Goodness and Mercy

Yesterday morning in Morning Worship, we sang the hymn, "Surely Goodness and Mercy."  It is such a happy, catchy, fun song to sing.  The hymn is based off of the Scripture Psalm 23:6 "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever."

I remarked that Goodness and Mercy would be great names to name sheep or goat twins!  Wouldn't that be the perfect names?  Just so happens, Mathilda is very pregnant with her first kids.  This morning at sunrise we went to the barn for our daily chores.  I put together all the feed and then I began to milk Clarabelle, the cow, as Tricia was feeding the chickens, opening nesting boxes and getting the goats in their places.  She said, "Mathilda is in labor!"

She updated me that Mathilda had feet poking out of her.  As she brought her into the barn and separated her in the stall, I could immediately tell that there were some problems.  Legs were protruding, for sure, but from the feet, you could tell that it was a breech birth.  Labor was not progressing and to make a long story short, Tricia timed Mathilda's contractions with pulling and was able to deliver the kid.

It was a female, but unfortunately, it was dead.  But, Mathilda wasn't done.  There was another kid coming.  Her labor was not progressing and Tricia had to assist with this delivery as well.  This was a male, and he was dead, too.  A very sad morning, to be sure.

The female, on the right, below, looked just like Mathilda.  The male, on the left, below, was spotted.

We are watching Mathilda closely after this ordeal.  She is very swollen from the stalled labor and delivery.  We were hoping to be able to be able to name these twins, Goodness and Mercy, and have them follow us all the days of our lives, but we'll save those names for later.  We'll have more twins come along in the future!  

A Sad Day for Luna

Saturday while we were putting the hay in the loft, I noticed something not quite right.  Luna, one of our Jersey milk cows, was not acting as she normally should.  She was hunched over and when I walked around her, there was a long thread of blood mucous.  Then it became obvious.  She's in labor!  But it can't be.  She's not due until January.  I called Tricia over to check things out.

At that moment, Tricia told me that she could see a nose and a tongue.  In a few minutes of pushing, the head was out.  But something was dreadfully wrong.  The feet weren't coming out and the baby calf did not appear to be breathing.

Warning: Unsavory photos follow

Tricia got on the phone with the veterinarian to see if she could find one on call.  Luna had just gone into labor and would push and periodically get up and walk around and then sit back down again.  She had plenty of strength.  We decided to let her continue to push versus pulling the calf or calling the veterinarian out on a farm call.

In just a moment, Luna delivered the calf - a little heifer.  Dead.  Two months premature.  We don't know what happened.  This is the second calf that Luna delivered dead.  We are going to run some tests to try to figure out the issue.

Calving is normally a very happy, exciting time and this time, it was a time of sadness.  We watched over the next few hours as Luna came and looked for her baby, walking back and forth, bellowing loud, melancholy moos, calling for her little girl.  We were so anticipating a heifer.  We've had nothing but bulls lately, but it was not meant to be.

Cows that deliver calves, regardless if they live or not, produce milk.  Here we go again.  Later that evening, we found ourselves in the barn, milking the colostrum out of Luna and feeding it to the hens.  Luna kicked at me briefly while I was milking her, so I hobbled her leg.  She'll settle down, poor girl.

Our other two cows, Rosie and Clarabelle, should also be bred.  Hopefully, we see a happier outcome.  Meanwhile, on the bright side, we'll have fresh milk again.

Clarabelle Calved!

Clarabelle was due last week.  We were watching her closely.  We were hoping for a little heifer as we've had five little bulls in a row.  Time for a heifer!  Tricia happened to be home on Saturday afternoon when things started happening.  Clarabelle was way out in the front when a hoof poked out.  It seemed to be pointed the right way.

Then the hoof disappeared.  Clarabelle started walking all the way to the barn.  Tricia figured she wanted some privacy.  Once in the barn, things started progressing again.  Two legs, a nose, a pink tongue.  Tricia noticed that the calf was breathing.

Contractions continued and Clarabelle soon had the calf's shoulders out.

And in no time at all, the baby, in all its slimy glory, was out on the barn floor.

Clarabelle began cleaning the calf up with a complete 'lick-down.'

Here is a "post-lick" baby portrait.  Cute.  But I regret to inform you that IT IS ANOTHER LITTLE BULL!!!  Six bulls in a row.  Unbelievable.

Clarabelle made a big mess in the barn with all the after-birth.  After a few hours she had him mostly cleaned up, but when he would move around, he would get all dirty again.

Then Clarabelle began the task that is instinctive.  She began to eat the placenta.

Clarabelle's little bull is weak.  After four and a half hours, he still hadn't stood up and hadn't drank any colostrum.  We worked with him for a while, but he was just too awkward and weak to stand.  We figured we would get some colostrum in him one way or another, so I milked out a quart of colostrum into a big baby bottle.  Tricia gave him the bottle, and he quickly drained it, so we milked more out and gave him another.

By Sunday, the little bull was able to stand up, but still wasn't drinking on his own.  We milked more into the milk bottle and gave more to him to give him more strength and vigor.  We tried to direct him to Clarabelle's udder, but when he would get close, Clarabelle would kick him away.  We put the "Kow Kan't Kick" device on Clarabelle and urged him to try to nurse, but it was a no go. 

The little bull has gotten stronger and is standing now.  He has the nursing instinct as he is walking around Clarabelle "bumping" into her to try to find milk, but hasn't been successful yet.  We're making sure he is getting colostrum in him as that is so very important.

We made some good progress today.  Hopefully we'll have some good news to report tomorrow.

A New Arrival On The Farm

Friday evening after I got home from work I gathered my bucket and rags and headed out to the barn to do the evening chores.  This consists of feeding chickens, goats, cows, closing up the nesting boxes in the hen house, putting out hay and then finally, milking Luna.  I got all this done and Rosie had still not showed up at the barn. 

This is uncharacteristic of her.  It scared me a little bit.  I had called Benjamin in the afternoon to check on her and he said she was in the pasture grazing.  But now it was four hours later.  What if she was calving and having difficulty?  I better go check on her.  I went inside and got my flashlight and headed out to the dark pasture.  I couldn't find her.  My pace quickened.  Finally I saw something...

Whoa!  A new calf.  And it is up!  Rosie was finishing up eating the placenta.  The calf had already been licked.  The best I can figure is that the calf was probably between 2 and 3 hours old.  I got them into the barn the very next morning so I could get a closer look.  Cute little booger!

Time to determine the sex.  The evening before, I had put my hand underneath and I think I felt the equipment that told me what I needed to know, but here's photo evidence.  Yep, that's a bull calf scrotum.  It's a boy.

In the above photo, there's something a little strange.  You can see four teats.  Just like a heifer.  Why does a bull calf have teats?  Well, all fetuses start out in the womb as a female.  The chest develops before hormones change the sex organs.  The teats on a bull are non-functional.

So another bull!  The last three born on the farm have all been bulls.  We always want heifers.  Maybe when Clarabelle calves later in the spring, she'll give us one.  This little guy is the offspring of a registered Jersey bull from Australia.

G'Day Mate!

He's a strong little fellow.  In no time at all, he had nursed on Rosie and had filled up on all the colostrum that Rosie produced to ensure that the bull got a great head start.

In a couple of days, Rosie's milk will freshen (come in) and she'll have enough milk to take care of her growing calf and our family.  A bull wasn't what we were looking for, but we'll be thankful for a healthy momma and calf and for all the fresh milk she'll be producing.  As far as a name, we haven't thought of one yet.  Since he's a bull we don't normally name them sentimental names since they are destined for the freezer once they are older.  If we did name him, it would be something with an "Australian-flair" since that's where the sire was from.

Ol' Rosie - Almost Time!

What are some things that catch your eye in the photo below?

The first thing, I'm sure, is that I've taken the photo facing into the morning sun.  You're not supposed to do that.  It gives the picture a hazy appearance.  The second thing is likely the muddy ground.  The cows are standing in ankle deep mud to eat their hay. They slosh through the mud and walk around the hay ring to eat.  What a mess!  The goats absolutely hate walking through water and mud, but they'll eventually get there.  As you can see, they are small enough to fit through the hay ring and they stand on the pallet I place underneath the bale to keep it out of the mud and water.  Behind the hay you can see the remnants of the water oak tree we took down this summer.  I'll eventually get that cut up and stacked.

What may be less evident from the photo is Rosie's girth.  She is very pregnant.  I think her due date is in four days.  We can feel her baby kicking in her belly every day.  Rosie's vulva is becoming 'flabby,' which is a sure sign of imminent calving.  We've also begun to see mucous discharge, but her bag hasn't really begun to 'bloom' yet.  We'll be keeping a sharp eye on her.  As usual we are praying for a heifer.  Our freezer is full of meat, so we don't really need a bull calf right now.  A heifer would be ideal.  We could either use her as a replacement or we could sell her and make some rare farm income.  One thing I'm a little concerned with is the deep mud due to all the rain we've had.  If it doesn't dry up soon (and that doesn't seem likely), a little calf will have its work cut out for her/him walking in all the mud.  We may have to keep them in the barn for a while until things dry out.

Anyway, we'll keep you posted when Rosie goes into labor and delivers the newest arrival at Our Maker's Acres Family Farm.

A Tough Day for Luna

Springtime means lots of babies around the farm.  We have two bull calves born less than six months ago, 51 two-week old chicks, the triplet goats born on March 3rd.  We've also posted about Luna, our Jersey heifer who was expecting her first calf.  In fact, just the other day we were posting about how it was going to be any day now that she would calve.

Well, she never went into labor.  Her udder was swollen and dripping milk.  Her vulva was swollen.  However, things just didn't seem right.  She stopped eating and became lethargic.  Tricia had intuition that things weren't quite right.  Yesterday morning Luna was laying on the ground groaning, but no baby was coming.

Tricia called our veterinarian to come do a "farm call."  He arrived quickly since his office is only a mile away.  Luna was worn out.  Dr. Fontenot was concerned about her.  He quickly began pulling the calf.  The calf was positioned correctly with the front legs poised to come out first, but the calf's head and neck was turned at an awkward angle and our veterinarian had to re-position the calf's head to deliver it.

Unfortunately, Luna's little calf was dead.  It was very strange in that the calf was a 100% registered Jersey and it was mostly white.  It was a little bull calf.  All of our calves this year have been bulls.  Tragically, this little fellow is dead.  We buried him in the garden.  Although very sad, our attention turned to Luna.

When I got home last night, Luna was in trouble.  She was down way out in the pasture and could not get up.  I brought a bucket of alfalfa and a drench syringe full of molasses diluted with water.  Pretty soon, we had Luna up and walking back to the barn.  I was able to milk her out and we saved the colostrum that would have gone to her calf and we froze it.  It is always good to have some colostrum frozen as "insurance" should you have a calf that didn't get any from the momma.  It is crucial that the calf gets it.

This morning before daybreak, I went out and checked on Luna.  She was down and groaning and was unable to get up.  I moved her to the sitting up position and was able to get her standing and eating some feed and hay.  Things are 'touch and go' with her right now, but I think she's made a good turn for the better today and I was able to milk her again this evening.

We will continue to observe her.  Sadly, we didn't get a calf, but if we can keep Luna healthy, at least we've got fresh milk.

Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad (Our Newest Arrival in the Pasture!)

Nope, I'm not talking about the popular Meatloaf song by this name (Two out of Three Ain't Bad) released in 1977.  I'm talking about the newest addition to our little animal family on Our Maker's Acres Family Farm. This year our Jersey cows have given us the following:

• Rosie gave us a little heifer we named Clarabelle, 
• Daisy gave us a little heifer named Luna, and now...
• Amy gave us a little BULL named Chuck.  (well, maybe this post is about Meatloaf after all!)

We always hope for heifers and this year we got two out of three - and that ain't bad. I was planting some turnips in the last three rows of our garden.  The turnip greens and turnip roots mature in about 50 days and they will be fed to the cows during the coldest part of our winter here in south Louisiana. Anyway, while I was planting, I kept hearing the calves (Clarabelle & Luna) mooing.  Finally, I looked up to see what all the racket was.  I saw something beside Amy way out in the pasture. The curious heifers were mooing to welcome the newest arrival.

Three's company

Amy must have just delivered the calf since it was wet and she had just commenced 'cleaning the calf up by licking.'  Steam was rising off of the calf's little body.

Baby's first bath

Well, let's check and see what the sex is - boy or girl?  I lifted the leg (hoping for a heifer) and observed male body parts. Oh well, two out of three ain't bad.  Notice how the hooves are white. They quickly turn black and harden up.

It's a...  BOY.

It is always amazing to us the way that motherly instincts kick in.  This is Amy's first calf and she instinctively knows what to do without any guidance or help from her momma or other cows.  She protectively watched every move I made as she licked her little boy down.

Gimme a kiss, momma

Amy's bag was swollen and filled with colostrum.  In fact, you can see the thick, yellow, antibody and nutrient-filled first milk dripping from her teats.

Colostrum leaking

After a bit, Daisy arrived to see the new arrival along with her baby, Luna.  There was plenty of excitement.  I watched Luna and Clarabelle both lift their tails skyward and run around the pasture, unable to contain their joy.  Daisy and Rosie? Well this wasn't their first rodeo.  They were markedly more sedate about the whole thing.

Visiting the baby

For such a scrawny little thing, the little bull had lots of energy.  He wasn't 10 minutes on the ground before he began clumsily trying to stand on wobbly legs. He'd make progress and then fall.  He was persistent though.

Baby it's cold outside...

After only 30 minutes had passed, the little bull was on his feet.  That sets a record for us easily. Most of our other calves have been very slow to get on their feet and even slower to nurse.  This little fella began immediately to search for his supper - on the WRONG END like they always do!

Hey buddy, the other side!

He finally smelled supper, I presume, and began trying to latch on.  He was unsuccessful, though, and as his head hit the udder, it made the colostrum shoot out of Amy's teats in high-pressure streams. Amy was uninterested in her little boy's attempts as she ate some Dairy ration and alfalfa pellets that Tricia gave her.

Both animals trying to enjoy a meal

Once Amy was finished with her supper, she become a more willing participant in helping the newborn learn to suckle.  She gently nudged him backward with her head, getting him in the right position, mooing soft encouragement to her baby.

Back up a bit, fella!

In no time flat, the little guy hit pay dirt, latching on and drinking the sustenance that will give him a great head start - nutrient and antibody-laden colostrum - Liquid Gold! 

He found the milk spigot!!

So with 3 1/2 weeks left to go in 2015, all our cows had successful deliveries - 2 heifers and 1 bull. We think we're going to name him "Chuck" or "Sir Loin," we're not sure yet  We'll keep you posted on how he's growing and, most importantly, if Amy is going to be a good milker.  She's definitely very gentle and a good momma to her first calf.  Obviously, she's never been milked before, so we're anxious to see how that goes.  We'll find out tonight!