False Labor?

[DLB]

Ok-this is weird here....my cow is 11 days out from due date and yesterday evening she started contracting about every 10mins.  There is the usual muscus/goop coming out but nothing else.  During her contractions she never pushed or anything.  No mucus plug/sac came out, no blood, just the clear mucus/slim that started up about 2days ago.  I moitored her every hour throughout the night thinking she would start to push.  At around 2:00am she stopped "contracting".  She still laid down and then would get up and move and then lay down again.  I went to work and had my father "baby-sit" her...and she showed no signs of contracting or anything throughout hte day, when I got home still the same thing-no contractions or pushing, no blood....just the clear mucus discharge.  She was up chowing down on wet grass with the rest of the herd like nothing after our little thunderstorm passed.  Is this like a "false labor"...I"ve never seen it before? 

 

[CAB]

You need to get her in asap and ck her out. This sounds like a breech presentation to me. If the calf can't get up into the birthing canal this is what the cow will do. If you have plenty of experience you can do the exam, but if you are somewhat a novice, you may want to call your vet. JMO. I would caution on the side of safety on this one.

Cows that don't dialate will also act as you are describing.

 

[Simmgal]

You need to get her in asap and ck her out. This sounds like a breech presentation to me. If the calf can't get up into the birthing canal this is what the cow will do. If you have plenty of experience you can do the exam, but if you are somewhat a novice, you may want to call your vet. JMO. I would caution on the side of safety on this one.

Cows that don't dialate will also act as you are describing.

Ditto. We have seen this happen before and always call the vet. It's better to be safe than sorry. Every cow is different though.

 

[WRS]

I agree with CAB's experience on this one and the best thing to do is stay on the side of caution and call your vet, especially if you think there is any chance that this cow is 10 days overdue instead of 11 short of her due date!  However, I have seen cows act in a similar manner when their calves were turning into position for the birth process.  The cow's discomfort with the turning/rolling often looks like labor, but that typically only lasts a few hours at most.

 

[CAB]

Remember also that cows seem to calve early when it's hot like this.

 

[DL]

Ok-this is weird here....my cow is 11 days out from due date and yesterday evening she started contracting about every 10mins.  There is the usual muscus/goop coming out but nothing else.  During her contractions she never pushed or anything.  No mucus plug/sac came out, no blood, just the clear mucus/slim that started up about 2days ago.  I moitored her every hour throughout the night thinking she would start to push.  At around 2:00am she stopped "contracting".  She still laid down and then would get up and move and then lay down again.  I went to work and had my father "baby-sit" her...and she showed no signs of contracting or anything throughout hte day, when I got home still the same thing-no contractions or pushing, no blood....just the clear mucus discharge.  She was up chowing down on wet grass with the rest of the herd like nothing after our little thunderstorm passed.  Is this like a "false labor"...I"ve never seen it before? 

Call your vet - in addition to malpresentation I would also consider with the scenario you presented uterine torsion.......