Dealing With Dystocia

Thursday, March 19, 2026

Knowing when to intervene can save calves, cows & money

By Emily McKinlay

Dystocia — a difficult calving — can be costly. Identifying dystocia and knowing when to intervene can save both calves and cows.

The risk of dystocia can be influenced by several factors. Dr. Jon Waito, veterinarian and owner of Miller Veterinary Service in Chatsworth, divides these risk factors into three categories.

“Often dystocia is predictable before calving, and there’s a long-term impact after that people often don’t think about,” says Waito.

“I typically group dystocia risks into three buckets: cow, calf, and management factors.”

First-calf heifers with a smaller pelvis size and less experience, cows with a body condition score that is too high or too low, or cows at age extremes are at higher risk for dystocia. Calf factors would include a mismatch of calf size and cow size, malpresentation or malposition, and multiples of calves. Management factors might include mineral imbalances, nutrition and body condition score, a stressful calving environment, and exercise.

It’s important to recognize distress during calving and know how to support cattle during and after calving.

Recognizing a problem

The process of calving occurs in three stages.

“In Stage 1, the cow will be restless, their tail will be up, and the ligaments around the tail will soften. They’ll often be swishing their tails, and trying to find a place to calve,” says Dr. Emilie Belage, a veterinarian at Livestock Veterinary Services in Picture Butte, Alta.

“It’s normal for heifers to take longer than cows in this stage. Heifers could take up to 12 hours, and cows might take just a couple of hours. We don’t want to go more than six hours without progress. We either want a water bag to start sticking out or to see more dilation.”

Stage 2 is the active labour stage.

“The cow should be actively pushing and trying to get the calf out,” says Dr. Talia Fletcher, a veterinarian and partner at Markdale Veterinary Services in Markdale.

“They are typically lying down, and it should take half an hour to two hours. Producers should intervene if the water bag is out for more than two hours, if the cow is actively pushing for 30 minutes or longer and there’s no progress, or if they are pushing hard and then give up or get too tired.”

Stage 3 is the passage of the placenta, which typically happens within 24 hours of calving. If the cow has a retained placenta, Stage 3 can take multiple days.

If the cow isn’t progressing at the expected rate or is showing signs of distress in the first two stages of calving, the producer may need to intervene.

“If nothing is changing but you know she’s calving, something is wrong,” says Waito.

“Slow down and check what’s going on before you start pulling. Go in with a glove and take the time to feel where the calf is. Don’t guess.”

After assessing the position and presentation of the calf, producers can decide how to proceed with intervention.

Intervention

Each producer will have a different comfort level with identifying and correcting malpresentations or malposition.

“Pulling harder does not fix a bad presentation,” says Waito.

Before pulling, producers need to follow the ‘Rule of Three.’

“For a normal presentation, the calf can be either coming frontwards or backwards,” says Fletcher.

“You should feel two front feet and a nose, or, if it’s backwards, two back feet and a tail. You should always feel three parts of the calf.”

If the presentation meets that standard, producers can attempt to pull the calf.

“Lube is your friend. If the cow’s waterbag is broken and you are trying to pull the calf, using lube will really help to get that calf out,” says Fletcher.

“If you are going to pull a calf, for example with chains or straps, use the double half hitch on the calf’s legs. Pull with the cow, during her contractions.”

Belage recommends using OB lube instead of J-lube. She also cautions producers to be mindful of the pressure applied during a pull.

“Even if you are just pulling by hand, you shouldn’t apply any more than the strength of two men,” says Belage.

“A calf jack can put a lot of pressure on the cow, so if you’re not making progress, cranking it more won’t help you. I count on my producers to work with the cow, not against her. Go slow when using a calf jack and go with her contractions. Never hook the chains to an ATV or tractor. If you can’t pull the calf with two men, it is not coming out of the back.”

Waito says when pulling, producers should be seeing slow progress.

“If it’s progressing, keep pulling. If the calf stops and snags, then stop,” says Waito.

“If the calf is presented normally and you are pulling with some tension on chains on the legs, check if the head is engaged in the pelvis. If it is, then the calf is small enough to fit. If you are pulling on the legs and they won’t come out of the vulva, that’s an indication that a calf is too big to come through the pelvis.”

It’s important to know when to call the vet for help.

“Don’t wait until everyone is exhausted before calling for help,” says Fletcher.

“If you feel in and don’t know what you’re feeling, or don’t feel two front feet and a head or two back feet and a tail, it’s time to call the vet.

“If you don’t know what problem is, or if you recognize the problem and don’t know how to solve it or are not having success, it’s time to call the vet.”

For producers who are comfortable attempting to reposition a calf, Belage recommends being mindful of the time elapsed.

“If you are experienced and have attempted to reposition a calf for more than 20 to 30 minutes without success, that warrants a call to the veterinarian,” says Belage.

“If you are not comfortable repositioning the calf or haven’t experienced it before, call the vet so they can show you how it’s done or correct it themselves.”

Waito adds, “I believe all producers should be able to reach in and check if the calf presentation is normal. If it’s not, and you don’t know how to fix it, leave it the way it is and call your vet.

“Don’t feel guilty about calling for help. Calling early saves calves, cows, and money — whether it’s to a vet or an experienced friend.”

Once on the ground, a calf that has experienced dystocia will still need some extra support.

Support after calving

Experiencing a difficult calving can cause long-term challenges for both the cow and the calf.

“After calving is often where I see the real cost of dystocia,” says Waito.

“Once the calf is on the ground, if it took longer than expected, there is often a risk of insufficient colostrum ingestion. The calf is stressed, and the mom is tired and ticked off and doesn’t want to get up right away. The calf can have a reduced oxygen load if it didn’t breathe right away.”

Fletcher adds, “A lot of studies have shown that calves born to cows that experience dystocia are slower to get up and nurse. They don’t get enough colostrum, or it may not be consumed in the right time frame. This makes them more prone to get sick with diarrhea, pneumonia, or navel ill.”

Cows can also be affected by dystocia.

“For dairy cows, there is a potential of lower milk yield, especially in the first couple of weeks of lactation,” says Belage.

“You can lose a cow from nerve injuries, or uterine tears can lead to infection. This can cause milk production to drop in beef cows as well and the calf won’t have as much to drink. You can see reduced weight gain in calves due to reduced milk intake, and they can get behind on long-term weight gain because they are not thriving as they should be in the first couple of days.”

Producers can mitigate the damage caused by dystocia once the calf is one the ground. Right away, the calf should be put in the sternal recovery position. The calf should be on its sternum with front legs straight ahead and both back legs pointing forward on either side of the body.

Next, producers should consider pain management.

“Pain medicine goes a long way,” says Waito, who recommends Meloxicam or Metacam.

“They make everyone feel better after a tough calving.”

Producers should also ensure that calves receive a sufficient dose of colostrum in good time.

“Ten minutes after calving, put clean finger in the calf’s mouth and see if sucks. If it does, there’s a pretty good chance that it is strong enough to get up on its own to nurse,” says Fletcher.

Belage adds, “After any difficult calving, I recommend tubing them with colostrum and not waiting on them to drink. They might have a swollen tongue or head and might not be able to drink. Commercial powdered colostrum or frozen colostrum both work well.”

If feeding colostrum, the calf will need two litres within the first six hours, followed by an additional two litres for a total of four litres in the first 12 hours of life.

Proper intervention during dystocia, and support after calving, can help producers avoid costly challenges associated with difficult calving. BF