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The Three Stages of Parturition

As the spring calving season approaches, an increased understanding of the parturition process is helpful. The more we understand about the physiology of the process, the more likely we are to make sound decisions about providing assistance. Parturition or “calving” is generally considered to occur in three stages.

The first stage of parturition is dilation of the cervix. Cervical dilation begins some 2 to 24 hours before the completion of parturition (2 to 6 hours are most common). This first stage is likely to go completely unnoticed, however, the...