How Long Do Cows Mourn Their Calves?

The bond between a cow and her calf is one of the strongest in the animal kingdom. When that bond is broken, through separation or death, the cow goes through a mourning process not unlike grieving humans. If you’ve ever wondered, “How long do cows mourn their calves?”

read on for a deep dive into bovine grieving behaviors.

If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer to your question: Cows can mourn their calves for days or even weeks after separation or death, especially mother cows bonding strongly with their young. Exact mourning periods depend on the individual cow and situation.

Normal Cow-Calf Bonding Behaviors

Nursing and Licking

After giving birth, mother cows will immediately begin nursing and licking their newborn calves. Nursing helps transfer essential colostrum and nutrients to the calf for a healthy start, while licking stimulates blood circulation and breathing.

Cows will continue to nurse up to 8 times daily and lick their calves for the first several days. According to Drovers, 63% of calf deaths occur in the first day, highlighting the importance of this early bonding time.

Vocal Communication

Vocalizing is an important communication method between cow and calf. Mooing establishes the mother-offspring bond and allows reunions if separated. Calves also bawl at high pitches to signal distress. Research by UC Davis shows that cows and calves can identify each other’s voices, even from a herd of more than 100 cattle.

Their vocal repertoire suggests a deeper emotional understanding than previously realized.

Following and Guarding

In the first weeks of life, calves will shadow their mothers and never wander far. Cows also guard their young, standing between them and perceived threats. If the calf manages to creep away, the cow will actively search and call out until finding it.

One study found that cows searched for over 30 minutes for calves separated 36 hours after birth, evidencing a strong maternal protective bond.

The strong affiliative behaviors between a cow and her calf in nursing, grooming, communicating, staying close together, and protecting each other are all signs of normal, healthy bonding. While subtle to an outsider, these connections and interactions are meaningful for cattle emotional and physical well-being.

Disturbing the natural bonding process causes distress not only in separation, but through disrupting later social and nurturing behaviors. One study showed adult cows that lacked early maternal care were less attentive with their own offspring.

Safeguarding the cow-calf bond should be a high priority for ethical and humane cattle management.

To learn more on normal cow behaviors, check out sites like Drovers and UC Davis News.

Cow Reactions to Calf Separation

Calling and Pacing

Cows have strong maternal instincts and form close bonds with their calves. When a calf is separated from its mother, whether for weaning or sale, the mother cow undergoes significant stress. She will bellow loudly and repeatedly, calling out to her missing calf.

The cow will also pace along fence lines or barn boundaries, desperately searching for her calf. This frantic calling and pacing may persist for days or even weeks as the mother cow refuses to give up hope of reuniting with her offspring.

Studies have shown increased heart rates and stress hormone levels in mother cows after separation from their calves.

Decreased Milk Production

The separation of a cow and calf also takes a physical toll on the mother. The cow’s milk production will decrease significantly, sometimes by over 50%. This is because the cow is not receiving the stimulation to “let down” her milk without her nursing calf.

The cow will become engorged with milk and possibly develop mastitis, a painful inflammation of the udder, if the milk is not expressed. Dairy operations often wean calves gradually over time to help mitigate these ill effects on milk production.

But even gradual weaning causes shifts in the cow’s physiology and metabolism as she adjusts to no longer nursing a calf.

Depression and Loss of Appetite

In addition to the behavioral and physical signs of grief, cows separated from their calves also exhibit classic symptoms of depression. They will isolate themselves from the herd, appear lethargic, and lose interest in eating and drinking.

This depression compromises the cow’s health and productivity. For example, one study found that calves permanently separated from their dams at 1-2 weeks of age resulted in the cows having 0.70 kg lower daily dry matter intake compared to cows that were intermittently suckled for 90 days.

The reunited cow-calf pairs also had greater average daily weight gain. Simply put – losing her calf takes a tremendous emotional and physical toll on a grieving mother cow.

Length of Mourning Period

Factors Affecting Duration

The mourning period for a cow that has lost her calf can vary quite a bit depending on several factors. Here are some of the key things that impact how long a cow may grieve for her lost offspring:

• Bond with calf – If the cow had bonded strongly with her calf through nursing, grooming, etc., she is likely to mourn longer. Cows separated early from calves grieve less.
• First-time mothers – Cows grieving their first calf often mourn longer than experienced mothers who have had multiple calves.
• Sudden loss – An unexpected loss, such as the calf dying unexpectedly, may cause the cow to mourn longer than if the calf was removed purposefully.
• Presence of calf’s body – Having access to nose/lick her deceased calf may help some cows accept the loss faster.
• Environment – Free-range cows that wander looking for lost calves grieve longer than confined cows with less freedom.
• Milk production – Cows with heavier milk production at time of loss tend to mourn longer.
• Personality – Like humans, some cows are simply more sensitive and take loss harder.

As you can see, many factors influence how long a cow grieves after losing her calf. The typical mourning period ranges from just a few days to a few weeks, but some cows may show signs of mourning for months.

Typical Mourning Timeline

While the length of mourning varies, most grieving cows go through a similar progression of behaviors and symptoms:

• Initial separation response – Right after separation from her calf, the cow will usually bawl and pace frantically, searching for her lost calf. She may refuse to eat or drink.
• Depression stage – After 2-3 days, the constant pacing and calling will subside. The cow becomes listless, uninterested in food/water or interacting with the herd. Milk production declines.
• Partial acceptance – After 1-2 weeks, the cow slowly starts to resume normal habits like eating, ruminating, and following the herd. But she may still isolate herself at times and revert to calling behaviors.
• Greater resiliency – After 3-4 weeks, most behavioral symptoms resolve. The cow bonds with/mothers other calves. Milk production levels recover.

As you can see, most cows gradually accept the loss in phases. While they may not ever forget their lost calf, the intense grieving slowly fades over time. With patience and care, the cow can make a full emotional recovery.

Helping Cows Cope with Calf Loss

Leave the Cow with Calf Initially

When a calf passes away, it is compassionate to allow the grieving cow to remain with her deceased calf for a while. Research shows that initially leaving the mourning bovine with her calf allows her to go through the grievance process.

The distressed mama cow may lick or nudge her calf as she comes to terms with the loss. However, it is essential to remove the carcass within 12-24 hours to avoid health issues.

Isolate Grieving Cows

Isolating bereaved cows is crucial to help them adjust to the devastating loss. The isolation reduces external stressors, allowing the mourning animal to process her emotions. Specialists recommend keeping the cow in a pen by herself for 3-5 days post losing her calf.

The solo time enables her to comprehend that her calf will not return without interference from the herd.

In a 2014 study, data showed that 39.2% of cow-calf operations isolated grieving cows for recovery. The seclusion allows the mother cow to rest and recuperate while coming to terms with her loss.

Introduce New Calf

Breeders can pair a grieving cow with a new adopted calf once she recuperates for the recommended solo duration. Specialists state that giving the cow a new calf to nourish assists to mitigate grief. The womanly instinct to nurture helps redirect her maternal frustrations constructively.

However, it is vital to observe if the cow accepts or rejects the adopted calf. Sometimes, she may be aggressive or indifferent towards the new baby due to still actively grieving her previous one. If the cow does not accept the substitute calf within 2 days, she likely requires more time to recover before pairing her with a new adoptee.

Continued observation is necessary.

Conclusion

The mother-calf bond is one of the strongest in nature, so it’s understandable that cows mourn when separated from their young. Typical mourning periods last around 1-2 weeks, though every cow grieves differently.

With compassion and care, cows can move through the mourning process and bond with new calves again.