New calf pictures

Ruralnurse · #1 04/12/13, 05:54 PM

We got our first calf (well in years, both husband and I used to have cattle as teens). She’s a heifer. I know for those that raise cattle to sell it is not something you would want. But they are fine for us. These girls seem to prefer to go out and eat whatever they find to the hay. And we only give them enough grain (1 cup or so every few days) to keep them a bit tame.

Momma seems to have plenty of milk. Her bag is big and if she was not so wild we would be tempted to milk her. She had her up in the hillside and kept her hidden for a few days before she brought her out.

Just know that everyone likes cute calf pictures so thought I would share.
Ruralnurse

countryfied2011 · #2 04/12/13, 07:23 PM

too cute!

DJ in WA · #3 04/12/13, 10:31 PM

Nice looking calf. What's the breeding?

I like heifers - don't have to band them, and if they're any good, I can sell, or keep if I like them better than my current cow. And, yes, heifers can make beef, and alot more should instead of being bred.

I was milking a not real tame beef cow last year. Of course, I worked a while to get her halter trained. I'd be tempted to see how much I could do with this one. Food/treats work wonders to get them to like you to the point they'll let you handle them.

Nothing like a quart of fresh milk for your cereal. I would just milk into a mason jar with cheesecloth over it held by a rubber band - just put a lid on and throw it in the frig.

Karen in Alabam · #4 04/12/13, 11:44 PM

Very cute

Miss Kay · #5 04/13/13, 07:16 AM

Thanks for the pictures, she's very pretty.

SueMc · #6 04/13/13, 08:33 AM

Pretty momma and baby. Plus your cow actually has teats that could be milked by hand!

Ruralnurse · #7 04/13/13, 08:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DJ in WA

Nice looking calf. What's the breeding?

The two moms are corrientee/longhorn and they were bred to a longhorn per the guy I got them from. They really are hardy like I have read. I was surprised to see how big this girl's bag got. It reminds me of a hereford we had when I was a kid that we milked. She had nice long teats and was easy to milk.

The other one is supposedly due about a month from now and she is much easier to handle. If she bags up the same we may try to milk her a bit. I would at least like to get some colostrum from her and freeze it. We have large ranchers around that occasionally lose a cow and have a calf that did not get colostrum. Because that can so often be a death sentence they will give the calf away.

I know these are not the typical angus that most people want and lots of folks consider them just roping or rodeo cattle, but we like them. They are smaller, can really fend for themselves and from my understanding typically do not have calving issues. These girls would rather be on the hillside grazing than eating hay even with snow on the ground. And they cost us a lot less to buy. We are just hoping to grow some beef for us and family so they will do fine.

Ruralnurse