Dead Fetus

[Tim.243]

Larry @South of the M4 suggested I post it here as I pinged him a picture

Outward appearance healthy looking doe in a nice summer coat, as expected she was pregnant, a solid mass in the foetal sack with the result a decaying mass of fur, bones which stank.

 

[Donkey Basher]

A friend of mine shot a fallow doe a few years back & when gralloched she had a foetal sack full of bones which absolutely stank too! In all other ways she was in normal condition. Did have a photo but can’t find it now.

 

[TringSaint]

This is quite common in sheep and deer by all accounts. You end up with a ‘fossilised’ foetus which doesn’t go septic but renders the deer sterile.
I shot on cwd with one of these in the uterus - I canned the carcass as it’s a big mass of decaying stuff inside the body so who knows what might be be in the bloodstream, but outwardly the deer looked and behaved fine.

 

[slider]

It happens in all animals. Fetus dies for whatever reason and decays in the womb until it is eventually dispelled often as little more than a dirty discharge.
Does seem to affect the females health unless the womb is breached.
You can have one healthy and one totally rotten fetus at the same time. I've gagged over many a ewe removing a rotten lamb only to be surprised its womb mate was healthy

 

[TringSaint]

The deer I shot with one was a cwd, and it was in Jan or Feb iirc, so the foetus was long dead - 8 months or so I guess, and the mass was hard.
I have seen the rotten lamb scenario a few times and its rank, but this one didn’t smell at all, so maybe turned into a cyst type mass?

 

[Buchan]

I think there is hair in that so this is either a late abortion or more likely an abnormal presentation and it's died. Remarkable what animals can tolerate

 

[Tim.243]

I think there is hair in that so this is either a late abortion or more likely an abnormal presentation and it's died. Remarkable what animals can tolerate

I could see a lot of hair also the bones were washed clean just like would find a long dead caucus, the mass was very solid.
Yearling doe for sure.

 

[Overlay]

Nice write up Tim, thats a quite a interesting find, first I’ve ever seen to be honest, nice job

 

[Tim.243]

Nice write up Tim, thats a quite a interesting find, first I’ve ever seen to be honest, nice job

Yes, and I don't want to be repeating it, Granddad told my Dad of 2 headed calf's he had to remove to save the cow.

 

[South of the M4]

Yes, and I don't want to be repeating it, Granddad told my Dad of 2 headed calf's he had to remove to save the cow.

Two headed calf?

Here's one for you, Tim

 

[nick.308]

I think there is hair in that so this is either a late abortion or more likely an abnormal presentation and it's died. Remarkable what animals can tolerate

What about a teratoma?

 

[TringSaint]

Two headed calf?

Here's one for you, Tim

Is that schmallenberg?

 

[South of the M4]

Is that schmallenberg?

No, I don't think so. Schmallenberg was first identified in Europe in 2011, this was around 2005 ish, if I remember correctly.

 

[TringSaint]

No, I don't think so. Schmallenberg was first identified in Europe in 2011, this was around 2005 ish, if I remember correctly.

Just one of those weird genetic abnormalities then.

 

[Utectok]

I missed a deer earlier in the year I thought I’d hit it as it dropped to shot but it actually dropped to the floor and aborted a healthy feutus and just as I got close got up and skipped off none the worse for the incident

 

[Buchan]

Two headed calf?

Here's one for you, Tim

NOt likely, Schmallenberg usually gives distorted foetuses with stiff, bent joints. rather than weird stuff like this. Pity the vet that had to get that out!

 

[VSS]

I recall when I was in my late teens, doing my first contract lambing job. Was asked by the farmer to catch and assist a ewe that had been in labour for a long time. I didn't have a lot of experience in those days, but put my hand in the ewe, had a bit of a feel about, then turned to the farmer and said "this lamb has got two heads!".
"Don't be daft" he said, "it'll be twins in such-and-such a presentation", whereupon he took over the job, put his hand inside the ewe and said "this lamb's got two heads!"
We got it out in the end, alive. All four eyes were looking at us, and both mouths could bleat!
It was a bit of a job to know which head to knock it on, so we euthanased it with chloroform.
Still got a photo of it somewhere.

But back to the original subject: I've seen foetuses like the one in the OP many times in sheep, but not yet encountered anything like it in deer.
An interesting find, @Tim.243

 

[slider]

Is that schmallenberg?

Mutant fetus's have been around for ever and are not really that uncommon. I use to farm 1000 breeding ewes and would have about one "oddity" most years