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When would you let her ride?
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<blockquote data-quote="randiliana" data-source="post: 364680" data-attributes="member: 2308"><p>I kinda agree here. From what I read, she mothered up to another calf BEFORE she calved. Now, in a perfect world, she would have headed over the hill, and never connected with this other calf. Basically, what happened is the hormones got going, she mothered another calf, decided it must be hers, and when she actually calved decided that that calf didn't smell like "hers". So to me this says she has good mothering instincts. Unfortunately she misdirected them. Heck, we have COWS that do this every year(not the same cow). The hormones at calving are telling them that they have one out there. They will pick up any calf, usually a newborn (<strong>usually</strong> doesn't happen with older calves) and then you may have problems with them when they drop their own calf. This usually happens when they are crowded, but I have seen it happen out on the open range as well. </p><p></p><p>This heifer should have been separated from the wrong calf immediately (if you saw what was going on early enough) and put in a separate pen to calve. She would have then taken her calf. But she was allowed to mother the wrong calf for too long. And when she calved her "real" calf didn't smell right. I would have penned them up together, probably headgated the heifer and let the calf suck. Might have even hobbled her if I thought it was needed. She should have taken her real calf without too much trouble. </p><p></p><p>If she was actually trying to hurt/kill the calf instead of just knocking it away from her THEN for sure she should go down the road. If she was just knocking it away, because she didn't think it was her calf then it may have been worth working with her a bit more, and it may be worth giving her another chance. Your choice, but that is what I would have done.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="randiliana, post: 364680, member: 2308"] I kinda agree here. From what I read, she mothered up to another calf BEFORE she calved. Now, in a perfect world, she would have headed over the hill, and never connected with this other calf. Basically, what happened is the hormones got going, she mothered another calf, decided it must be hers, and when she actually calved decided that that calf didn't smell like "hers". So to me this says she has good mothering instincts. Unfortunately she misdirected them. Heck, we have COWS that do this every year(not the same cow). The hormones at calving are telling them that they have one out there. They will pick up any calf, usually a newborn ([b]usually[/b] doesn't happen with older calves) and then you may have problems with them when they drop their own calf. This usually happens when they are crowded, but I have seen it happen out on the open range as well. This heifer should have been separated from the wrong calf immediately (if you saw what was going on early enough) and put in a separate pen to calve. She would have then taken her calf. But she was allowed to mother the wrong calf for too long. And when she calved her "real" calf didn't smell right. I would have penned them up together, probably headgated the heifer and let the calf suck. Might have even hobbled her if I thought it was needed. She should have taken her real calf without too much trouble. If she was actually trying to hurt/kill the calf instead of just knocking it away from her THEN for sure she should go down the road. If she was just knocking it away, because she didn't think it was her calf then it may have been worth working with her a bit more, and it may be worth giving her another chance. Your choice, but that is what I would have done. [/QUOTE]
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