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Well..........yup........you guessed it........that's the calf's head being pulled gently out of the birth canal. Husband tied twine around the calf's feet, then looped the twine around his own waist.......and pulled with his body. The mother giving birth is a heifer, meaning this is her first calf, and first birthings are usually more difficult than subsequent ones. (Notice the audience of curious onlookers in the background. Cows are ALWAYS curious!!)
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Its a girl!! Other members of the Birth Committee step forward to do their duty........licking the calf's hide with their rough tongues, to clean her off and encourage her to stand. Its easy to read the calf's mind: "What on earth is going on......where am I.......what did I do to deserve this.......why am I being rubbed with sandpaper??"
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The Committee continues the cleaning task, using tongues to exhort, "Get up.....get up, little one!!" The calf soon obliges, unfolding her awkward legs for a brief moment of standing, then teeters and drops to the ground again. She'll be fine......it takes several tries before standing is successful and a few jerky steps taken-----the first of many in her hopefully long, comfortable, and productive life on this dairy farm. She's a girl calf, a heifer, meaning she will grow up to become a cow and give milk someday!
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Oh, yes, there was one more Birthing Committee member, overseeing the whole event from a few feet away.........the ever-grinning Mr. Badger, from his perch on the feed bunk!! (Badger is the brand-name of a line of livestock feeding equipment. I think their signs are cute, that's all!)
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Have a great day! I must now figure out what to name this new calf! Her mother is Rosa, so I'll try to come up with a similar name for the calf.
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16 comments:
EEWUUU! Sorry, I couln't help myself. My brother tells of delivering calves in Idaho in the winter. FREEZING! Not even any delight in the new life. Just glad to have gotten through it and go into the house, clean and warm up.
Wow!! This brings back a LOT of memories! We milked 45 Holsteins on the farm when I was home. My brothers did the hogs, beef and other chores. I always did the milking and dairy related things. In fact, I was all set to go to Iowa State and major in Dairy Science!! Then life got in the way...! Heh!
Rosa is the mother? How 'bout Rosey? Too obvious?? I suppose.
I remember being in the barn on cold winter nights and sometimes having to tie a rope onto the calf to help it out... But it is a good life and you are fortunate to be surrounded by such wonderful things.
I loved seeing those cows looking on as the calf was being born!
Take care.
I had no idea the birth process was such a group activity! That's very nice for the mom. It does seem to be crowed working conditions for your husband though.
You beat me to the award thingie, but stop by today. A long overdue something for you :)
Hi, downonthefarm!
Thanks for stopping in! Yes, the birthings can be an ordeal at times, as it sounds like your brother has experienced. The one in this post went smoothly, thankfully.
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Hi, Russell!
Sounds like you have very similar memories. This birthing went well. In more difficult cases, my husband has to use an apparatus he calls a "come-along" to pull the calf out.
"Rosey" is a good idea.....I'm still mulling......had considered "Rosebud" while feeding calves this morning. Husband always has to give the final OK, so I'll consult him.
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Hi, caution....flag!!
I'm always amazed at how interested the other cows seem to be whenever a birth takes place outdoors amongst the group. And, they step right in to lick the calf and nudge it to get up. Remarkable instincts!!!
Thanks......I'll hop on over to your blog, soon!! Have a great day!
lovely to meet you I went to your hymn blog first as I love hymns especially the older ones ... Seeing as how I am now living in the south I have become aquainted more than ever to the southern black hymns and LOVE many of them.
So cool to be a part of the birthing process and you got the best part (the camera :) It is amazing to see the other cows, nannies, aunties, cousins, friends being a part and helping with clean up /stimulation of the baby!
now I am off to visit your other blog... I have to confess though I am amazed at folks with more than one blog I have it rough keeping up with the ONE i Have
Hugs Laura
Congratulations on the new baby. I had no idea the event could attract such a crowd.
I hope you don't mind, I chose NOT to enlarge these photos. LOL
Laura,
Nice to meet you to, and through that special "caution flag"!!
Obviously, I have neglected my other blog....the hymn blog.....every since getting DSL and becoming caught up with uploading photos onto THIS blog, and socializing with other bloggers,which I didn't do for my entire first year of blogging.
Thank you for stopping by and commenting!
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Hi, Ruth!
Whew......actually, I was hoping few readers would enlarge the calf birthing photos. Messy details are in them.
Have a great day....and I hope its cool where you are, because it surely isn't here!
Hi Jeannelle... I've been trying to stay as far away from our birthing pens as possible these days! After years of helping hubby 'pull calves' that were a little stubborn about coming into the world, we now have our son on the farm and my help is rarely required...and I like that!
You still name your cows & calves? Ours all have 'numbers' and no names (that's the computer age)...but my grandkids like to name the calves anyhow. How about Roselee for the calf? That sounds much nicer than #379 doesn't it?
Hi Jeannelle,
Thanks for your comment over at Caution's. I can see why travel is rare for you and your family! - But glad you did get to see some of NW Montana.
While I don't have comments on my blog, I do answer all emails.
Thanks again and thanks for sharing the birth!
Hmmm! Well, you might have suspected that I would enlarged the photos! I spent only a couple of years on the farm (age 16-18), and there were calves born during that time, but I never got to see a birth. I think my Mama (more than slightly Victorian) must have "protected" me from that fact of life!
You have another blog! *How* did I miss it? Off on a search!
Hi, Judy!
Thanks for visiting! Usually, my help at calf birthings involves just watching....that's not so bad.
Yes, we name our heifer calves, who will become members of the milking herd someday. I guess that is old-fashioned.
Rosalee is a good idea.....I should have read this a bit sooner.....I already printed Rosebud on the tag.
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Ann,
Thank you for swinging by! Your life sounds interesting!
That shows how air-headed I can be....I didn't even think about emailing you!
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Hi, Pat!
Yes, you old farm girl, you.....it doesn't surprise me you would enlarge the photos. Actually, I did hope the one with the head coming out of the mother wasn't too graphic for anyone, but nowadays, anything goes, it seems. You're right....parents did shield their kids more back then!
My "other blog" is very much neglected by me, ever since I started really getting into uploading photos on this blog.
Have a great day! Do tell me sometime how many SkyWatch sites you visited last week!
Jeanelle this was a great post. That calf is adorable. My mother used to pull calves once in a while in a difficult birth but she just used her whole are and hands. Quite the sight to see. I left an award for you on my site. I love coming here.
Oh how I love calving time of the year! It's miracles always brings me joy! My absolute favorite part of having cows! Having to help in the delivery process or not...I LOVE it!
I'm still catching up on my reading after being away from a computer for four days. Sorry for the tardiness of this comment.
You know you're talking to city folks when you have to write, "it was a girl calf, a heifer...." City folks, they're the ones who refer to "girl cows" and "boy cows." I saw an animated cartoon on television recently in which the only difference between the "girl cows" and "boy cows" was the deepness of their voices. What I'm trying to hint at, ever so gingerly, is that the "boy cows" had udders. Your next assignment: explain to the city folks the difference between a bull and a steer.
In addition to her prize-winning Poland China hogs, Florabelle Oxley kept a few dairy cows, including a Brahma bull that managed to break free of the pasture occasionally and terrorize the neighbors. I have seen the birth of a calf up-close and personal, but I had managed to push it from my mind until I read your wonderfully illustrated post. Now I'm going to need a lot of therapy. (jk!)
I suppose I'm too late to join in the naming contest, but since the new heifer's mother is named Rosie and people have suggested names that incorporate "Rose," I suggest "Petal." Then, when she's ready to be attached to a milking machine, you can say you're "putting the Petal to the Metal." :)
Keep up the good work!
I of course meant "as well as," not "including"....
egghead and w.o.w.,
Thanks for dropping by for the birthing!!
rhymeswithplague,
Go to Pioneer Woman Blog.....I think she often blogs about "Rocky Mountain Oysters".......
I DO like your choice of "Petal", and would use it if I didn't already have the tag printed with "Rosebud". Petal to the metal.....you are just something else, you know that!! Good job!
And, did you make that typo on purpose? To see if I would catch it? You're correct, though......nonfarm folks really are in the dark about what a "cow" is!
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