Speaking of prolapse

[whiteface]

I just got to thinking while I was out feeding this morning that while the herefords have a real reputation for prolapse, in my travels I hear of the word fairly frequently (along with justifiable cursing) but interestingly enough from people that wouldn't go near a hereford (perhaps for this very reason) but which raises a question that I would really appreciate everyone on this boards honesty and opinion on:
How do all of you define a prolapse? And give me your definitions if you have varying degrees of tolerance with the different kinds of prolapse as well...vaginal (the infamous "calving ball, I hear so much about but to many doesn't count as a prolapse unless she needs stitches), uterine (expelling the calf bed after calveing), and rectal (pretty self explanetory but again, to many doesn't seem to count especially if it's a brief situation and corrects itself after say the animal "stands up" i.e. occured while he/she was laying down).
Does a prolapse "count" to all of you if it is one but not another. Which is the most dreaded, do you all just define prolapse as stitching the cow up after she calves ( which is usually the one I hear the most complaints on even though I personally think any of those above is reason enough to cull an entire family.) Which leads me to this question, do you all cull severely for prolapse or just the "problem" cows and keep say her progeny for breeding.
Here's the one I really want to know though...
What breeds, if any in particular that you can name (some crossbred cows are hard to peg down as one or two breeds - although that covented white head is a real standout, hence maybe why we got labelled, they were the only ones people could identify beyond any shadow of a doubt... this I'm very aware of) that "show up" to most of you as "more frequently" a problem. And incidentally, I'm really looking for sheer honesty here, what kinds, situations, breeds of cattle are you all getting the highest incidence of prolapse from and what kind(s) of prolapse are the most problems for you. While you're at it, what percentage of all cattle do you all find that do actually by your definition, prolapse.
Would really help to get some honest answers from "the field." Thanks in advance for anything you can tell me.
Have a good day all.

[farmers_son]

vaginal prolapse according to my vet can be a hereditary issue, and certainly the recommendation that I always hear is to get rid of the cows that have that problem. It provides a very easy way for bacteria to enter the birth canal which can have ongoing problems, plus who in heck wants to have a cow sewn up and watch her like a hawk to make sure she doesn't rip the stitches, pins or whatever out when she is calving.

Uterine prolapse is another matter, when a cow throws her calf bed after calving it is an emergency situation. Many cows have had their uterus put back and gone on to calve every year and have no problems again.

As with any terminology, it is important to refer to the above in the proper context.

[kato]

Seen quite a few of these working at the vet clinic.

Uterine prolapse is always an emergency. It usually follows a hard and long calving, but not always. We did have one cow at home that did it with her first calf, and went on to make a ripe old age with no more problems. We kept daughters of hers, and none of them had any trouble at all. We have also found that after a uterine prolapse, it is more common to have the cow come home open in the fall, so the problem ends there anyway.

As for the vaginal and rectal ones, they are not usually an emergency unless it's really cold, and then you have to watch for freezing. That can be really nasty! Emergency or not, they shouldn't be ignored.

I think it's genetic too. We cull any cow that does it. Another thing you have to watch with the vaginal prolapse is that the cow cannot pass urine if she's prolapsed, so it's not a good idea to just wait and see if it goes back in by itself. Put it in gently, and if it doesn't stay in by itself, get her stitched.

Sadly, it also does seem to be prevalent in Herefords, but it's sure not restricted to them. It's more common in the old girls, too. I can't see why it couldn't be 'bred out of them' if breeders put their minds to it. It's just a gene, not a whole breed.

[15444]

Yeah, the vaginal prolapse is genetic, so it doesn't take much to get it out of a herd. Agree on the uterine prolapse, some good cows have them in their younger years. Best idea to avoid them is to always use moderate and light birthweight bulls. The vaginal prolapses are prevalent with the Herefords, but not as much as the used to be. Justamere cattle from the 1980's (ie, Justamere Bob, Mainline, etc.) were a bad bunch for prolapses, and because those bulls got used too heavily (similar to Remitall now), alot of commercial guys were turned off by the additional problems.