Left to live out its life, a cow can reach about 15 to 20 years, sometimes longer, and the record is nearly 49 years.1Sentient. How Long Cows Live – If They’re Actually Given The Chance Most farm cows never get close. A farm keeps a cow for as long as she is useful, so her lifespan is set by output rather than biology. The gap is widest for dairy cows, the animals bred hardest for production.
How Long Cows Can Live Naturally
Well-cared-for cows can pass 20. The natural lifespan of dairy cattle is about 20 years,2PubMed Central. An Empirical Analysis on the Longevity of Dairy Cows in Relation to Economic Herd Performance and cows have been known to live over 20 years.3Genomics Ageing and Life History Database. AnAge entry for Bos taurus Females stay fertile for about 12 years,4Genomics Ageing and Life History Database. AnAge entry for Bos taurus so a cow can keep living many years after she could still have calves. Cows at sanctuaries, which are kept for life, regularly reach these older ages.5Sentient. How Long Cows Live – If They’re Actually Given The Chance Reaching the late teens depends less on any slow aging process than on avoiding the big killers of cattle, such as severe udder infection, lameness and calving injuries.
The oldest cow on record was Big Bertha, an Irish cow who died three months short of her 49th birthday in 1993.6Wikipedia. Big Bertha (cow) Guinness lists her age as 48 years and 9 months.7Snopes. Whiskey-Drinking Cow Named Big Bertha Lived to Be 48? She also held the record for most calves, with 39.8Wikipedia. Big Bertha (cow)
Bertha lived on a small farm where she was kept as a family animal, not run as a high-output cow. For most cared-for cows, a realistic expectation is the high teens.
How Long Dairy Cows Actually Live
Dairy cows in Canada and the Netherlands lived about 5.5 years on average in 2018.9PubMed Central. An Empirical Analysis on the Longevity of Dairy Cows in Relation to Economic Herd Performance That is roughly a quarter of their natural lifespan. Most dairy cows are culled, meaning removed from the herd and usually sent to slaughter, well before old age.10PubMed Central. An Empirical Analysis on the Longevity of Dairy Cows in Relation to Economic Herd Performance
A cow’s productive life is the time from her first calf to leaving the herd. In the US, Germany and the Netherlands it averages just over 3 years.11PubMed Central. Keeping Dairy Cows for Longer: A Critical Literature Review on Dairy Cow Longevity in High Milk-Producing Countries Cows usually have their first calf around age 2. In South African herds, fewer than 4 in 10 cows lasted about two years past their first calving,12PubMed Central. Cow Longevity and Reasons and Risk Factors for Culling in South African Holstein and Jersey Dairy Herds so many dairy cows leave after only two or three rounds of milking.13PubMed Central. Cow Longevity and Reasons and Risk Factors for Culling in South African Holstein and Jersey Dairy Herds
A dairy cow gives milk only after calving, and output rises, peaks, then declines over the months that follow. To start the next round she must be bred again and have another calf, so each year of milking depends on a successful pregnancy. Counting from a first calf at about age 2, three rounds of milking brings a cow to roughly age 5, which matches the typical age at leaving.
Most removals are forced by health or fertility problems rather than a farmer’s choice; in one Brazilian study nearly 9 in 10 were.14PubMed Central. Longevity and Culling Reasons in Dairy Herds in Southern Brazil Failing to get pregnant was the top reason, about a third of removals there.15PubMed Central. Longevity and Culling Reasons in Dairy Herds in Southern Brazil Udder infection (mastitis) caused about a fifth, and foot and leg problems nearly another fifth.16PubMed Central. Longevity and Culling Reasons in Dairy Herds in Southern Brazil Foot disease with lameness is among the most common illnesses in dairy herds.17PubMed Central. The Effect of Housing System on Disease Prevalence and Productive Lifespan of Dairy Herds—A Case Study
Most culled dairy cows go to slaughter for beef. Some are sold to other farms for milking, and a small share die on the farm from illness or injury.
Why High-Producing Dairy Cows Live Shorter Lives
Rising milk yield has come with declining fertility, more leg and metabolic problems and shorter lives.18Animal Welfare. The impact of genetic selection for increased milk yield on the welfare of dairy cows The genes for high yield are linked to lower fertility and more udder infection.19Animal Welfare. The impact of genetic selection for increased milk yield on the welfare of dairy cows Selecting for more milk cut fertility and lifespan, though not milk per lifetime.20animal. Modelling impacts of performance on the probability of reproducing, and thereby on productive lifespan, allow prediction of lifetime efficiency in dairy cows Farms can therefore get similar lifetime milk from fewer, shorter-lived cows. But shorter lives mean more replacement heifers must be raised, and each one is raised for about two years before producing anything.
The cost to the cow’s body is real. A high-yielding cow turns a huge share of her feed into milk, and in early lactation she often cannot eat enough to keep up, so she draws on her own body reserves. That energy deficit is linked to metabolic disease and makes it harder for her to conceive again. She can get caught in a loop of poor condition, missed pregnancies and early removal. Some countries now push breeding for longevity.
Longevity is only weakly inherited, so breeding for it works gradually,21PubMed Central. Analysis of Longevity Traits in Holstein Cattle: A Review yet there is enough genetic variation for it to work.22PubMed Central. Analysis of Longevity Traits in Holstein Cattle: A Review Breeders judge it partly through udder and leg traits that predict long life.23PubMed. Estimation of genetic parameters for longevity traits in dairy cattle: a review with focus on the characteristics of analytical models
How Long Beef Cows Live
Beef breeding cows’ working years vary from about 5 years in Blonde d’Aquitaine to about 10 in Hereford.24Livestock Science. Estimation of some productive and reproductive effects on longevity of beef cows using survival analysis Angus averaged about 8 years.25Livestock Science. Estimation of some productive and reproductive effects on longevity of beef cows using survival analysis That spread is a range of working years, not of lifespan, so even the shortest-lived breed group could biologically live much longer.
Beef cows can outlast dairy cows because they raise one calf a year rather than producing heavy milk, which puts less strain on the udder and metabolism. They still leave once they stop calving. A beef cow typically calves once a year and nurses the calf for several months before being bred again, so the herd runs on a yearly rhythm. Because the calf is the product, a cow that misses a pregnancy loses a whole year’s income, and failing to rebreed is a common reason to remove her.
Still, in one herd followed to age 10, about a third had died or been culled for injury, illness or failing to breed.26PubMed. Life span of beef-type Bos taurus and Bos indicus x Bos taurus females in a dry, temperate climate Calving difficulty was a strong predictor: cows needing a vet to calve stayed under 3 years on average, versus over 6 for easy calvers.27ScienceDirect (Elsevier). Estimation of some productive and reproductive effects on longevity of beef cows using survival analysis A hard calving can injure the cow, delay her return to heat and make her harder to rebreed, so one bad birth can shorten her working life. Cows needing help also tend to be flagged for removal, since farms avoid keeping animals that will keep needing a vet.
Steers and heifers raised for beef are usually slaughtered at about 1.5 to 2.5 years old. Grass-fed cattle often take longer to reach finishing weight than grain-fed.
This explains a common confusion. Strictly, a cow is a female that has calved, while most beef in shops comes from young steers and heifers. The beef animal people picture lives far shorter than a breeding cow.
Do Some Breeds Live Longer
Both breed and crossbreeding strongly affect how long cows last.28Beef Improvement Federation. Productive Longevity in Beef Cows In one European study, local breeds lived about 8 years versus about 6 for international dairy breeds.29PubMed Central. Assessment of Longevity and Lifetime Productivity of Local Cattle Breeds in Relation to International Breeds Brown Swiss-type Original Braunvieh lived longer than Holsteins on grass-based farms.30Italian Journal of Animal Science. Productive lifespan and lifetime production of dual-purpose and dairy breeds in mixed herds under grassland-based systems Not every dual-purpose breed does, though; Simmental didn’t outlive Holsteins there.31Italian Journal of Animal Science. Productive lifespan and lifetime production of dual-purpose and dairy breeds in mixed herds under grassland-based systems And Brahman crosses raised the most calves over 10 years in a dry climate.32PubMed. Life span of beef-type Bos taurus and Bos indicus x Bos taurus females in a dry, temperate climate
Local breeds were developed over generations in a particular region, so they often tolerate that area’s climate, feed and diseases well. Such cows may produce less milk but need fewer treatments, which helps them stay in the herd longer. Crossbreds often gain a boost in hardiness that shows in fertility and calves raised.
Breed averages describe groups, not individual cows. A Holstein can outlast a hardier breed, and breed is one factor among management, feed and luck.
How to Tell a Cow’s Age
Checking teeth is the best practical way to age a cow of unknown age,33USDA FSIS. Using Dentition to Age Cattle because front teeth come in and wear at fairly predictable ages. Calves have small baby teeth, replaced by larger permanent ones in pairs from about age 2 to 4. Diet, genetics and location change how fast teeth wear,34USDA FSIS. Using Dentition to Age Cattle but teeth estimates still match real age reasonably well in both dairy and beef cattle.35PubMed. Applicability of teeth examination as a tool for age estimation in a semi-arid cattle production environment in Namibia
Cows have lower front teeth and a hard upper pad, not upper front teeth. So look at the lower front teeth and note which are the large permanent ones and which are still small baby teeth. The number of permanent teeth rises in pairs as the animal ages, which gives a rough age while she is young. Once all are in, wear tells the story, and older cows show worn, spaced or missing teeth.
Teeth erupt on a fairly regular schedule up to about age 5, so for young cows the estimate can be quite close. Wear is far less precise, so older estimates are best given as a range.
On farms, ear tags and records are the most reliable source. In horned cattle, rings on the horns can hint at age, though they are only a rough clue.
What Happens as Cows Grow Old
Cows commonly develop arthritis and other mobility problems with age,36The Open Sanctuary Project. Additional Care Recommendations For Older Cows and these can seriously reduce quality of life.37The Open Sanctuary Project. Additional Care Recommendations For Older Cows Early signs include slow rising, short strides, reluctance to climb or use slippery floors, and lying down more than before. Because cattle tend to hide pain, these small changes are easy to miss and are often noticed only when the problem is advanced.
Some older cows do fine on normal forage and minerals, while others need diet changes.38The Open Sanctuary Project. Additional Care Recommendations For Older Cows Worn or missing teeth make it harder to chew hay and graze short grass, so an old cow may lose weight even with plenty of feed available. Weight loss in an older cow can have several causes, so an older cow that isn’t thriving should be checked by a vet rather than guessed at.
Caring for a senior cow means soft bedding and level ground to ease sore joints, plus watching weight and body condition. Worn teeth may call for softer feed, and regular vet and hoof checks catch problems early.