I have a calf in my porch!

[Up North]

Well calving season has arrived again. 2 months later than we wanted. 1st bull we bought last summer was a total dud, not one calf out of him. The second guy we bought has done his duty well. We had 3 heifers and one cow freshen yesterday, as well as many others for the past two weeks. My kids are beginning that calves just pop up like mushrooms. We calve out in the pasture so everytime we go out to get the cows we find a calf. Last night as I was just about to tuck the kids into their beds, I looked out the window and there was another calf! Our house is 1/4 mile away from the milk barn with the cow pasture in between. One of the baby calves managed to make it to our house. It was late and I needed to get the kids to bed so I ran out and grabbed the calf and put her in the porch. I didn't want to leave her out in the field because I was afraid she would go hide in the weeds again. So there you have it. I am drinking my morning coffee typing on the computer with a calf making a big fuss in my porch. Time to bring her up to the farm!

Heather

[Tango]

That sounds like a perfect scenario to me My calving season of one cow is much later than it was supposed to be. I gather you remove the calves right away? How many cows do you have Heather? Sure you've answered these questions before but since I'm having my coffee too, not much memory n the bank at present.

[Up North]

We run about 60 milk cows. We usually keep the calves with the cows for a few days. I like to have the calves stay in the barn as soon as we find them though. We haven't had any predators kill off any of our livestock yet but I don't want to take any chances. We have a pack of coyotes that have a party every night that we can hear. There is a nearby wolf pack and we have bears galore. Luckily we have good mama cows and the woods are far enough away from the buildings that the predators usually don't get too close.

Heather

[Tango]

We have coyotes here, not much else anymore. Maybe I should be living in Wisconsin? If only it werent so cold. J/K as much as I love wolves, it is entirely a different matter, a very sobering one, to have them stalk your animals for dinner. When my goats were here I spent many sleepless nights listening to the coyotes' nearby communications. BTW, Karma is in my carport right now. It's raining. We need a barn!

[lgslgs]

Nothing quite as nice as a nice cup of coffee with a calf peeking in the kitchen window!

Our cow and goats are in their own area right now, but for hunting season we take the screens off the windows and bring everyone up on the back porch and into an adjoining smaller fenced area right next to the house. I never get tired of the clipity clop of hoofies on the porch and watching them watching us.

Lynda

[Leo]

There's nothing cutier than a little one peeking through the window at you.
Congradulations!

[savinggrace]

Well that sounds like a fantastic dilemma!

Hope the rest of calving season goes as well

[milkinpigs]

if ya'll are having nachos for supper.I'll pass....lol

[JulieLou42]

Mention of wolves? We had the Canada Greys imported on us here in the Clearwater Nat'l Forest 10 years ago. They've multiplied greatly, it goes without saying. Now hearing reports seeing newspaper articles about how they take down and eat two $2k bear and cougar hunting dogs; that was about May 24th near Grangeville, Idaho. Then there was a bovine taken down near Grangeville since then. It's pretty gruesome what they've been doing. They are larger and meaner than the native Timber Wolves. Heard Monday at County Commissioner meeting how a pack of them had a herd of elk all rounded up in a canyon and were just teaching their young the "ropes." Left many to die. We worry what will happen when they've depleted the ruminant/ungulant population so much so that they turn to our cattle and dogs and cats. I've heard from hunters who saw it that they gut and rip calves from cow elks, and leave the mothers to die. The hunting outfitters hereabouts are fit to be tied, being run out of business.

Truth is, the tree-hugging Greenies, to put it nicely, want the mountain-rural country all devoid of human habitation.

We dare not let out children out and about without "protection." Wolves have been sighted less than a mile from here.

That's our gov't hard at work for us!!!

In B.C. we heard that the authorities are about giving away permits to take down these wolves.

I have hotwire around my cow and two dogs, a picture of one is my avatar. Wish I could get more of those...maybe three. Don't know what these wolves are 'fraid of, yet...

[Up North]

I thank my lucky stars that we have had no problems. The only incidence we had was a couple of years ago we had a sick old cow out in the pasture. DH happened to look out barn window to see a wolf backing the cow up into a fence corner. He told the two dogs to go after the wolf. They were weanies and didn't do any good. DH ran out there and yelled and swung a stick at wolf. It wasn't too impressed by DH's efforts. It just slowly walked away, not really scared of anything. We put the cow in the barn until she got better and have never had a problem since. I guess we are lucky enough to have a huge deer population also.
The year before that I was a few miles away from home. I saw a wolf mom and dad and their three pups just standing in the ditch. I stopped my car and talked to them. They just stood there and looked at me. It's definately very scary how they are not scared of people.

Heather

[Christina R.]

Congratulations, sounds like this little gal is trying to tell you that she is going to be your favorite!!