Labour Dystocia

Labour dystocia is a term medical professionals use to describe a difficult birth during labour (Schuenemann, 2023). In cattle, dystocia increases the incidence of stillborn calves and harms the dam by causing muscular weakness, ovarian dysfunction, and uterine disease (Schuenemann, 2023). The international prevalence of dystocia ranges from 1.5% to 22.0% in heifers and cows (Bahrami-Yekdangi et al., 2022). 

This week I visited an Alberta farm where I witnessed a cow giving birth. Because the animal was unable to deliver unassisted (Figure 1), the farmer pulled the calf from its mother by its forefeet. 

In the absence of that intervention, the calf may have died and the cow may have suffered a torn uterus and even paralysis (Navarre, 2019).