kg of concentrate/head/day. Although this amount according to research is still lacking.
The amount can be added, but not too much. The amount can be adjusted to the existing financial conditions.
This can help the cows so that her body condition is maintained and the cows will be able to immediately lust again.
5 . Lust synchronization
The final step so that the cow can quickly lust is to inject hormones to synchronize lust.
I am not sure for small farmers, this will help. Because the cost might be expensive.
Because the injection is not enough to only be done once. But it must be repeated according to the procedure.
This is not yet the cost of the artificial insemination fee.
This step is usually taken by cattle breeding companies. Because there are many broodstock. If lust can be synchronized, it will be more efficient in maintaining the calf.
But if you want to know the process of synchronizing lust, you can see the infographic below.
If efforts have been made to get lust faster but without success, maybe the cow is having problems.
Who knows, the problem you are experiencing is below.
Causes of cows failing to get pregnant and difficult to estrus
There are so many disorders and diseases that can be experienced by cows. Especially regarding the reproductive system.
These diseases and disorders can be caused by defects, viral, bacterial and fungal infections, or errors in maintenance management.
1 . Silent estrus or subertus
Cows experience heat, but time is very short. It doesn’t even show any sign of lust.
This silent estrus lasts between 3-4 hours. If it happens at night, it’s already too late.
The reason is due to the lack of the hormone estrogen and lack of phosphate minerals P and Co (cobalt).
The treatment is by injection of the hormone prostaglandin (PGF2α) and is followed by injection of GnRH (gonadotropin-releasing hormone).
This is a hormone that is usually used in lust synchronization.
2 Brucellosis
This disease is due to the brucella abortion bacteria and can be transmitted to humans.
Infection with this disease can cause:
- Abortion.
- Calf died before birth.
- Decreased milk production, and
- Rare or infertile cattle.
The prevention can be done with the following steps:
- Maintain the sanitation and cleanliness of the cage.
- Vaccinating with strains 19 at the age of 3-7 months.
- Infected animals are given antiseptics and antibiotics.
- Infected cattle are isolated, treated, sold or slaughtered.
- The aborted fetus and placenta are burned and then buried.
- New animals are quarantined, examined and tested.
3 Leptospirosis
This is also a disease caused by a bacterial infection. Bacteria named Leptospira. This disease is also dangerous because it can be transmitted to humans.
Transmission of this disease can be through breathing, sores on the skin, drinking water, food and urine splashes of infected cows.
Symptoms of this disease are:
- Miscarriage at 4 – 5 months of age.
- Decreased appetite.
- Calf is stillborn.
Control of the incidence of leptospirosis includes:
- Sanitary enclosure must be good.
- Isolate infected animals and avoid food and drinks from pollution.
- Vaccination with serotypes (types) of leptospires in the area.
- Treatment with high-dose antibiotics, 3 million IU of penicillin and 5 grams of streptomycin (2x a day).
4 Uterine prolapse
This is a condition where the uterus, vagina, and cervix all come out.
There are two possibilities, namely only partial and total. If only partly, when the cow is standing, all organs reenter again as before.
But if it’s total, even though the cow is standing, the organs still hang out.
The cause is:
- Cows are always caged. Less motion or Mager.
- The hormone estrogen is too high.
- Intra-abdominal pressure when lying down
- Genetic factors
The fix is as follows:
- The floor of the back cage (back foot) is 10-15 cm taller.
- Need medical assistance to return the organs that came out to its original position. After that antiseptic injection and broad-spectrum antibiotics are given.
5 Distokia
Distokia is a calf with difficulty going out at birth because the calf size is too large or the vagina is too small.
The reason could be because:
- Heredity or genetic which is a small vagina.
- Genetic bull that’s too big. To want to get a super calf.
- Low-quality feed and
- Microorganism infection.
To overcome this need the help of medical personnel.
Cows will be induced so that contractions occur which are injected with oxytocin. When a contraction has occurred while the calf is positioned and assisted to get out.
If this method does not resolve, can be performed by the cesarean section.
6 placental retention
The placenta won’t come out because of:
- An infection in the reproductive organs.
- Lack of nutrients in cows, especially vitamin A and carotene.
- Cows lack movement so that the uterine muscles are not strong enough to contract and expel the placenta.
Handling should use experienced personnel. Whose can be paramedics or veterinarians.
The remaining placenta is removed manually, by hand.
Then sterilized using an antiseptic such as rivanol or potassium permanganate.
After that, the cows are given antibiotics to avoid secondary infections.
It can be helped by feeding hibiscus leaves and bamboo leaves.
7 Fetus dries (fetal mummification)
This is a condition where the fetus of the cow dries and is absorbed by the uterus.
The reason is because:
- Twisted umbilical cord.
- Genetic disorders.
Symptoms are hardened fetus. It can be known through rectal palpation. Besides cows experiencing estrus disorder continuously.
Treatment is done by injection of Oxitoxin intramuscularly or by injection of the hormone prostaglandin.
This injection is intended to expel the fetus, so the cow can be used to remating again.
Here are some of the disorders experienced by female cows. There are still so many. But, this is often experienced by farmers.
Hopefully, this article on how to make a cow get pregnant faster is useful. I pray that the business will run smoothly and all the cows will be safe.
References
[1] [1] http://etd.repository.ugm.ac.id/index.php od=penelitian_detail&sub=PenelitianDetail&act=view&typ=html&buku_id=71753
[2] Endang Baliarti, Bayu Andri Atmoko, Nanung Agus Fitriyanto, Alek Ibrahim, Prabowo Priambodo, dan Briyan Wisnu Prabowo. Use of bull as a biostimulator in the margo andhini makmur smallholder group to increase the gestation of ongole grade cows. Seminar Nasional Peternakan 3 tahun 2017.
[3] Anggraeni, Y.N. Dan L. Affandhi. Effect of Surge Feeding on the Reproductive Performance of PO x Simmental Cross Beef Cow. Loka Penelitian Sapi Potong, Grati, Pasuruan. Seminar Nasional Teknologi Peternakan dan Veteriner 2007.
[4] Affandhi, L. , Aryogi, Bess Tirnamukti. 2014. Perkawinan Sapi Potong Di Indonesia. IAARD Press.
[5] Affandy L., Wulan Cahya Pratiwi dan Dian Ratnawati. 2007. Petunjuk Teknis Penanganan Gangguan Reproduksi pada Sapi Potong. Pusat Penelitian dan Pengembangan Peternakan.