Yeah, worst start to a calving season I've ever had.
Too many calves spending the night in my laundry room this past week.
1st-calf heifer didn't want her calf - took being penned up with it for nearly a week before she decided she loved it.
3-yr old sister to the heifer above had to have her calf pulled (elbow hung) he was 'slow' and took at least 3 days to figure out how to nurse; cow retained placenta and moped around losing weight for 3 or 4 days, till it turned loose - still looks like death on a cracker, but improving.
Cow laid down in the snow Monday afternoon and spit out twins - 69# heifer, 92# bull; didn't do much to clean 'em up, and they were freezing. Brought all three to the barn/house, milked cow & tubed calves; took the bull calf a couple of days to straighten his legs and figure out how to nurse on his own.
Now, this morning, new calf milling around the cows at the hayring; dam, a 10-yr old experienced cow is up the hill at the 'nursery', eating her placenta, and trying to claim another cow's 5-day old calf. She's convinced this new baby is not hers. Drove 'em up to the barn, chuted her, and the calf nursed vigorously. Have them penned up in a small area, but she still thinks 'her' calf is out in the field.
6 more due any second now, then a second wave in 3 weeks.
At least six of the cows that have calved so far did it without fanfare or issue; don't know how many more issues I can deal with...
4WD is out on the farm minitruck, so I'm having to do all this chasing/weighing on foot; will have to drag the truck back up to the house with the tractor tonight.
Birthweights are running high - I've never weighed any of my live calves before, but we're doing a progeny-test breeding for some folks, and have to collect birth weights on the SH-sired calves. Most are running in the 90-95 lb range, had one at 105(but she had a dead 100+ pounder by the current Angus sire several years ago) yesterday. Much bigger than we've seen by some of the same sires we've used in the past. Confirms to me that extended cold temps in the last month or two will really translate into increased birth weights.