Calves on our farm are born out in the pasture. We calve seasonally, which means all of them give birth in the spring and summer. That way, they can have them outdoors while the weather is still nice for little calves.
Our second calf was born today! After Kris picked her up, he took her to the calf barn to bed her down with lots of straw. Then he got iodine to clean off her belly button.
He then got colostrum from the mother in the milk parlor and poured it into a calf bottle.
Look at that foam!
While he warmed up the milk ...
He cleaned her belly button.
Then it was time to feed the sleepy calf.
After she was full, the boys helped take everything back into the milk room to wash up.
There are lots of bottles to wash when you have tons of calves ... the dishwasher is ready! (I know people who enjoy washing dishes. I'm not that person. We're a big fan of the dishwasher.)
Kris gets lots of help from our team and our boys ...
See the background? All of them are pregnant! We're ramping up for a busy calving season!
1. True or False. When calves are born, farmers bed them down with hay.
2. What do farmers commonly use to clean calves' belly buttons?
3. In mammals, what is a mother's first milk called?
Scroll down for answers ...
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If you answered 1. False (straw), 2. Iodine, and 3. Colostrum - congrats! Come on over and help with some calves! That dishwasher is nice, but everything around here isn't near as automatic.
2 comments:
Thanks for the detailed guide with photos!
You're welcome! I liked your post on fainting goats. I saw one once - so interesting!
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