randiliana
Well-known member
Or so miss Milk Cow figures.........
We had a new calf this morning. We knew the heifer was close, she was one we bought bred that wasn't supposed to be bred OR calve til April, but I kinda expected her to hang on for another week or so. Anyways, with the temperature being fairly cold, it was "almost" a wreck. Calf was a little too big, or just slightly malpresented, and when we found her the membranes were frozen, I thought for sure that the calf would be dead. We got lucky, other than a slightly swollen and frostbitten tongue, and swollen head he was OK. Well, he is still pretty weak and can't stand on his own. Since he was stressed, we brought him directly to the house, on the theory that it wouldn't do us much good to let mama mother him if he froze to death in the meantime (and she was pretty worked up). So now, of course, she isn't sure that he is hers. I think she may have mothered him a bit, but we're not sure. She wouldn't mind mothering ME up a bit though ;-) . We gave him a litre (quart) of colostrum this afternoon, and tonight I went back out to give him some more, which he sucked right down (as well as you can with a swollen, frostbitten tongue) and then I weighed him (87 lbs) and put him back in the pen with mama. But this time I shoved him in next to the pen where the Milk Cow (who is in to keep the nutcase from going off the deep end) was in. And what does miss Milk Cow retty: do, but reach her nose through the panel and start licking him. Was kinda cute, but I informed her that she couldn't have him :stop: , that his mama was just going to have to suck it up and give in.
We had a new calf this morning. We knew the heifer was close, she was one we bought bred that wasn't supposed to be bred OR calve til April, but I kinda expected her to hang on for another week or so. Anyways, with the temperature being fairly cold, it was "almost" a wreck. Calf was a little too big, or just slightly malpresented, and when we found her the membranes were frozen, I thought for sure that the calf would be dead. We got lucky, other than a slightly swollen and frostbitten tongue, and swollen head he was OK. Well, he is still pretty weak and can't stand on his own. Since he was stressed, we brought him directly to the house, on the theory that it wouldn't do us much good to let mama mother him if he froze to death in the meantime (and she was pretty worked up). So now, of course, she isn't sure that he is hers. I think she may have mothered him a bit, but we're not sure. She wouldn't mind mothering ME up a bit though ;-) . We gave him a litre (quart) of colostrum this afternoon, and tonight I went back out to give him some more, which he sucked right down (as well as you can with a swollen, frostbitten tongue) and then I weighed him (87 lbs) and put him back in the pen with mama. But this time I shoved him in next to the pen where the Milk Cow (who is in to keep the nutcase from going off the deep end) was in. And what does miss Milk Cow retty: do, but reach her nose through the panel and start licking him. Was kinda cute, but I informed her that she couldn't have him :stop: , that his mama was just going to have to suck it up and give in.