Before
church, Doug and I took some hay to the group of cows looking closest
to calving. It was a beautiful chilly morning, and when we got to the
pasture, we found that Trinity had a little heifer waiting for us. She
hadn't been up to nurse yet, but I helped her to stand and let mama do
the rest. Then we cleaned up and went to church.
After
lunch at mom and dad's, we moved the cows from the pasture on one side
of the fence to the other side. I noticed Coconut was laying near
Trinity and her calf, so I figured it was likely she would have a calf
soon. Sometimes when a cow is close to calving or already in labor, she
will show interest in another cow's calf. Coconut also has had problems
with milk fever in the past (that's a calcium imbalance that can
potentially be deadly if not treated, and can also affect uterine
contractions causing calving difficulties), so I was watching her
closely for signs of not feeling right.
Once we
moved these cows, I noticed Connie was pretty obviously having some
contractions. After doing more chores and coming back to check on her, I
found she had delivered a healthy bull calf.
Next
Doug and I had to go back to church for choir practice. When we came home, we got a bite of supper. I had seen from a distance that Coconut
looked like she was finally in active labor, and dad stopped by to check
on her and helped deliver the calf, another heifer. When Coconut's calf
came out, Sally came on the scene and started licking her off. A sure
sign that she was about to have a calf too!
I
walked out to see the latest arrival once we finished eating. Coconut
was still following Trinity's now-spry little calf, and her own calf was
wobbling around where Connie, her baby, and Sally were congregating
(that's the photo above with two cows and a calf between them). My main
concern was whether Coconut's calf would get the antibody-rich colostrum
she needed from a mama (any mama's milk would do at this point!) or if I needed to thaw and warm some in a bottle for her. I had
a couple other things to finish up, and as it got dark Doug and I
walked back to the pasture one more time. Sally's calf was born while we
were out there. Behind her, Coconut's calf was nursing away on Connie.
Whew!
The next day, it became apparent that Sally
was still concerned for Coconut's calf as well as her own, so I penned
the three of them in the barn together for a couple days to help them
all bond well. Sally is an excellent mama cow, but she doesn't like to
give her milk to us...only her baby! I've attempted to graft a second
calf onto her in the past but she rejected that idea...even after
behaving this same way on her delivery day, thinking another calf was
hers! Thankfully this year she thinks she actually had two babies, and
is looking out for both of them!
The next three
cows have been decidedly less dramatic, which is always nice. I have to
say, though, even though there was a little drama on Sunday, it all
worked out...kinda like God was showing me He's got this! It's no
surprise, really. After all, Trinity was the first cow to calve. When
the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are first, everything else falls into
place. And the sire of Trinity's calf is Sonny. Get it? The Son? The
father is the Son... Jesus said He and the Father are one, and His prayer is that we would be one just as He and the Father are. I named the baby
Tav. The last letter of the Hebrew alphabet. A letter which represents
truth, perfection, and praise. The letter spelled out is also a word,
which means "mark". Though little Tav is a grayish chocolate brown
(dark), she has a few little white hairs on her forehead. She's marked.
It's barely visible, even when you're pretty close. It reminds me of how
light is meant to burst forth from the darkness. It's always there. Sometimes you just
have to lean in close enough to see it. <3 |
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