In this post from 2011 I showed you all a crossbred calf (Swedish Red X Holstein) born with a bit of a deformity. Her face resembles that of a bulldog. This animal was also pictured in Progressive Dairyman’s second most read online article of 2012 (which they received some criticism for showing deformed cows).
Interestingly, it’s not the first deformity I’ve seen from this family. The matriarch is an old Holstein cow #802 that was born without a tail. What makes it all the more interesting is that this family has given me some of my highest producing cows. Another tail deformity also came about:
This particular cow was born with a perfectly docked tail. I did flush her as a heifer and she’s had four total offspring naturally and via embryo, all of which were normal. One of those was a bull calf that went to the neighbor’s to do some breeding. I’m not sure if there are any calves from him yet.
Anyway, the bulldog calf was always one of my favorites. Some asked if I would euthanize her when she was born. Why would I when she could do this?
So we raised her up and bred her. She miscarried her first pregnancy (a fatal deformity perhaps?). But she got pregnant to the Jersey bull Riley and delivered a bull calf this morning:
It appears the bulldog gene carries through to the next generation! For what it’s worth, mother has an O Brolin udder and is very short, but looks like she will make some milk. Other than looking a little odd, there’s no ill effect to any of these deformities and they can be raised like any other cow we have. Anybody looking to bring the Bulldog mutation into their herd is free to contact me with an offer. I’m looking for a six figure deal. It’s a revolutionary change for dairy cattle.
