Must be going around. Had an older cow laying near the hay feeder, with the last 10 cows that are calving, and there was a fully developed dead bull calf. She kept nosing it trying to get it up. Makes me feel so bad for them.
Have no idea what the problem was but it wasn't terribly big and no signs of problems. So we got them in the barn, I called a couple of dairies and found a hol bull calf and went and got it this morning. Put her in the chute and gave her some grain, finally got the calf on her (holsteins can be SO DUMB) and she was so good. Never kicked or anything. She still is looking for "her calf" but is tolerating this one. Put her in again tonight and the calf went right on her once I put him up to her. She just ate her grain and when she was done, let them both back out in the small lot. She keeps looking up towards the field, but if she does okay the next day or two, then the manure will smell right and she should take it.
Usually I skin the dead calf out but since hers was obviously never up and on her, she isn't as sure if she should fight it. Have had some really be a pain for a day or two, and some I've skinned and put it on the new calf and in 24 hours they are licking it and all, like it was theirs at birth. Shipped one this spring that would let the calf nurse when you gave her a bite of grain in the pen, and as soon as she thought you weren't looking, would take her head and send him up against the wall of the pen. 2 weeks, and she did it one day and I said B****, you wrote your ticket and she went on the truck and I put the calf on a bottle. You do what you can.
