Shipping Stress And Pregnancy Loss

DR. ERIN LARIMORE

MT. VERNON, MO.
   Shipping Stress and Pregnancy Loss Stress causes animals to release stress related hormones. These hormones can cause other hormones to be released which alter the uterine environment in which the embryo is developing. The embryo is extremely vulnerable between days 5 and 42 – when it has migrated to the uterus and before it has become definitively attached to the uterus.
   Loading animals onto a trailer and hauling them can be one of these stressors. Therefore, in order to minimize the risk of pregnancy loss associated with hauling cattle, shipping should be done between days 1 – 4 following insemination or after day 45. Shipping cows between days 5 and 42 should be avoided as it causes around a 10 percent decrease in pregnancy rates. There have been some reports of embryonic loss from shipping up to60 days after insemination. Even if you areshipping during the recommended time points, care should still be taken to minimize stress such as not overloading trailers and handling cattle calmly and gently. ∆
   DR. ERIN LARIMORE: Livestock Specialist, University of Missouri