Getting Ready for Calving: Signs, Normal Labor and When to Call the Vet

Updated: November 4, 2026

Cattle carry their calves for about 283 days. Knowing what normal labor looks like is the best way to know when it isn't.

Before the due date

Cattle carry calves about 283 days; most calve within a week or so either side. Two weeks before, set up a clean calving area and a kit: gloves, lube, iodine for the navel, towels, a flashlight, colostrum replacer, a feeding tube and your vet's number.

Signs it's close: a full, tight udder, a relaxed tailhead, a swollen vulva, restlessness and going off alone.

Due date calculator

Breeding date

Based on an average of 283 days. Most cows calve within about a week either side.

Normal labor

Stage 1 (restless, getting ready) can take several hours. In stage 2 the water bag appears and the calf should arrive within about an hour (heifers can take a bit longer). Normal is two front feet, soles down, with the nose resting on top.

After the calf arrives

Clear the nose and mouth, make sure the calf is breathing, dip the navel, and make sure it gets colostrum within the first few hours. The afterbirth usually passes within 12 hours.

Call your vet if

Stage 2 has gone 30–60 minutes with no progress.
You see only a tail, one leg, the head without feet, or soles facing up.
The cow is straining hard with nothing showing, or is weak or down.
The afterbirth hasn't passed after 24 hours.

Keep it all in Cowpanion

Cowpanion counts down to each due date, keeps a calving checklist and adds the new calf to your herd in one tap.

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This guide is general information, not veterinary advice. Always follow product labels and call your vet when an animal is sick.

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Breeding & calving