A calf being born

1. Woke up at 4:00 a.m. thinking about my blog.
2. Showered.
3. Dug through the laundry pile to find a pair of matching socks.
4. Made a pot of coffee.
5. Went out to check the cows.
   
6. Clicked on my site meter and was relieved to see nobody has visited my blog yet.

Calving season begins in early-March and lasts for about six weeks. I do the morning checks. I don't mind this, actually I quite enjoy going out first thing while it is still dark to see if there is anything happening in the calving pens. It also gives me a sense of what went on during the night. When the weather is especially cold, my husband Mark checks every two hours to see if a calf has been born. Minus 17 degrees C is the tipping point. Any colder than that, especially if there is a wind, then we bring the newborns into the barn to ensure that they don't freeze. Once the calves are dry, their blood is circulating, and they've sucked from the cow, they are surprisingly hearty.

6:30 a.m. - A quick check through the pens and I can see a few new calves were born in the night. A cow is starting to calve now. I can see something protruding from her back end, but can't tell if it's the two hooves coming first or not. I decide to wait a bit and come back when it is light out.

7:05 a.m. - The cow has made little progress. Now I can see the calf's nose, but no feet. I hurry back into the house to get Mark.

7:10 a.m. - The pen is just across the road so I can see it from the livingroom window. Mark signals me to wake up our son Laurie. Sometimes a cow will need help giving birth, especially if it is her first calf or the presentation is not natural - breech, a leg back, or upside down. It takes years of experience to know what to do and often times when you take a cow into the barn, you have no idea what the outcome will be.

7:20 a.m. - I arrive just in time to see the calf pulled by hand. The birth was taking too long because the calf is big and the shoulders were jammed in the birth canal. By reaching in and pulling the front legs, it loosened the shoulders and the calf came out easily. Mark was able to do it alone and while he rubs the calf to stimulate it to breathe, Laurie coaxes the cow up. The calf is put in the next pen and the cow follows. Mark comments what a nice cow she is - a good mother and she has a nice disposition. He pours a little grain on the calf to encourage the cow to lick it thoroughly. Sometimes when there is intervention during the birthing process, the cow is slow to mother, and since this is a big calf and the birth was long, he just wants to be sure the cow bonds well.



112 on the ground, 188 left to be born.


The laundry pile: We all have them.