Bottle calf! Some say I'm crazy...

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puzzled in oregon said:
She is a pretty calf, very quiet. I like the halter, is it a soft nylon?
Click to expand...
Shes quite feisty til I get her backed in a corner and a bottle pried into her mouth!
She will settle soon enough I reckon.

Halter is one of them that's pretty stiff. Almost plastic like rope. I've yet to find a nice soft one built like these. Sure are handy when bringing em home like that! I'll leave it on her till she's my best buddy. Neighbors said heck with it I guess. Never heard from em.

Looking for another jersey in milk now......

Like the proverbial needle in a haystack
 
On the rare occasion i have to bottle feed one, either they have never nursed or haven't nursed in 2 or 3 days and they can't seem to learn how to suck on the bottle...they just want to waller it around in their mouth....how do you learn them?
 
@Banjo
Back em up into a corner!
Pry they mouth open and shove the teat in. I am usually on the left side of the animal. Right arm goes around their neck to hold em back. Left hand holds the bottle. Once I get the bottle in their mouth, sometimes I'll squeeze the muzzle of their mouth a couple times to get em a taste of milk.

Most time we stay that way a minute or two til the light bulb comes on!!

Then they usually down the bottle
 
Here's another glimpse into how small Lil 'Nuf is!
Bottle is wide as her head!
I've cut her to half a bottle. Gonna do that twice a day for several days. She doesn't take all 2/3's. Took most of it last night. This morning she took half a pint. Didn't seem interested at all. She downed her half bottle tonight! Acting like a bottle calf!
A hungry bottle calf, is a happy healthy bottle calf!
20220330_180744.jpg
 
Again!
Again!
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Might be able to let this one out of the trailer soon!
20220331_185912.jpg
Lil Nuf is scouring a bit. May have to get her some stuffs...
20220331_190053.jpg20220331_190312.jpg
New one took a bottle straight away!
Shes 95lbs. Still has an umbilical!
So does the rwf I guess. I'll get a pic soon of all 3 together. This 'n came pre tagged @TCRanch But NO sticker!
I'll probly make a nicer tag. It's like they wrote on it after they tagged her!
20220331_195048.jpg20220331_194957.jpg
 
Last edited:
So this new one is BIG. It must take a special kind of cow to birth a 95lb calf.
No idea if mama is still alive. Idk if she was split off the cow (cull prices still high) or if mama didn't make it. But anyway. None of my calves are EVER born this big. She mid thigh on me at her back. I guess all my other bottle calves have been tiny compared..
20220401_184737.jpg20220401_184740.jpg
And how bout them earz?! She fits right in!


And I'll tell ya something else too! I unloaded her out of the back of my pickup by myself. She fought me a bit. Just about killed me! I'm old and fat and out of shape apparently.
 
MurraysMutts said:
So this new one is BIG. It must take a special kind of cow to birth a 95lb calf.
No idea if mama is still alive. Idk if she was split off the cow (cull prices still high) or if mama didn't make it. But anyway. None of my calves are EVER born this big. She mid thigh on me at her back. I guess all my other bottle calves have been tiny compared..
View attachment 15053View attachment 15054
And how bout them earz?! She fits right in!


And I'll tell ya something else too! I unloaded her out of the back of my pickup by myself. She fought me a bit. Just about killed me! I'm old and fat and out of shape apparently.
Click to expand...
Never too late to make a change if you get a mind to.
 
MurraysMutts said:
So this new one is BIG. It must take a special kind of cow to birth a 95lb calf.
No idea if mama is still alive. Idk if she was split off the cow (cull prices still high) or if mama didn't make it. But anyway. None of my calves are EVER born this big. She mid thigh on me at her back. I guess all my other bottle calves have been tiny compared..
View attachment 15053View attachment 15054
And how bout them earz?! She fits right in!


And I'll tell ya something else too! I unloaded her out of the back of my pickup by myself. She fought me a bit. Just about killed me! I'm old and fat and out of shape apparently.
Click to expand...
Nice looking calf. Don't go breaking her spirit, give her 6 weeks she'll be in the manger. :cool:
 
Don't forget to check the bite on all of your bottle babies. Since you are feeding them, you could easily put the Calc. Phos. 6X or 30X tablet in their bottle after warming the milk, if any have an underbite. Then you could see for yourself if their facial bones grow to normal. I haven't had any mammal with an underbite to do that for several years, so don't know if it still works. The calves will do much better if they grow up with a normal bite, so they can graze normally.
 

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