Q&A: My cow gave birth at 3PM on Saturday and the placenta is hanging down and this 24 hours after she calved. Is this normal?
Dr. Rick Rasby, Professor of Animal Science, Animal Science, University of Nebraska
A: Retained placenta is rare in most cow herds. The placenta is retained when the cotyledons on the placenta do not detatch from the caruncles on the uterus during parturition. This can occur during difficult births (dystocia) in beef cattle. Also, when cows are induced to calve, you will see a higher incidence of retained placenta in the induced cows.
